Author: Narada Kumara, Michelle Yosefanny
In July 2018, the Chief Justice of Supreme Court of the Republic of Indonesia formally launched an electronic-based case qntlistration for court applications (“E-Court”). This progressive action is part of the implementation of Supreme Court Regulation No. 3 of 2018 on Electronic Based Case Administration in Court (“SCR 3/2018”), which came into effect on 4 April 2018.
We are optimistic that the launching of E-Court will bring game-changing benefits as to how Indonesian courts deal with case qntlistration/management. In the legal sector, it is widely known that Indonesian courts are quite conventional in terms of case management procedures where physical attendance and/or physical submissions of court documents are essential, which of course can be time consuming and costly. The E-Court is designed to streamline the filing, management and delivery of court documents, such as the statement of claim, reply, counter plea, rejoinder and conclusion, via electronic methods. As a result, the court will be able to facilitate simple, fast and low-cost proceedings.
In principle, the E-Court application can be used by the advocate and/or individual registered in the system. Currently, only advocates can access and register the E-Court application. Meanwhile, the usage of E-Court application by individuals is subject to further regulation by the Decree of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, which, to date, has not been issued yet.
Following the launch of the E-Court application, the mechanisms to submit a lawsuit through the E-Court system are as follows:
1. User Account Registration
Registration is facilitated through the official website: http://ecourt.mahkamahagung.go.id. After completing all the required information, the user account shall be verified and activated using the applicant’s email.
2. Data Validation
After submitting the relevant information, specifically for advocates such information will be validated by the High Court in the location where the advocate resides. Advocates will be permitted to file a lawsuit/claim to all district courts within the territory of Republic of Indonesia after the data is verified.
3. Online Lawsuit Submission
In registering the case, the advocate will be allowed to submit case documents and other supporting data through the E-Court application. Payments related to the application are made afterwards, through the virtual account. As of 13 July 2018, the payment can be completed through several state-owned banks. During this step, the case registration number will be provided in the E-Court application as well.
4. Consent for Proceedings using E-Court
To enable the submission of court documents through the E-Court system, the legal attorney must first obtain written approval from its principal/client to do so. Further, in case of proceedings using E-Court, the first court summon will be delivered to the Plaintiff through the online system, while the court summons for the defendant(s) will be served manually to their addresses first. During the first proceeding, the defendant will be asked by the Panel of Judges of the case whether the defendant would prefer to use an online or offline system for the court summons, submissions of reply, counter plea and the exchange of other supporting files. If the defendant foregoes the use of the E-Court system, the proceedings will be conducted conventionally.
To date, the submission of online lawsuit through an E-Court application is only available in certain areas. The Supreme Court has decided that the pilot project for the E-Court system shall be implemented by 32 courts in Indonesia (mostly in Java and Sumatera islands), consisting of district courts, religious courts and state qntlistrative courts. The Supreme Court has set a one-year timeline for the E-Court system to be fully implemented by all courts in Indonesia.
It is hoped that implementation of the E-Court application can help all relevant parties have access to simple, fast and low-cost proceedings. Focusing on the benefits of the system, it is expected that expenses will be minimized and the process will be more efficient in terms of time, fees and effort, compared to conventional or traditional court filing methods.
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