A Bogotá court ruled that the Superintendency of Industry and Commerce violated Sayco's fundamental rights by publishing a multimillion-peso sanction before it was final. The decision requires the SIC to remove the posts and issue a public clarification. Sayco welcomes the ruling and reaffirms its legal compliance.
The 31st Administrative Court of the Third Section in Bogotá issued a tutela ruling on November 24, 2025, stating that the Superintendency of Industry and Commerce (SIC) infringed upon the rights to due process and good name of the Society of Authors and Composers of Colombia (Sayco). This stemmed from social media posts where the SIC disclosed a fine exceeding $5.3 billion for alleged anticompetitive practices.
The court identified three key irregularities by the SIC: it disregarded the formal requirements of the sanctioning administrative process, which mandates signing acts before publication; it aimed to impose a premature reputational penalty before the decision was final; and it breached the presumption of innocence principle. Furthermore, the posts harmed Sayco's reputation, as they publicized a preliminary decision without formal notification or chance for rebuttal.
Consequently, the court mandated the SIC to immediately remove all related publications and issue an equivalent public clarification in terms of timing, manner, and place, stating that the sanction was not final and had not been notified. In a statement, Sayco stressed its consistent adherence to legal standards in managing members' copyright, both in Colombia and worldwide, particularly regarding free competition, and it hails this judicial outcome.