The State Council admitted a lawsuit that questions the validity of Decree 033 of January 17, 2025, issued by the Presidency of the Republic and the Ministries of Justice and Agriculture.
The judicial action, filed by the Foundation for the Rule of Law (Fede. Colombia), asks for the nullity of the norm when considering that it exceeds the regulatory power of the Executive, violates fundamental rights and puts at risk the legal certainty of rural owners in the country.
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Decree 033 introduced substantial modifications in the regime for the acquisition of rural properties and in the operation of the registration public service in agrarian reform areas.
Among the provisions, he reintroduced the privileged option of buying land by the National Land Agency (ANT) and He established that individuals in prioritized municipalities must inform that entity about any business of sale or promise of sale of land with areas greater than two family agricultural units.
This allows the State to interrupt or replace the negotiation between individuals and preferably exercise their right of acquisition. According to the demand, these measures even apply to current businesses, which affects the contractual freedom and legitimate confidence of acquirers and owners.
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The lawsuit argues that the norm created expropriatory powers without legal support and reduced the public consultation required by law to four days.
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According to Fede. Colombia, the decree created expropriatory procedures and powers without a prior law of the Congress that supports them. The organization also denounced irregularities in the issuance of the administrative act, since the public consultation was carried out within just four days, despite the fact that current regulations require a minimum of fifteen. The lawsuit argues that effective citizen participation was not guaranteed and that the motivation of the norm was based on general arguments of convenience without technical or legal support.
The Foundation warns that the provisions included in Decree 033 restrict constitutional rights such as private property, due process and advertising of administrative acts. It also points out that the norm invades powers of technical entities such as the Superintendence of Notaries and Registration, by imposing forced procedures without prior law and by eliminating registration guarantees that protect citizens. For the organization, this scenario configures a situation of legal insecurity that affects confidence in the legal system.
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The Foundation for the Rule of Law requested provisionally the decree while the judicial process is advanced.
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In the action presented, not only the nullity of the decree is requested, but also the adoption of a precautionary measure that provisionally suspends its effects while the process progresses in the State Council. The Foundation argues that the immediate application of the norm can generate irreparable damage to the legal order and the rights of rural owners.
“Restrictions to property right require a law of Congress, guarantees of due process and legal certainty for all Colombians”, Said Andrés Caro, director of Fede. Colombia. The manager added that the organization does not oppose the social function of the property or the progress of the agrarian reform, but rejects that these objectives are imposed by decrees that do not know the Constitution and the law.
With the admission of demand, andThe high court will begin the study of legality on Decree 033, which in practice enables the National Land Agency to intervene in private operations of sale of rural properties. The pronouncement of the State Council will be decisive to define whether the provisions adopted by the Government are adjusted to the Constitution and the legal norms in force, or if they must be withdrawn from the system.
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Diana K. Rodríguez T.
Portfolio journalist
