Administrative Silence in Indonesia: Negative or Positive Legal Fiction? Keheningan Administratif di Indonesia: Fiktif Negatif atau Fiktif Positif?

Aan Efendi; Dyah Ochtorina Susanti; Ahmad Suhaimi; Suwardi Suwardi; Lucky Dafira Nugroho

doi:10.31078/jk2323

Authors

Aan Efendi Fakultas Hukum, Universitas Jember, Jember, Indonesia https://orcid.org/0009-0003-6400-7324
Dyah Ochtorina Susanti Fakultas Hukum, Universitas Jember, Jember, Indonesia https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2357-8337
Ahmad Suhaimi Sekolah Tinggi Ilmu Hukum Sultan Adam, Banjarmasin, Indonesia https://orcid.org/0009-0008-4732-7082
Suwardi Suwardi Fakultas Hukum, Universitas Jember, Jember, Indonesia https://orcid.org/0009-0004-9273-8156
Lucky Dafira Nugroho Fakultas Hukum, Universitas Trunojoyo Madura, Bangkalan, Indonesia https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8316-3195

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.31078/jk2323

Keywords:

fiksi hukum, model fiktif negatif

Abstract

The Government Administration Act introduced the positive legal-fiction model, apparently to replace the negative legal-fiction model under the State Administrative Courts Act. However, this regulatory choice has generated legal controversy because it did not fully achieve that objective. As a result, the positive and negative legal-fiction models now coexist without a clear hierarchy or priority of application. This article examines the legal controversy arising from the adoption of these two models in different statutes. The issue is broader than a mere conflict between statutes because it concerns the legal consequences of administrative silence in administrative decision-making generally. This research employs a doctrinal legal method. It finds that the Government Administration Act and the State Administrative Courts Act regulate distinct subject matters; therefore, the positive legal-fiction model does not automatically revoke or supersede the negative legal-fiction model. Consequently, administrative silence in Indonesia may be treated under either the negative or the positive legal-fiction model, meaning that it may be deemed either a rejection or an approval of an application. A future General Administrative Law Act or General Administrative Procedure Act should adopt either the negative or the positive legal-fiction model as the general rule, with any exceptions expressly stipulated by law.

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