The apex of the ordinary judiciary, exercising cassation in civil and criminal matters and hearing appeals in the recurso de protección, Chile's rapid remedy for fundamental rights. It also has directive, corrective and economic authority over all other courts, giving it unusually strong administrative control of the judiciary.
How the court is constituted
- Tier
- supreme
- Court type
- Supreme court of cassation
- Jurisdiction
- National
- Seat
- Santiago
- Established
- 1823
- Composition
- Twenty-one justices sitting in specialised chambers; sixteen are career judges and five come from outside the judiciary.
- Appointment
- Appointed by the President from a five-name list drawn up by the Court itself, with the agreement of two-thirds of the Senate.
- Languages
- Spanish
Where an appeal goes next
Final in ordinary matters; constitutional inapplicability goes to the Constitutional Tribunal.
Filing at this court
- Recurso de protección deadline
- 30 days from the act or omission
- Electronic filing
- Oficina Judicial Virtual with Clave Única
Decisions worth knowing
- Atala Riffo line of cases2004
Removed custody from a lesbian mother; later condemned by the Inter-American Court in 2012.
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