On April 2, 2025, the Colombian Congress enacted Law 2452 of 2025, formally adopting a comprehensive Code of Labor and Social Security Procedure. The legislation reforms the judicial procedures governing labor disputes and addresses the admission of complaints, digital notifications, evidentiary proceedings, hearings, appeals, and other processes. The new code will come into force on April 2, 2026, and will apply only to proceedings initiated after that date. (Law, art. 330.)
Key Principles
The new code emphasizes that judges should actively direct proceedings, and it expressly mandates that they guarantee respect for fundamental rights, procedural equity, and expeditious adjudication. The code empowers judges to apply formulas of retributive, compensatory, restorative, and therapeutic justice. It reaffirms that the norms of labor procedure are of public order and must be strictly observed. It also establishes principles such as immediacy, judicial guidance, procedural loyalty, and differentiated approaches. (Arts. 2-5.)
Extra and Ultra Petita Authority
The code contains a significant innovation to authorize extra and ultra petita rulings, permitting trial judges to grant remedies beyond the relief expressly sought in cases involving minimum and nonwaivable rights. Specifically, the code requires trial judges to order the payment of unclaimed or underclaimed wages, benefits, or other labor and social security entitlements, provided that the facts supporting such relief are on record and the amounts remain unpaid. (Art. 6.)
Scope of Ordinary Labor Jurisdiction
The code establishes clear and detailed rules on jurisdiction, encompassing functional, territorial, subject-matter, and quantitative aspects. It places particular emphasis on labor and pension disputes, union-related matters, job stability cases, professional fee claims, and review and appeals processes. (Arts. 7-17.)
The new code grants ordinary jurisdiction on labor and social security matters, including in the following cases:
- disputes stemming from employment contracts and claims for reinforced job stability;
- claims involving the recognition and payment of pensions and social security benefits;
- union-related conflicts, including strikes and union dissolutions;
- appeals of arbitral awards in labor matters. (Art. 7.)
The new code will not govern dispute resolution relating to conflicts of interests, economic conflicts in the workplace, or collective labor conflicts. Collective disputes will be governed by the Substantive Labor Code. However, individual cases may be resolved through agreements or alternative dispute resolution mechanisms. Conflicts of interests or economic disputes between employers and employees will be resolved in accordance with the special laws on the subject. (Art. 8.)
Preferential jurisdiction will be determined based on either the worker’s last place of service or the defendant’s domicile, at the claimant’s discretion. The code authorizes judges to act on their own initiative to sanction dilatory conduct, collect evidence, and prioritize material truth over formal technicalities in legal proceedings. (Arts. 10; 27-30.)
Digital Justice
The code mandates the progressive adoption of information and communication technologies in judicial proceedings. It will allow hearings and submissions to be conducted virtually, except in cases involving individuals with limited digital access, such as rural inhabitants and persons with disabilities. (Art. 9, paras. 1-2; Art. 10.)
Access to Justice and Preliminary Claims
The requirement to file a prior claim against public entities, such as submitting a written petition asserting a legally protected right, is no longer a prerequisite for initiating a lawsuit. While the process must be exhausted before litigation, its absence is not a condition precedent to initiating legal action, eliminating a common procedural barrier and improving access to labor justice. (Art. 11.)
Conciliation Mechanisms
The code reinforces the use of extrajudicial and judicial conciliation, which may be initiated before or after filing a lawsuit and at any stage of proceedings. Attorneys may represent parties independently, provided they have express authorization to settle. Conciliation will suspend the statute of limitations for a defined period, and agreements will carry the force of res judicata, making them immediately enforceable. (Arts. 19-21.)
Third-Party Participation
The new code clarifies the rights of third-party participants, allowing those who may be materially affected by proceedings to intervene. It also codifies agencia oficiosa (unofficial agency), enabling third parties to file claims on behalf of absent or incapacitated individuals, provided the representation is ratified. Additionally, the code addresses joinder of parties, exclusive interventions, notices to third parties, and the legal representation of unions, autonomous entities, and foreign legal persons. (Arts. 38-53.)
Implementation Challenges and Institutional Adjustments
Legal experts say the new code is a historic advancement that modernizes labor justice through the expansion of the labor jurisdiction and technological integration that ultimately will improve the system’s efficiency. This includes the recognition of a judge’s power to make ultra and extra petita decisions, the new mechanism that distributes labor claims electronically to judges nationwide, as well as the rules establishing which judge is competent to hear social security claims.
Furthermore, stakeholders have indicated that Law 2452 of 2025 represents a paradigm shift in the adjudication of labor and social security matters in Colombia through enhanced judicial powers, digital integration, new jurisdiction rules, and reinforced worker protections.
The successful implementation of the code will require officials to focus on several key issues. As identified by legal experts and institutional assessment, these include judicial and legal training, enhanced technological infrastructure in remote areas, and corporate and cultural readiness.
Magistrate César Mercado Durán, president of the Superior Court of Justice of San José del Guaviare, noted that the importance of this new code arises because past partial reforms did not sufficiently address structural deficiencies caused by technological change, social evolution, and the demands of a democratic constitutional order.
Stephania Alvarez, Law Library of Congress
June 12, 2025
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