Government appoints new ministers to the Competition Court for six years

The Government of Chile appointed María de la Luz Domper Rodríguez and Jaime Rafael Barahona Urzúa for a term of six years as titular ministers, economist and lawyer respectively, of the Court for the Defense of Free Competition (TDLC). The decision was adopted through Decree No. 76, dated June 30, 2026, from the Ministry of Economy, Development and Tourism, published in Section I of the Official Gazette of the Republic of Chile No. 44,527, on Tuesday, August 18, 2026, under reference CVE 2852042.

The administrative act was signed by the Vice President of the Republic, Claudio Alvarado Andrade, and countersigned by the Minister of Economy, Development and Tourism, Daniel Mas Valdés, and by the Minister of Finance, Jorge Antonio Quiroz Castro. The new members will assume their positions without waiting for the full processing of the decree, due to urgent reasons of good service.

Legal framework and selection process

The appointment is based on Decree with Force of Law No. 1 of 2004, from the Ministry of Economy, Development and Reconstruction, which establishes the consolidated text of Decree Law No. 211 of 1973, and on Article 32, number 10, of the Political Constitution of the Republic. In accordance with the law, the President of the Republic appoints two members of the TDLC—one lawyer and one with a degree or postgraduate degree in economic sciences—from two shortlists of candidates prepared by the Central Bank Council through a public competition of credentials.

The shortlists were communicated by the Central Bank via Official Letter No. 18, dated April 28, 2026. The new ministers replace Ricardo Paredes Molina and Jaime Barahona Urzúa, who ceased their duties on June 11, 2026.

The new members

• María de la Luz Domper Rodríguez, commercial engineer, identity card No. 9,831,030-4, appointed Titular Minister Economist for six years.
• Jaime Rafael Barahona Urzúa, lawyer, identity card No. 8,869,115-6, appointed Titular Minister Lawyer for six years, in a new successive term.

According to Article 7 of Decree with Force of Law No. 1, the titular and substitute members of the TDLC remain in their positions for six years and may be appointed for a single successive term. Within this framework, Barahona Urzúa was confirmed for a second term.

Renewal of the substitute position

In parallel, Decree No. 75, of the same date and published in the same bulletin under reference CVE 2852057, appointed Angélica Burmester Pinto, lawyer, as Substitute Minister Lawyer of the TDLC, starting November 20, 2026, for a term of six years. The new substitute replaces Rafael Isidro Pastor Besoaín, who had been appointed by Decree No. 59 of 2020.

Market relevance

The Court for the Defense of Free Competition is the jurisdictional body responsible for preventing, correcting, and sanctioning anti-competitive conduct, as well as hearing inquiries and lawsuits regarding free competition in Chile. The renewal of its members directly impacts the resolution of cases affecting companies and consumers, from mergers and concentrations to abuses of dominant position; therefore, the composition of the court conditions the protection of competition in the markets for the next six years.

Source: Official Gazette of the Republic of Chile, No. 44,527, August 18, 2026, Section I, General Norms, pgs. 1-2 (official reference: CVE 2852042 and CVE 2852057).