The importance of case law and its contribution to uniformity and consistency of court decisionsM.W.C. Feteris5 december 2018, University of Indonesia

Three coretasks of a supreme court

� Providing legal protection in theindividual case

� Ensuring legal unity in the country

� Contribute to thedevelopment of the law

� Memberikanperlindungan hukumdalam perkara individual

� Memastikan kesatuanhukum di negaranya

� Berkontribusi padaperkembangan hukum.

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Legal protection in the individual case

• Party to proceedings hopes that the supreme court makes a favourable decision in her interest

• Initiative of individual parties stimulates the supreme court to come into action

• Influence of a supreme court by such action is relatively limited

• Pihak berperkara berharappengadilan tertinggimembuat suatu keputusanyang sesuai dengankepentingan pihaktersebut

• Inisiatif dari pihak-pihakindividual mendorongpengadilan tertinggi untukmengambil tindakan

• Pengaruh pengadilantertinggi dengan tindakanseperti ini relatif terbatas

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Guarantee legal unity in the country

Different judges interpret and apply statutes in the same way

Hakim-hakim yang berbeda menafsirkan danmenerapkan undang-undang dengan cara yang sama

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Advantages of legal unity (1)

� Contributes to equality

� Contributes to legal certainty (very important for individual people and for the economy)

� Strengthens the authority of legislation

� Strengthens the authority of the judiciary

� Berkontribusi padakesetaraan

� Berkontribusi padakepastian hukum(sangat penting, baikbagi individu-individu, maupun bagiperekonomian)

� Memperkuat wibawalegislasi

� Memperkuat wibawalembaga peradilan

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Advantages of legal unity (2)

� Decreases the risk of arbitrariness and corruption

� Clarity for legal practice

� Clarity for the judges

� Mengurangi risikokesewenang-wenangandan korupsi

� Kejelasan untuk praktikhukum

� Kejelasan untuk para hakim

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Promoting legal unity

� Historically an important reason for the establishment of supreme courts

� Requires consistency in the case law of the highest court

� Secara historismerupakan sebuahalasan pentingterbentuknyapengadilan tertinggi

� Mensyaratkankonsistensi dalamyurisprudensipengadilan tertinggi

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Development of the law

� Occurs through interpretation and filling legal gaps

� Is inevitable for the courts

� Increases influence of a highest court on lower courts, legal practice and legal science

� More relevance of the courts in society

� Lahir melalui penafsirandan pengisiankekosongan hukum

� Tak bisa dihindari bagipengadilan-pengadilan

� Meningkatkan pengaruhdari sebuah pengadilantertinggi padapengadilan-pengadilantingkat bawah, praktikhukum, dan ilmu hukum

� Menjadikan pengadilan-pengadilan lebih relevandi masyarakat

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Consistency of the case-law of a supreme court

� Essential for legal unity and development of the law

� Therefore also essential for influence in legal practice

� Contributes to authority in society

� Decreases case load of the courts

� Hal mendasar untukkesatuan hukum danperkembangan hukum

� Oleh karenanya juga mendasar untukpengaruhnya dalampraktik hukum

� Berkontribusi padawibawa di masyarakat

� Mengurangi bebanperkara pengadilan-pengadilan

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How to reach consistency within a court?

� Mentality, focus on collective independence and authority

� Working methods

� Mentalitas, fokus padakemandirian danwibawa kolektif

� Metode kerja

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Possible working methods to increase consistency

� Informal consultation

� Grand chamber (German system)

� Consultation on selected draft decisions (Dutch Council of State)

� Collective deliberation of cases as a standard working method (Hoge Raad)

� Konsultasi informal

� Kamar besar (sistemJerman)

� Konsultasi mengenaikonsep-konsep putusanterpilih (Dewan Negara Belanda)

� Musyawarah kolektifperkara sebagai sebuahmetode kerja standar(Hoge Raad)

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Consistency requires accessibility of previous court decisions

� Identification of important legal decisions

� Ways to pinpoint to those decisions

� Identifying keywords and key articles

� Identifikasi putusan-putusan hukum yang penting

� Cara-cara untukmelacak putusan-putusan itu

� Mengidentifikasi kata-kata kunci dan artikel-artikel penting

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Terima kasih!