Acting Skills in Civil Law

Article 1329 of the Civil Code states that every person is capable of making an agreement unless by law it is declared incompetent to make an agreement. Those who are declared incompetent by law to make agreements, as regulated in Article 1330 of the Civil Code, namely:

1. Immature child
2. People who are under care
3. Women who have been married in matters determined by law, and in general all those who are prohibited by law from making certain agreements. (However, on the basis of SEMA No.3/1963 in conjunction with article 31 of Law No.1/1974, women who are still bound in marriage are capable of carrying out legal actions on their own because there is no longer any difference between women and men in committing acts. current civil law).

If one or both parties to the agreement are proven to be incompetent in carrying out legal actions, it will have legal consequences which are explained as follows:

1. If the agreement is made by an immature child, then the agreement will be canceled at the request of the minor, solely for reasons of his immaturity. See Article 1446 paragraph (1) of the Civil Code in conjunction with Article 1331 paragraph (1) of the Civil Code.
2. If the agreement is made by a person who is under guardianship, then the agreement is canceled at the request of the person under guardianship, for the sole reason of being under custody.
3. If the agreement is made by a woman who is married, then the agreement will be null and void, only if the agreement is made by exceeding her power. (This legal effect is no longer valid after the SEMA No. 3/1963 and Law No. 1/1974)
4. For agreements made by people who are prohibited by law from carrying out certain actions, they can demand the cancellation of the agreement, unless stipulated otherwise by law.
5. The agreement made by people who are not capable of acting, which is later declared void, then the parties to the agreement must place the agreement in a state before the agreement was made, so the agreement is considered as if it did not exist.

Specifically related to the incompetence of immature children in carrying out legal actions, civil law has determined parties who can be referred to as “adult children in carrying out legal actions” which are regulated in Article 330 of the Civil Code which states people who are not yet mature according to law. are those who have not reached the age of 21 years and have not married before. From the description of the article it is concluded that adult children are:

1. Has reached 21 years old,
2. Married, although not yet 21 years old,
3. Not under custody.

The provisions governing the definition of an adult child aged 21 years are somewhat different when compared to Law no. 1/1974 which is in Article 47 in conjunction with Article 50 regulates the definition of an adult child is 18 years. This 18-year-old adult has also been strengthened by the Supreme Court’s decision no. 477 K/Sip/1976 dated October 13, 1978. However, in practice, in making important agreements, adults still use 21 years as regulated in the Civil Code.