Supreme Court of Indonesia

Supreme Court of the Republic of Indonesia
Mahkamah Agung
Insignia of the Supreme Court
Established	August 18, 1945 (1945-08-18)
Country	Indonesia
Location	Jalan Medan Merdeka Utara No. 9-13 Jakarta 10110
Composition method	Nominated by the Judicial Commission with People's Representative Council confirmation and Presidential appointment.
Authorized by	Constitution of Indonesia
No. of positions	Max. 60
Website	www.mahkamahagung.go.id
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Indonesia
Currently	Muhammad Hatta Ali
Since	March 1, 2012 (2012-03-01)

The Supreme Court of the Republic of Indonesia (Indonesian: Mahkamah Agung Republik Indonesia) is the independent judicial arm of the state. It maintains a system of courts and sits above the other courts and is the final court of appeal. It can also re-examine cases if new evidence emerges.

The Supreme Court is independent as of the third amendment to the Constitution of Indonesia. The Supreme Court has oversight over the high courts (Pengadilan Tinggi) and district courts (Pengadilan Negeri). There are about 68 high courts: 31 General Courts, 29 Religious Courts, 4 Administrative Courts and 4 Military Courts. There are around 250 district courts with additional district courts being created from time to time. The Supreme Court is the final court of appeal (kasasi) following appeals from the district courts to the high courts. The Supreme Court can also re-examine cases if sufficient new evidence is found. Constitutional matters, however, fall within the jurisdiction of the Constitutional Court of Indonesia, established in 2003.

According to the Constitution, candidates for Supreme Court Justices are required to have integrity and be of good character as well as be experienced in law. Candidates are proposed to the House of Representatives by the Judicial Commission. If the House of Representatives approves them, their appointment is then confirmed by the president. As of mid 2011, there was a total of 804 courts of various kinds in Indonesia. About 50 justices sat in the Supreme Court while other high and lower courts across Indonesia employed around 7,000 judges. Officially, the Supreme Court consists of 51 justices divided into 8 chambers.

The chief justice and his or her deputy is elected by the Supreme Court justices from among the members of the court. Sometimes the process is controversial and attracts public criticism. For example, in early 2012 rumours about vote buying were reported in the Jakarta press as speculation mounted about the arrangements underway for the selection of new chief justice to replace Harifin A. Tumpa (who retired as chief justice in March 2012). There was said to be "all-out competition" for the post of chief justice because of the influence that the position holds and it was rumoured that the competition might include payments.

In the election held on 8 February 2012, Muhammad Hatta Ali comfortably won the position of chief justice ahead of four other candidates. He was sworn in as chief justice by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on 1 March 2012. Hatta first became a judge in 1982 when he took up a position on the North Jakarta District Court. He was appointed to the High Court in 2003 and then to the Supreme Court in 2007.