The University of Sydney Law School is delighted to invite you to the launch of Judicial Dysfunction in Indonesia by Professor Simon Butt, a revealing book that examines the deep-rooted issues in Indonesia’s judicial system.

Tracing problems back to the authoritarian regimes of Presidents Soekarno and Soeharto, the book explains how the judiciary nearly collapsed by the late 1990s. Despite reforms aimed at improving judicial independence, corruption and inefficiency persist, with judges often acting without accountability.

This essential work offers an empirical analysis of corruption mechanisms, including how bribes are negotiated and paid. It also addresses the impact of public pressure on judicial independence and the prevalence of unsafe convictions.

The book will be launched by Professor Tim Lindsey, University of Melbourne Law School, and Dr Laode Syarif, Executive Director at The Partnership for Governance Reform in Indonesia, and moderated by Lydia Santoso of the Australia Indonesia Business Council.

The book will be available for purchase on the evening.

Find out more about the book and order it online here.

About the author

Simon Butt is Professor of Indonesian Law at the University of Sydney Law School, where he teaches Indonesian law and Private International Law. Fluent in Indonesian, and having spent years in Indonesia, he has written widely on Indonesian law, including Corruption and Law in Indonesia (2012), The Constitutional Court and Democracy in Indonesia (2015), and co-authored The Constitution of Indonesia: A Contextual Analysis (2012) and Indonesian Law (2018) with Tim Lindsey.

This event is presented by the University of Sydney Law School.