Ruth Stella Correa Palacio (born 13 November 1959) served as the 8th Minister of Justice and Law of Colombia.

Career

A Law and Political Sciences graduate of the

Free University of Colombia Free University of Colombia ( es, Universidad Libre), also called Unilibre, is a nonsectarian, coeducational, private and nonprofit university based in Bogota, Colombia, with six satellite campuses located in Cali, Barranquilla, Pereira, ...

at Pereira in 1982, she pursued

postgraduate studies Postgraduate or graduate education refers to academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate (bachelor's) degree. The organization and struc ...

in Labour Law and

Industrial Relations Industrial relations or employment relations is the multidisciplinary academic field that studies the employment relationship; that is, the complex interrelations between employers and employees, labor/trade unions, employer organizations, ...

in 1990 at the Externado University, with additional training studies in State Administration at the

Pontifical Xavierian University The Pontifical Xavierian University (in Spanish Pontificia Universidad Javeriana) is a private higher education institution founded in 1623. It is one of the oldest, most traditional, and prestigious Colombian universities, directed by the Soc ...

in 1996, and in University Teaching at

Saint Thomas Aquinas University Saint Thomas University ( es, Universidad Santo Tomás) is a Roman Catholic university located in Bogotá, Colombia. It is the oldest Colombian university, founded in 1580 by the Dominican Order. It has campuses in Bucaramanga, Tunja, Medellín, a ...

in 2000. Right off college, she was appointed First Civil Municipal Judge of

Santa Rosa de Cabal Santa Rosa de Cabal is a town and municipality in the Risaralda Department, of west central Colombia, on the western slopes of the Andean Cordillera Central. It is a commercial and manufacturing centre for the fertile agricultural and pastoral h ...

on 1 September 1983. From then on she rose through the judiciary being appointed First Labour Judge for the Pereira Circuit 1985, then Secretary of the Third Division of the

Council of State A Council of State is a governmental body in a country, or a subdivision of a country, with a function that varies by jurisdiction. It may be the formal name for the cabinet or it may refer to a non-executive advisory body associated with a head o ...

in 1991, Auxiliary Magistrate of the Third Division of the Council of State in 1998, and finally

Magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judic ...

of the Council of State in the Third Division. As a prosecutor she worked for the

Office of the Inspector General In the United States, Office of Inspector General (OIG) is a generic term for the oversight division of a federal or state agency aimed at preventing inefficient or unlawful operations within their parent agency. Such offices are attached to ma ...

assigned to the Third Division of the Council of State from 1998 to 2001, and in private practice from 2001 to 2004.

Minister of Justice

On 6 July 2012

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Juan Manuel Santos Calderón Juan Manuel Santos Calderón (; born 10 August 1951) is a Colombian politician who was the President of Colombia from 2010 to 2018. He was the sole recipient of the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize. An economist by profession and a journalist by trade ...

announced the appointment of Correa as Minister of Justice and Law. Correa was sworn in on 12 July 2012 by President Santos in a ceremony at the

Palace of Nariño A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence, or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome which ...

. Correa replaced Juan Carlos Esguerra Portocarrero who had submitted his resignation after the failed attempt to reform the

Judicial Branch The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...

. With her appointment, President Santos fulfilled the Law of Quotas that called for at least a 30% of ministerial positions to go to women, and which had gone unfulfilled since Minister Beatriz Elena Uribe Botero was replaced as Minister of Housing, City and Territory by

Germán Vargas Lleras Germán Vargas Lleras (; born 19 February 1962) is a Colombian politician who recently served as Vice President of Colombia under President Juan Manuel Santos Calderón. A member of the Radical Change political party, he served four consecutive ...

, and two further posts had been filled by men.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Correa Palacio, Ruth Stella 1959 births Living people People from Pereira, Colombia Free University of Colombia alumni Magistrates of the Council of State (Colombia) Colombian Liberal Party politicians 21st-century Colombian women politicians 21st-century Colombian politicians 20th-century Colombian judges Colombian women lawyers Ministers of Justice and Law of Colombia Female justice ministers 21st-century Colombian lawyers 21st-century women lawyers