Judicial Branch Institutions

Please find below a list of institutions that, together with the Office of the Attorney General, comprise the Judicial Branch:

Superior Council of the Judiciary (Consejo Superior de la Judicatura): This organism manages the Judicial Branch resources. That is why, it is said that managing and planning are its main functions. The Council is composed of two chambers:

Disciplinary Chamber: It makes decisions concerning processes in which public servants of the Judicial Branch are being investigated

Administrative Chamber: It manages the Judicial Branch resources and especially those related to people who work there.

The Constitutional Court (Corte Constitucional): The court is an organism of the Judicial Branch which is in charge of safeguarding the political constitution integrity and supremacy. Its functions are described in article 241 of the Constitution and they mainly consist on deciding about lawsuits brought by citizens against Laws, Decrees with Force of Law enacted by Government and draft legislations reforming the Constitution, among others.

The Supreme Court (Corte Suprema):  It is the highest court of the Ordinary Jurisdiction. It deals with functions established by article 235 of the Political Constitution of Colombia (Constitución Politica de Colombia).

The Council of State (Consejo de Estado): It is the highest court of administrative matters and the Government´s advisory body. It is divided into five sections and it has a chamber denominated (Sala de Consulta) and (Servicio Civil). It is composed of 31 magistrates which are appointed by the Plenary Chamber based on a list submitted by the Superior Council of the Judiciary (Consejo Superior de la Judicatura).

Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences Institute (Instituto Nacional de Medicina Legal y Ciencias Forenses)

It is a public institution of technical scientific reference which runs and controls the Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences system in Colombia. It provides the community and law enforcement agencies with forensic services supported by scientific research and the most suitable people.