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# The medical ethics tribunals: process and sanctions

- Law

The medical ethics tribunals investigate complaints against doctors and can warn, censure or suspend them from practice for up to five years.

Updated Nov 5, 2026

## Key points

- Two levels: regional tribunals (first instance) and the National Tribunal (second instance and long suspension).
- Four sanctions: private warning, censure, suspension up to six months, suspension up to five years.
- Only the National Tribunal imposes suspension up to five years (art. 89); its appeal goes to the Ministry of Health.
- The ethics process is independent of criminal and civil proceedings.
- Anyone can file a complaint; at least summary evidence is needed.

## What it is

Title III of Law 23 of 1981 creates the National Medical Ethics Tribunal, based in Bogotá, and a regional tribunal in each department. They judge breaches of ethics in a professional disciplinary process that can start on the tribunal's own initiative or on a complaint from anyone. The tribunals perform a public function, but their members are not public officials. The process is independent of criminal, civil or administrative actions for the same facts.

## Key articles

- Art. 74: the process starts on the tribunal's own initiative or at the request of an entity or any person, with at least summary evidence of the act.
- Art. 75: once the complaint is accepted, the president appoints an investigating member who reports conclusions within no more than fifteen working days (extendable, art. 78).
- Art. 76: if the facts suggest a crime or a civil or administrative wrong, the competent authority is informed at the same time.
- Art. 80: the tribunal decides that there is no case or brings charges; the hearing of the defence takes place between ten and twenty working days after the charges are notified.
- Art. 83: sanctions: a) private warning; b) censure (written and private, written and public, or spoken and public); c) suspension for up to six months; d) suspension for up to five years.
- Art. 84: the regional tribunal imposes sanctions a), b) and c); if it finds that d) applies, it sends the case to the National Tribunal.
- Arts. 87 to 89: against a warning or censure only a request for reconsideration lies; against suspension up to six months, reconsideration or appeal to the National Tribunal (fifteen working days); against suspension up to five years, reconsideration or appeal to the Ministry of Health (thirty working days).
- Art. 82: where the law is silent, the Code of Criminal Procedure applies.

## What it covers

- National Tribunal (arts. 63 to 66): five doctors chosen by the Ministry of Health from a list of ten (four proposed by the Colombian Medical Federation, three by the National Academy of Medicine and three by the medical schools); two-year term.
- Regional tribunals (arts. 67 to 70): five doctors per department, chosen by the National Tribunal from lists of the medical associations; two-year term.
- Art. 73: they perform a public function; their members do not thereby become public officials.

## Step by step

- Complaint or action on the tribunal's own initiative, with summary evidence of the act (art. 74).
- The president assigns an investigating member, who investigates and gathers evidence (art. 75).
- The investigator submits a report of conclusions and the full tribunal studies it (art. 79).
- Decision: no case and the file is closed, or written charges are brought (art. 80).
- Hearing of the doctor's defence; the doctor may be advised by a lawyer (arts. 77 and 80).
- Final ruling: acquittal or a sanction according to the seriousness (arts. 81 and 83).
- Remedies: reconsideration and, depending on the sanction, appeal (arts. 87 to 89).

## Sanctions under Law 23 of 1981 and their remedies

| Sanction (art. 83) | Who imposes it | Remedies |
| --- | --- | --- |
| a) Private warning | Regional or national tribunal | Reconsideration only (art. 87) |
| b) Censure: written private, written public or spoken public | Regional or national tribunal | Reconsideration only (art. 87) |
| c) Suspension up to six months | Regional tribunal | Reconsideration or appeal to the National Tribunal (art. 88) |
| d) Suspension up to five years | National Tribunal only | Reconsideration or appeal to the Ministry of Health (art. 89) |

## In clinical practice

- Answering on time and with a complete medical record is the best defence: what is not written down is hard to prove.
- One complaint can open an ethics, a criminal and a civil process at the same time; the ethics process does not replace the others (art. 76).
- Ethics sanctions are reported to the national health workforce register (Rethus) under Law 1164 of 2007, art. 23.

## Status and official text

- Official text checked on 2026-11-05 on funcionpublica.gov.co (Law 23 of 1981) and minsalud.gov.co (Decree 780 of 2016).
- The procedure is complemented by Decree 3380 of 1981, compiled in Decree 780 of 2016 (arts. 2.7.2.2.1.2.1 to 2.7.2.2.1.2.27): decisions by absolute majority, notice of the ruling within five working days, publication of censure and suspension, and repeat misconduct (the same breach twice or more within a year) leading to the next higher sanction.
- Art. 72 of Law 23 was repealed by art. 136 of Decree 19 of 2012.
- Reading note: art. 84 refers by mistake to «article 84»; from context it means the letters of art. 83.

## Test yourself

Think of the answer, then tap the question to see it.

## What sanctions does art. 83 of Law 23 of 1981 set?

Private warning; censure (written and private, written and public, or spoken and public); suspension up to six months; and suspension up to five years.

## Which tribunal can suspend a doctor from practice for up to five years?

Only the National Medical Ethics Tribunal (art. 89). A regional tribunal that thinks it applies must send it the case (art. 84).

## Who can start an ethics disciplinary process against a doctor?

The tribunal on its own initiative, a public or private entity, or any person; always with at least summary evidence of the act (art. 74).

## Does the ethics process prevent a criminal process for the same facts?

No. If there are signs of a crime or of a civil or administrative wrong, the tribunal informs the competent authority while its own process continues (art. 76).

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## Connections

## Related 3

- [Ley 23 de 1981: the Colombian medical ethics law](https://durgical.com/en/medical-ethics/ley-23-de-1981-the-colombian-medical-ethics-law/)
- [Ley 1164 de 2007: health workforce](https://durgical.com/en/medical-ethics/ley-1164-de-2007-health-workforce/)
- [Medical liability: obligation of means and lex artis](https://durgical.com/en/medical-ethics/medical-liability-obligation-of-means-and-lex-artis/)

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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 23 de 1981, Título III: órganos de control y régimen disciplinario](https://www.funcionpublica.gov.co/eva/gestornormativo/norma.php?i=68760) (Función Pública, Gestor Normativo, 1981); [Decreto 780 de 2016, Book 2, Part 7, Title 2, Chapter 2: ethics in the health professions (compiles Decree 3380 of 1981)](https://www.minsalud.gov.co/Normatividad_Nuevo/Decreto%200780%20de%202016.pdf) (Ministerio de Salud y Protección Social, 2016).

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