Consent in minors: progressive autonomy in Colombian law
- Topic
Parents authorise their children's treatment, but the minor's view weighs more the more mature the minor is.
What it is
In Colombia, everyone under 18 holds rights: children from 0 to 12 and adolescents from 12 to 18 (Law 1098 of 2006, art. 3). As a rule, parents or legal representatives give substitute consent, but they do not own decisions about their child's body. The Constitutional Court developed progressive autonomy: the more mature the minor, the more weight their own decision carries and the less the parents' does. To judge a parental permission, the Court weighs the urgency and need for the treatment, its impact and risks, and the minor's age and maturity (doctrine of SU-337 of 1999, restated in T-551 of 1999).
Constitutional Court rulings on minors and medical treatment
| Ruling | Case | What it decided |
|---|---|---|
| T-474 of 1996 | 16-year-old with cancer, a Jehovah's Witness, refusing transfusions | Upheld continuing the treatment the parents had authorised |
| SU-337 of 1999 | 8-year-old girl with genital ambiguity; mother and doctors disagreed on surgery | The parents cannot substitute her consent; an interdisciplinary team decides when she can decide |
| T-551 of 1999 | Child under 5 with genital ambiguity | Defined a qualified and persistent parental consent (informed, in writing) |
| T-083 of 2021 | 17-year-old with leukaemia, a Jehovah's Witness | Ordered respect for her refusal of transfusions and a search for alternatives |
In clinical practice
- Include the child in the conversation according to development and seek assent, even when the parents decide.
- For irreversible interventions that affect identity (such as non-urgent genital surgery in intersex conditions), the Court prefers to wait until the minor can decide.
- If parents refuse life-saving treatment for a child, the child's best interest prevails and the legal route is activated.
- A mature adolescent can be heard even against the parents' view; age guides, but does not settle everything.
Legal framework in Colombia
- Law 1098 of 2006 (Children and Adolescents Code): arts. 3, 8 (best interest), 26 (right to be heard), 27 (health) and 46 item 6 (immediate action when life is in danger; upheld as constitutional in ruling C-900 of 2011).
- Law 23 of 1981, art. 14: no surgery on minors without authorisation from parents or guardians, except in an emergency.
- Case law: T-474 of 1996, SU-337 of 1999, T-551 of 1999 and T-083 of 2021 (Constitutional Court).
- Official texts checked on 2026-11-05 at funcionpublica.gov.co and corteconstitucional.gov.co.
Test yourself
Think of the answer, then tap the question to see it.
What ages does Law 1098 of 2006 set for child and adolescent?
Child, from 0 to 12 years; adolescent, from 12 to 18 years (article 3).
What criteria does the Constitutional Court use to judge parents' substitute consent?
The urgency and need for the treatment, its impact and risks, and the minor's age and maturity.
What did ruling SU-337 of 1999 require for parents to authorise genital surgery in an intersex minor?
That the child be under 5 and that the permission be informed, qualified and persistent; after that, the decision belongs to the minor.
What did the Court decide in ruling T-083 of 2021?
It protected a 17-year-old Jehovah's Witness with leukaemia: it ordered respect for her refusal of transfusions and a search for alternatives through a medical board.
Connections
Educational content on ethics and health law; not legal advice. Laws and case law change: each page links the official text and says when it was last checked. For a real case, read the text in force and ask a lawyer or the medical ethics tribunal.
Sources: Ley 1098 de 2006, Código de la Infancia y la Adolescencia (Función Pública, Gestor Normativo, 2006); Ley 23 de 1981, por la cual se dictan normas en materia de ética médica (Función Pública, Gestor Normativo, 1981); Sentencia SU-337 de 1999 (Corte Constitucional de Colombia, 1999); Sentencia T-551 de 1999 (Corte Constitucional de Colombia, 1999); Sentencia T-474 de 1996 (Corte Constitucional de Colombia, 1996); Sentencia T-083 de 2021 (Corte Constitucional de Colombia, 2021); Parental Decision Making (University of Washington, Department of Bioethics & Humanities, 2018).
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Representative model, for educational purposes only.