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Family and Child Law in Chile

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Are Legal Systems Converging or Diverging?

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Abstract

This chapter addresses how Chilean family and child law has grappled with the country’s three major social upheavals of the twenty-first century: (i) sit-ins during student protests in 2006; (ii) the social outburst of 2019, which sparked the current constitutional process amending the Constitution; and (iii) the COVID-19 pandemic which started in 2020. The chapter focuses particularly on the importance of international human rights standards and the principles of family and child law against the background of these crises.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    The reference to penguins comes from the fact that Chilean students wear a uniform made of a jacket, jumper, and a tie, in shades of white and dark blue.

  2. 2.

    See Aguilera (2017).

  3. 3.

    The principle is recognised, for example, in Article 16 of Law 19.968 of 2004, creating the Family Courts.

  4. 4.

    Rol 1.740.

  5. 5.

    This law (20.370), published in 2009, provides for a new framework for the educational system; it repealed the Constitutional Organic Law of Education (18.962 of 1990) with regard to elementary and secondary general education, maintaining the regulations for higher education.

  6. 6.

    06/03/2009, Rol 36, Recitals 3, 4 and 5.

  7. 7.

    Rol 1.740, Recitals 2, 3 and 4.

  8. 8.

    Rol 59-2011, Recitals 4 to 6.

  9. 9.

    Court of Appeal of Punta Arenas, Resolution 5189 of 1 October 2011, Recitals 5 and 8.

  10. 10.

    Matte (2012), pp. 371–372.

  11. 11.

    Resolution 12008, Recital 8.

  12. 12.

    Resolution 240813.

  13. 13.

    Ibid, Recitals 4 and 7.

  14. 14.

    Ibid, Recital 17.

  15. 15.

    Lovera (2009), p. 223.

  16. 16.

    Court of Appeal of Punta Arenas, Resolution 5189 of 1 October 2011, Recital 6.

  17. 17.

    Article 242.2 of the Civil Code establishes since 1998 that ‘In all cases, in making its decisions, the judge shall consider, as a primary consideration, the best interests of the child, and shall take due account of the child's views, in accordance with his or her age and maturity’.

  18. 18.

    Discussing the interrelationship between the rights of children and their parents, Bainham wonders if there is anything left of ‘parental rights.’ In this regard, the author postulates that parents have interests parallel to those of their children; that these interests go hand in hand with the satisfaction of how they themselves understand that they must fulfil their parental responsibility; and finally, he points out that the interests of the child do not always prevail. Bainham (2009), pp. 23–42.

  19. 19.

    UNICEF (2004), p. 104.

  20. 20.

    See Morales (2020).

  21. 21.

    High school students jumped the turnstiles of the subway to express their general discontent with the rise in subway fares (despite being exempt from the fare increase).

  22. 22.

    According to data reported by the Public Prosecutor's Office to the Childhood Ombudsman's Office, between 18 October 2019 and 31 March 2020, 8,510 cases of victims of institutional violence were admitted, 1,315 of which corresponded to children and adolescents: Office of the Ombudsman for Children (2020), p. 153.

  23. 23.

    Federal Constitution of Argentina, Article 14 bis; Constitution of Colombia, Article 42.

  24. 24.

    Federal Constitution of Brazil, Article 229; Constitution of Costa Rica, Article 53; Constitution of Paraguay, Article 53; Constitution of Colombia Article 42(4).

  25. 25.

    Constitution of Peru, Article 6; Constitution of Uruguay, Article 42; Constitution of Costa Rica, Article 53; Constitution of Colombia, Article 42.

  26. 26.

    Constitution of Chile, Article 19 n° 10; Constitution of Peru, Article 13.

  27. 27.

    Constitution of Chile, Article 19 n° 5; Constitution of Ecuador, Article23.8; Constitution of Colombia, Article 42.

  28. 28.

    Federal Constitution of Brazil, Article 227; Constitution of Colombia, Article 44; Constitution of Uruguay, Article 41.

  29. 29.

    In Chile, the constitutional norms relating to the family are: Article 1, paragraph 2: ‘The family is the fundamental nucleus of society’; Article 1, final paragraph: ‘It is the duty of the State […] to protect the people and the family and to encourage its strengthening’; and, indirectly, the primary responsibility of parents towards their children (Article 19, paragraph 10: ‘Parents have the preferential right and duty to educate their children.’)

  30. 30.

    Peña (2020).

  31. 31.

    Espejo (2017), pp. 11 and 13.

  32. 32.

    Cortés and Morales (2021).

  33. 33.

    Supreme Decree 104 of 18 March 2020 of the Ministry of the Interior and Public Security, which remained in place until 30 September 2021.

  34. 34.

    The strict, rolling, stay-at-home orders evolved throughout 2020. Eventually, an online permit system was developed in which residents in ‘Phase 1’ (the strictest quarantine) were entitled to leave their homes only for two hours, twice a week, to purchase essentials. Exceptions were made for essential workers.

  35. 35.

    Resolution 42-2020 and Agreed Order 41-2020 of 13 March 2020. On 22 April 2020, Law 21.226 (‘Establishing a legal regime of exception for judicial processes in hearings and judicial proceedings regarding the deadlines and actions indicated as a result of COVID-19 in Chile’) allowed the Supreme Court to order the suspension and rescheduling of oral proceedings in family courts, with the sole exception of those that required urgent intervention by the court and those that the courts order or the parties requested to be held remotely.

  36. 36.

    The matters considered urgent were those related to the protection and precautionary measures for children’s rights, immediate surrender of children, authorisation to leave the country, domestic violence, and temporary support (Resolution 42-2020).

