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Claims against the Colombian State: administrative courts, short filing deadlines, mandatory conciliation and payment of judgments

Last verified: 2026-10-26 · Status: Stable

Disputes with public entities go to the administrative jurisdiction under the CPACA (Ley 1437 de 2011) with strict expiry periods: four months to annul an individual administrative act and claim restoration, two years for damages (reparación directa) and two years for state contract disputes. For those three actions you must first try conciliation before the Procuraduría, except when going to arbitration over a state contract; agreements need court approval. Public entities have up to 10 months to pay a money judgment; interest runs at the DTF rate from finality and at the commercial rate once the term lapses.

USD figures use the TRM (tasa representativa del mercado) of COP 3,158.43 per US dollar, valid 24 to 26 October 2026, from the official TRM series published by the Superintendencia Financiera on the national open data portal. Peso figures in UVB use the 2026 UVB of COP 12,110 (Res. MinHacienda 3488 de 2025, as reported by the Ministry of Transport); figures in minimum wages use the 2026 monthly minimum wage of COP 1,750,905 (Decreto 1469 de 2025). Conversions are for orientation only.

Key facts

Deadline to sue for nullity and restoration of rights	4 monthsLey 1437 de 2011 art. 164, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Deadline for direct reparation claims against the State	2 yearsLey 1437 de 2011 art. 164, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Deadline for state contract disputes	2 yearsLey 1437 de 2011 art. 164, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Maximum time for a public entity to pay a money judgment	10 monthsLey 1437 de 2011 art. 192, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Conciliation before the Procuraduría required for the three main damages and contract actions	yes yes or noLey 2220 de 2022 art. 92, as of 2026-10-26 · in force
Mandatory Contraloría opinion on state conciliations above (5,000 minimum wages, 2026)	8754525000 COPLey 2220 de 2022 art. 113, as of 2026-10-26 · in force

The rule

1. Main actions: nullity and restoration of rights against an individual administrative act (also damages); direct reparation for unlawful harm caused by acts, omissions, administrative operations or occupation of property by the State; and contract disputes, in which either party to a state contract may seek declarations of existence, nullity, revision, breach, annulment of contractual acts, damages or judicial liquidation of the contract.Ley 1437 de 2011 (CPACA), in force from 2 July 2012, Art. 138, 140 and 141, 2011-01-18 official text · verified 2026-10-26

2. Expiry periods (caducidad): four months from notice or publication for nullity and restoration; two years from the harmful act or omission (or from when it was or should have been known) for direct reparation; two years for contract disputes, counted from the facts giving rise to the claim, with special starting points for contracts of instant performance, contracts not requiring liquidation and contracts liquidated by agreement (from signature of the liquidation record); and five years to enforce titles derived from state contracts, administrative court judgments and state contract awards.Ley 1437 de 2011, Art. 164 num. 2 lit. d, i, j and k, 2011-01-18 official text · verified 2026-10-26

3. Where the matter can be conciliated, out of court conciliation before the Procuraduría (Ministerio Público) is a prerequisite for claims of nullity and restoration, direct reparation and contract disputes; failing it, the claim is rejected outright. It is optional in executive proceedings, when the claimant seeks monetary interim measures, or when a public entity sues, and not required to go to arbitration over state contracts. Tax disputes cannot be conciliated.Ley 2220 de 2022, Art. 90, 92 and 93, 2022-06-30 official text · verified 2026-10-26

4. The procurator decides on admission within 10 days and the hearing must be held within 30 days of notice of admission; the request suspends the expiry period until the record or certificate is issued or three months pass. An agreement goes to the administrative judge for approval within three days, and the Contraloría's opinion is mandatory above 5,000 minimum wages.
Cost to do it: Contraloría opinion threshold 2026: COP 8,754,525,000 (US$2,771,796.43).Ley 2220 de 2022, Art. 96, 106 and 113, 2022-06-30 official text · verified 2026-10-26

5. The administrative judge may order interim measures, including suspension of an administrative act when the violation appears from comparing the act with the invoked rules; other measures require a reasonably founded claim, proof of the right, a balance of interests favouring the measure and risk of irreparable harm or of the judgment being ineffective.Ley 1437 de 2011, Art. 229 and 231, 2011-01-18 official text · verified 2026-10-26

6. Money judgments and approved conciliations against public entities must be paid within at most 10 months from finality, after the beneficiary files a payment request. Amounts bear default interest at the DTF rate from finality and, once the 10 months (or five days after the contingency fund transfers the money) pass without payment, at the commercial rate.Ley 1437 de 2011, Art. 192 and 195, 2011-01-18 official text · verified 2026-10-26

7. Arbitration over state contracts, including the economic consequences of administrative acts issued under exceptional powers, must be institutional and in law; the centre must notify the Agencia Nacional de Defensa Jurídica del Estado before the case continues, and annulment goes to the Consejo de Estado.Ley 1563 de 2012, Art. 1, 2, 12 and 46, 2012-07-12 official text · verified 2026-10-26

Action	Deadline	Counted from	Prior conciliation
Nullity and restoration of rights	4 months	Day after notice, publication or execution of the act	Required
Direct reparation	2 years	Day after the harmful act or omission, or later knowledge	Required
Contract disputes	2 years	Facts giving rise to the claim; special rules for instant performance, termination and liquidation	Required (not for arbitration)
Enforcement of state contract titles, judgments or awards	5 years	Date the obligation became enforceable	Optional

Deadlines to sue the State (Ley 1437 de 2011 art. 164)

Worked example

A concessionaire is fined by an agency on 1 February 2026 (notice date). It has until early June 2026 (four months) to sue for nullity and restoration, after filing conciliation before the Procuraduría, which suspends the clock for up to three months.
If it wins COP 1,000,000,000 (US$316,613.00), the agency has up to 10 months from finality to pay, with DTF interest meanwhile and commercial rate interest after that.

Step by step

Identify the action and calendar the expiry period the day the act is notified.
Exhaust any mandatory administrative appeal before claiming nullity and restoration.
File conciliation with the Procuraduría; attend the hearing within 30 days of admission.
File the claim with interim measures if needed.
After a final judgment, file the payment request with the entity to start the 10 month term.

Common traps

Four months is short and runs from notice; conciliation suspends it only once and only for up to three months.
Conciliation cannot be used where administrative appeals are still pending or not exhausted.
Interest only switches to the commercial rate after 10 months; budget for slow payment.
Tax disputes are not conciliable and follow their own route (see the taxes section).

Sources

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