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# 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.

Updated Nov 5, 2026

## Key points

- Law 1098 of 2006, art. 3: child 0–12 years; adolescent 12–18 years.
- Law 1098, art. 26: children and adolescents have the right to be heard and to have their views considered.
- SU-337 of 1999: parental permission for genital surgery in intersex conditions is legitimate only under age 5 and if informed, qualified and persistent.
- The Court's criteria: urgency and need, impact and risks, age and maturity of the minor.
- Law 1098, art. 46 item 6: if life is in imminent danger and the representative does not authorise (even for religious reasons), the team acts at once.
- T-083 of 2021: a mature 17-year-old's refusal of transfusions was respected, with alternative treatments.

## 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.

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## Connections

## Related 1

- [Informed consent: elements and how to obtain it](https://durgical.com/en/medical-ethics/informed-consent-elements-and-how-to-obtain-it/)

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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](https://www.funcionpublica.gov.co/eva/gestornormativo/norma.php?i=22106) (Función Pública, Gestor Normativo, 2006); [Ley 23 de 1981, por la cual se dictan normas en materia de ética médica](https://www.funcionpublica.gov.co/eva/gestornormativo/norma.php?i=68760) (Función Pública, Gestor Normativo, 1981); [Sentencia SU-337 de 1999](https://www.corteconstitucional.gov.co/relatoria/1999/SU337-99.htm) (Corte Constitucional de Colombia, 1999); [Sentencia T-551 de 1999](https://www.corteconstitucional.gov.co/relatoria/1999/t-551-99.htm) (Corte Constitucional de Colombia, 1999); [Sentencia T-474 de 1996](https://www.corteconstitucional.gov.co/relatoria/1996/T-474-96.htm) (Corte Constitucional de Colombia, 1996); [Sentencia T-083 de 2021](https://www.corteconstitucional.gov.co/relatoria/2021/t-083-21.htm) (Corte Constitucional de Colombia, 2021); [Parental Decision Making](https://depts.washington.edu/bhdept/ethics-medicine/bioethics-topics/detail/72) (University of Washington, Department of Bioethics & Humanities, 2018).

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License: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Cite as: DurgiPedia (durgical.com), https://durgical.com/en/medical-ethics/consent-in-minors-progressive-autonomy-in-colombian-law/