Free Competition: The Court Stops Liquor Protectionism

Corporate attorney Mariana Henao published an article in Asuntos Legales analyzing the Colombia Constitutional Court's Sentence C-032 of 2025 that declared unconstitutional the first and second paragraphs of article 28 of Law 1816 of 2016. These regulations allowed provincial governments to suspend licenses for alcohol producers and sellers from other provinces or countries when they believed it would generate the "threat of serious harm" to local markets. Ms. Henao highlights the three legal questions at the center of the case that stand at the intersection of economic principles and fundamental rights. Her article summarizes the court's analysis and comments on the implications of this ruling for free market principles, constitutional law and protection against monopolies.

READ: Free Competition: The Court Stops Liquor Protectionism