Pedro Silva Fernández

Pedro Silva Fernández was a Chilean lawyer and judge who served as a justice of the Supreme Court of Chile from 1948 to 1966 and as president of the Supreme Court from 1963 to 1966.

Silva was one of the founding members of the Chilean Academy of Social, Political and Moral Sciences when the institution was established as part of the Institute of Chile in 1964. He was one of the academy's first members appointed by the President of the Republic.

At the academy's inaugural meeting on 2 December 1964, Silva was elected its first president. He held the position until 1967.

Silva also wrote on judicial organisation and jurisprudence. A legislative proposal prepared by him sought to address the problem of contradictory interpretations of the same legal provisions by different chambers of the Supreme Court.

Early life

Silva studied law at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile. He qualified as a lawyer in 1920 and received the university's Tocornal Prize, awarded to the best law student of his graduating class.

During his legal career, Silva regularly contributed to the Revista de Derecho y Jurisprudencia. In 1961, he was appointed an academic member of the Faculty of Legal and Social Sciences of the University of Chile.

Supreme Court

Silva was appointed a justice of the Supreme Court of Chile in 1948. Contemporary parliamentary records identify him as a member of the Supreme Court by 1950.

President of the Supreme Court

Silva was elected president of the Supreme Court in May 1963. On 8 May, the Senate of Chile recorded receipt of a communication from Silva informing the chamber of his appointment as president of the court.

Official judicial records document Silva exercising the presidency later that year. An auto acordado issued on 12 August 1963 records an extraordinary plenary session of the Supreme Court presided over by Silva and attended by justices including Osvaldo Illanes, Ramiro Méndez Brañas, José María Eyzaguirre and Israel Bórquez.

Silva continued to serve as president during the first years of the government of Eduardo Frei Montalva. A communication sent to the Chamber of Deputies on 3 May 1966 was signed by Silva on behalf of the Supreme Court, confirming that he was still exercising the presidency shortly before leaving the tribunal.

He left the Supreme Court in 1966 and was succeeded as president by Osvaldo Illanes. On 2 June 1966, Rafael Retamal López was appointed a justice of the Supreme Court to fill the vacancy left by Silva.