In 2001, in Pereira, a 3-year-old girl's pneumonia with pleural effusion was not diagnosed in time. She went into cardiorespiratory arrest and was left with permanent neurological after-effects. The trial court and the appeals court dismissed the family's claim.
The Supreme Court overturned that ruling in 2021 (SC2348-2021), ordered further evidence and, on March 27, 2025, issued the replacement ruling SC072-2025.
What the Supreme Court decided
- It held the health insurer (EPS) (now liquidated) and the health provider (IPS) that treated the girl jointly liable.
- It awarded moral damages, loss of enjoyment of life and lost income to the girl, her mother, her sister and her grandmother.
- As damage to health, it ordered that the girl receive free therapy and medication for life.
- It ordered La Previsora S.A., the insurer brought into the case, to pay the claimants directly up to COP 270 million: the policy limit minus the deductible.
Why it matters
Usually, when an insurer is brought into a case "as guarantor", it is ordered to reimburse the insured for what the insured pays. Here the Court went further: the insurer pays the victim. Some legal scholars question this approach, but it speeds up getting the money to the person harmed.
The ruling also recognizes damage to health as a category of its own in civil cases.
What it means if something similar happened to you
There is almost always a policy behind whoever is responsible: civil liability insurance, the clinic's, the vehicle's or the venue's. Knowing which one it is and how much it covers changes the strategy of the case. Insurance contracts have their own limitation periods, so it's worth checking them early.
Sources
- Corte Suprema de Justicia, sentencia SC072-2025 (texto en el régimen legal de Bogotá) (27 de marzo de 2025)
- Corte Suprema de Justicia, Gaceta de Jurisprudencia Civil 03-2025 (2025)
This is a summary of public news written by García & Asociados Abogados for informational purposes. Every case depends on its own facts and evidence: it doesn’t mean another case will have the same outcome.
Photo: Palace of Justice in Bogotá, seat of Colombia's Supreme Court — José Luiz Bernardes Ribeiro, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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