PROPOSING REGULATORY REVISION OF JUDICIAL CAREER MANAGEMENT

The Indonesian judicial system is structured into three powers (executive, legislative, and judicial) following the Trias Politica theory. The Supreme Court and its subordinate courts have two main HR types: judges and registrars. While regulations differentiate their roles, career paths are ambiguous, especially for registrars. Judges can become registrars at the Supreme Court, but registrars from lower courts cannot advance to this level, leading to career stagnation and perceived unfairness. This situation is exacerbated by a shortage of judges, as judges are assigned to registrar roles, further reducing judicial capacity. This study aims to explore the implementation of the current regulation, particularly on how the registrars’ perceptions of this unfairness, and using these to propose revisions to the existing regulation. This study is a qualitative research in order to explore the opinions, and then uses the results to propose a revision towards the current regulation on career management. The results show that most registrars have long tenures but are limited to High Court-level positions, with only judges eligible for Supreme Court registrar roles. Four main themes emerged: need for regulatory revision, judge quantity and quality, meritocracy in career levelling, and the core duties (TUPOKSI) of registrars. This study highly recommends alternatives for revising Article 20 of Law No. 3/2009, allowing registrars, not just judges, to advance to Supreme Court registrar positions, emphasizing relevant experience and skills over judicial background. The study emphasises the fairness and merit-based career paths for registrars, supporting organizational effectiveness and employee motivation in the Indonesian judiciary.