Legal Certainty In Corporate Criminal Liability For Criminal Acts Of Corruption In Indonesia

Abstract

The criminal liability of corporations in corruption offenses in Indonesia raises a fundamental issue concerning the application of the principle of legal certainty. Although Law No. 31 of 1999 in conjunction with Law No. 20 of 2001 on the Eradication of Corruption has recognized corporations as legal subjects of criminal law, its enforcement in practice remains uncertain. The ambiguity between the liability of corporate management and that of the legal entity itself, as well as the inconsistent application of corporate criminal liability theories, has resulted in disparities among court decisions. This study aims to analyze the implementation of legal certainty in the mechanism of corporate criminal liability for corruption offenses in Indonesia. The research employs a normative juridical method with statutory, conceptual, and case approaches. The findings indicate that the enforcement of corporate criminal liability remains inconsistent with the principle of legal certainty as formulated by Gustav Radbruch and Hans Kelsen. This inconsistency arises from the lack of harmony between positive legal norms and the actual practices of law enforcement. Therefore, reforms in criminal law policy are required to clarify the boundaries of liability between corporations and their management and to ensure the uniform application of the law in order to realize legal certainty in the eradication of corruption in Indonesia.