Guide · Ecuador
How to search a case by national ID in the eSATJE
The eSATJE searches by national ID (cédula), by name, or by case number. This guide covers the national-ID path, the one most people use to check whether a case has been filed against them.
Open the eSATJEOne search tool, three criteria
The eSATJE — served at procesosjudiciales.funcionjudicial.gob.ec — is the Consejo de la Judicatura's public search. It searches by national ID, by name, or by case number, with no account and no charge.
The national-ID search tells you whether a person has cases without knowing the case number. The form asks it per side: the ID or RUC of the plaintiff or victim, and that of the defendant or accused. Someone who is a defendant does not show up when searched as a plaintiff, so it is worth running both lookups.
The portal does not accept dots, hyphens or apostrophes in the criterion: type only the number, or the name without punctuation.
The three ways to search
The eSATJE offers three different entry points into the same database; which one to use depends on what data you have on hand.
National ID, name, or case number
By national ID
The most direct criterion: it returns the cases where that ID or RUC appears on the side you searched, plaintiff or victim, or defendant or accused.
By name
Useful without the ID number on hand, at the cost of more name matches for other people.
By case number
Once the case is already known, this is the criterion that returns the least noise; this site's sister guide explains how to read that number.
All three criteria run on the same form: switching between them does not require leaving the page.
How to search by national ID
These are the steps of the public search, with what's worth checking at each one.
Open the eSATJE and pick the party’s side
The form separates the plaintiff or victim from the defendant or accused; fill in the side that matches the person you are looking for.
Type the number, with no dashes or spaces
The portal rejects dots and hyphens, and one digit too many or too few finds nothing.
Repeat the lookup on the other side
Filling both sides at once asks for the cases where one person is the plaintiff and the other the defendant. To see everything about a single person, search once as plaintiff and once as defendant.
Open each case to see its docket entries
The list shows the case number, the filing date and the action or offence; each case’s detail carries the proceedings, the parties and the court.
Searching by ID today doesn't skip doing it again tomorrow
Custodio watches the eSATJE for every case you've already identified and flags a new docket entry, with nobody typing the ID again. With each one, the AI updates the matter status; it drafts the reply when you ask.
Create your free accountWhat the search returns
The first list is a summary: the court and the proceedings are in each case’s detail.
- The case number (PPCCJ-YYYY-NNNNN) of every case where the searched ID appears on the side you asked about.
- The filing date and the recorded offense or claim.
- The case’s current status and its subject area.
- In the detail, the proceedings, the parties and the court, when the case is not sealed.
What the eSATJE does not do
Before assuming a case doesn't exist, these limits are worth knowing.
- Cases under legal confidentiality are not shown, even if the person is a party.
- Searching as plaintiff does not show the cases where the person is the defendant, and vice versa: you need both lookups.
- The status shown may not reflect a docket entry from the last few hours: there's no published cut-off time.
- The eSATJE does not compute deadlines or interpret the entry: it only publishes the date and the text the judicial unit recorded.
Once the case is identified by national ID, daily follow-up no longer depends on repeating this search.
Frequently asked questions about the national-ID search
Can anyone search my cases with my national ID?
Yes: the lookup is public and asks for no reason. What it does not expose are cases under legal confidentiality.
Why doesn’t a case I am a party to show up?
There are two usual reasons: the case is under legal confidentiality and is not published, or the search was run on the other side — as plaintiff when the person is the defendant. Repeat it on the opposite side before concluding.
How often is the information updated?
Each court updates it when it records the proceeding; the eSATJE publishes no fixed cycle or cut-off time.
Can I search by name if I don't have the national ID?
Yes: the same form accepts a name as a criterion, at the cost of more matches for other people with the same name.
Searching by ID today doesn't skip doing it again tomorrow
Custodio Legal watches the eSATJE every day for every case in your caseload and flags a new docket entry, with the source right next to it. The AI turns each update into matter status and draft, and answers questions about your documents. Create your free account, no card required.