De la Espriella Lawyers faces 571 million peso IVA sanction

The Administrative Tribunal of Cundinamarca has upheld a 571 million peso sanction against De la Espriella Lawyers, a firm founded by Abelardo De la Espriella. The ruling concerns the improper treatment of Value Added Tax (IVA) regarding a 2018 contract with Saludvida EPS.

The contract, valued at approximately 18 billion pesos including success fees, involved legal services for the EPS and its representatives. While the law firm argued that the services should be exempt from IVA as they related to health services, the tribunal ruled that the services were taxable legal defense. The court accepted the DIAN's argument that the firm demonstrated a “desconocimiento del derecho” (disregard of the law) rather than a mere difference in tax interpretation.