  37. 37.

    Articles. 1 to 6.16, paragraph 1, read as follows: ‘The country's courts with jurisdiction in family matters must carry out an ex officio review of the interim protective measures that were issued in favour of persons in vulnerable situations, such as the measures ordered in favour of women, children or adolescents who are victims of violence and that are currently in force and pending expiration, so that the most expeditious possible means may be found to review and renew them.’

  38. 38.

    Muñoz (2021), p. 304.

  39. 39.

    Intersectoral Technical Committee on Mental Health and Psychosocial Support in Disaster Risk Management. Ministry of Health and the National Emergency Office (2020).

    Ministry of Health and the National Emergency Office.

  40. 40.

    ‘The exercise of this right shall be suspended or restricted when it is manifestly prejudicial to the welfare of the child, which shall be declared by a finding of fact by the court on the basis of a reasoned decision.’

  41. 41.

    See Consejo General del Colegio de Abogados de Chile A.G. (2020) Declaración Colegio de Abogados de Chile A.G., 16/05/2020 http://colegioabogados.cl/declaracion-colegio-de-abogados-de-chile-a-g-4/.

  42. 42.

    Case information omitted to protect the privacy of the parties, especially of the children.

  43. 43.

    In a ruling dated March 30, 2020, the court said: “Having reviewed the background information, the arguments put forward by the parties, the report by the Technical Committee and in light of present health emergency, so ordered: The request to modify the current provisional system of visitation is granted to allow for interaction between the father and the child by any electronic means including image, on a daily basis, the mother must facilitate conditions for such contact for a period of seven days as of Friday, March 27th which shall be automatically renewed should the complete lockdown be extended in the townships in which the parties live.” This ruling clearly reflects the intent of the court to substantively modify the existing procedure for contact with the non-custodial parent.

  44. 44.

    Muñoz (2021), pp. 318, 319. Article 9 of Law 19.968 of 2004, which creates the Family Courts, establishes that the procedure applied by the family courts will be oral, concentrated and informal, and that the principles of immediacy, ex officio action and the search for collaborative solutions between the parties shall prevail.

  45. 45.

    Some of the enforcement mechanisms established in Law 14.908 on parental abandonment of the family and payment of support, include, inter alia, the suspension of the debtor’s driver’s license for up to 6 months; the withholding of income tax refund; night arrest for up to 15 days; full arrest for up to 15 days; arrest or prohibition to leave the country until payment of the amount owed.

  46. 46.

    See https://www.elmostrador.cl/braga/2020/12/02/crisis-en-las-pensiones-de-alimentos-un-derecho-no-garantizado-para-ninas-ninos-y-madres/.

  47. 47.

    Law 21.248, Constitutional reform that allows the exceptional withdrawal of accumulated individual capitalisation funds under the conditions indicated, of 30 July 2020; Law 21.295, establishing a one-time extraordinary withdrawal of pension funds under the conditions indicated, of 10 December 2020; and Law 21.330, modifying the Constitution so as to establish and provide rules for an exceptional mechanism for the withdrawal of pension funds and advance of life annuities, under the conditions indicated, of 28 April 28.

  48. 48.

    Section 3 and subsequent sections of the sole Article of Law 21.295; and section 3 et seq. of the Sole Article of Law 21.330.

  49. 49.

    See https://www.pjud.cl/prensa-y-comunicaciones/noticias-del-poder-judicial/61471.

  50. 50.

    See https://www.latercera.com/nacional/noticia/poder-judicial-recibio-mas-de-900-mil-solicitudes-de-retencion-de-fondos-de-afp-por-deudas-de-pensiones-de-alimentos-en-los-tres-procesos-y-facilito-el-pago-de-mas-de-417-mil-millones-de-pesos/TYDWXOS4GJAVFHGM25EUSR4KPA/.

  51. 51.

    One UTM is equivalent to approximately USD 56.

  52. 52.

    Barría (2021).

  53. 53.

    Lathrop and Espejo (2019), pp. 128–157.

  54. 54.

    See https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/Treaties/CRC/Shared%20Documents/1_Global/INT_CRC_STA_9095_E.pdf.

  55. 55.

    Chile ratified the Convention in August 1990.

  56. 56.

    In its technical note: Protecting children during the Coronavirus pandemic, Version 1, March 2019.

  57. 57.

    Verdugo (2021), p. 92.

  58. 58.

    Ibid, p. 93.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Chile, Santiago, RM, Chile

    Fabiola Lathrop Gómez

Authors
  1. Fabiola Lathrop Gómez
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Correspondence to Fabiola Lathrop Gómez .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK

    Emilie Ghio

  2. Fluminense Federal University, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Ricardo Perlingeiro

Additional information

This work is part of the Fondecyt (Fondo Nacional de Desarrollo Cientifico y Tecnologico) Regular Project 1190580, entitled ‘The right to family life for children deprived of parental care: towards strengthening alternative care arrangements’, for which the author is the responsible researcher.

Case Law

Case Law

  • Court of Appeal of Punta Arenas, Resolution 5189 of 1 October 2011, Recital 6.

  • Court of Appeals of Antofagasta 06/03/2009, Rol 36

  • Resolution 12008, Recital 8.

  • Resolution 42-2020

  • Supreme Court 04/11/2014, Resolution 240813

  • Supreme Court 23/04/2009, Rol 1.740

  • Temuco Court of Appeals 02/18/2011, Rol 59-2011

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Lathrop Gómez, F. (2024). Family and Child Law in Chile. In: Ghio, E., Perlingeiro, R. (eds) Are Legal Systems Converging or Diverging?. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-38180-5_8

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