Jacobo Schaulsohn Numhauser

Jacobo Schaulsohn Numhauser (Santiago, 24 February 1917 – ibid., 11 September 1995) was a Chilean lawyer, professor and politician, member of the Radical Party of Chile. He served as Deputy of the Republic for Santiago between 1949 and 1965 and as President of the Chamber of Deputies of Chile from 1961 to 1962.

Biography Born in Santiago to Marcos Schaulsohn and Rebeca Numhauser, of Ashkenazi-Jewish descent. He studied at the Liceo Manuel Barros Borgoño and earned a law degree from the University of Chile, being admitted to the bar in 1941.

He served in the Intendancy of Santiago, represented Chile as delegate to the United Nations General Assembly in 1950, and taught in the Faculty of Law of the University of Chile, where he contributed to early debates on higher-education reform.

Married to Catalina Brodsky Berstein, he had four children, including the future deputy Jorge Schaulsohn.

Within the Radical Party, he led the Juventud Radical and later the National Assembly, consolidating the secular-progressive line of post-war radicalism.

Parliamentary career Elected deputy for the 7th Departmental Grouping (Santiago) in 1949, Schaulsohn was re-elected in 1953, 1957 and 1961. He took part in the Standing Committees on Constitution, Legislation and Justice, Finance, and Foreign Affairs.

On 24 May 1961 he was chosen President of the Chamber of Deputies, serving until 18 December 1962. His tenure was marked by procedural modernization and the strengthening of parliamentary commissions.

After leaving Congress in 1965, he continued academic and institutional work. In 1971 he was appointed member of the Constitutional Court, by agreement between the Senate and the Executive. He also participated in drafting the University of Chile Higher Education Bill (1981).

Legacy Schaulsohn promoted Jewish integration within public service and is considered a exemplar of mid-century radicalism in Chile.