Enrique Tapia Witting

Enrique Edmundo Tapia Witting (11 January 1933 – 14 October 2013) was a Chilean lawyer, legal scholar and judge who served as a justice of the Supreme Court of Chile from 1997 to 2007 and as president of the Supreme Court from 2006 to 2008.

Early life

Tapia was born in Concepción in 1933, the son of Enrique Tapia Cruzat and Elisa Berta Witting. He studied law at the University of Concepción, where he served as a teaching assistant in the Department of Public Law from 1952 to 1956.

He received his degree in legal and social sciences in 1958 and subsequently qualified as a lawyer.

Judicial career

Tapia joined the Chilean judiciary in 1958 as secretary of the Civil Court of Coronel. He subsequently served as a judge in Yumbel, Coronel and Los Ángeles, before becoming a court reporter at the Court of Appeals of Chillán. He later served as a justice of the courts of appeals of Temuco and Concepción.

From 1976 to 1977, Tapia taught procedural law at the Talcahuano campus of the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile. In 1984, he was among the founders of the Chilean Institute of Procedural Law. He served as the institute's director from 1984 to 1992.

In 1994, Tapia became a professor of procedural law at the University of Concepción. He was also named professor emeritus at the Catholic University of the Most Holy Conception and taught procedural law at the University for Development.

In 1997, President Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle appointed Tapia to the Supreme Court of Chile.

President of the Supreme Court

On 21 December 2005, Tapia was elected president of the Supreme Court, receiving 15 votes to five for Ricardo Gálvez. He took office on 6 January 2006, succeeding Marcos Libedinsky.

During his presidency, the Supreme Court oversaw measures intended to improve the implementation of Chile's family courts and the nationwide introduction of the juvenile criminal justice reform. His tenure also included measures aimed at increasing transparency within the judiciary, efforts that were recognized by the Chile Transparente organization at the end of his presidency.

Tapia served as president until 7 January 2008, when he was succeeded by Urbano Marín.

Death

Tapia died in Santiago on 14 October 2013 at the age of 80.