Understand 3 Differences Between Regulations and Decisions

Nature

• Rules: General and abstract, meaning they apply to all people and situations within a certain scope. For example, the Marriage Law regulates marriage in general, without referring to specific individuals.
• Decree: Individualized and concrete, meaning that it applies only to the person or situation specifically mentioned in the decree. For example, a Civil Servant Appointment Decree only applies to the person whose name appears in the decree.

Scope

• Regulation: Has a broad scope, regulating various situations and objects within a certain scope. For example, the Law on Traffic regulates various matters related to traffic, from signs to sanctions for violations.
• Decree: Has a limited scope, regulating only certain situations or objects specifically mentioned in the decree. For example, the Scholarship Granting Decree only regulates the granting of scholarships to people who meet the requirements listed in the decree.

Legal Power

• Regulation: Generally binding and must be adhered to by everyone within its scope. Violation of the rules may result in legal sanctions.
• Decision: Binding for the parties involved in the decision. Violation of the decision may result in administrative sanctions, such as reprimand or revocation of rights.

2. Differences between Regulations and Decisions from a Theoretical Perspective

According to Maria Farida Indrati and Jimly Asshiddiqie, in their theory, the difference between laws and decisions can be understood in terms of their nature. Maria Farida revealed that regulations have a general, abstract, and continuous nature, while decisions have an individual, concrete, and final nature. To provide further explanation, we present a comparison table as follows.

From a theoretical point of view, there are three differences between regulations and decisions. First, laws and regulations are general in nature, which means that their impact affects many individuals rather than just a specific individual. If the emphasis is on a specific individual, it will be considered a decision.

Secondly, laws and regulations are abstract because their purpose is to deal with various legal events that may occur, in contrast to decisions that are only aimed at one legal event.

Third, regulations basically have a continuous characteristic, which means that their legal consequences will continue continuously until they are revoked by other regulations or canceled by a court decision in a judicial review process.

3. The Difference Between Regulation and Decree in the Context of Positive Law and its Implementation

In accordance with the concept, Article 1 point 2 of Law 15/2019 explains that laws and regulations are written documents that contain generally applicable legal norms, made or stipulated by state institutions or officials who have the authority through procedures stipulated in laws and regulations.

Law 12/2011 also provides examples of laws and regulations, ranging from the 1945 Constitution to district/city level regional regulations and other laws and regulations.

However, Article 1 point 9 of Law 5/1986 defines a State Administrative Decision ("KTUN") as a written decision issued by a State Administrative body or official that contains a State Administrative legal action based on applicable laws and regulations. KTUN is concrete, individualized, and has legal consequences for individuals or civil law entities.

Law 9/2004 excludes several types of decisions from the definition of KTUN, including decisions that constitute civil law actions, public regulations, require approval, are issued under criminal law, the results of judicial body examinations, decisions regarding TNI administration, and KPU decisions on election results.

However, it is important to note that positive law does not specify whether or not court decisions fall under the category of judgments. Although Law 5/1986 only emphasizes that the decisions regulated by the law are limited to the executive realm, in theory, court decisions can fall into the category of decisions because they are individual, concrete, and one-off.

In addition to these differences, there are additional differences in the consequences of regulatory testing. Legislation is tested directly by the Supreme Court and Constitutional Court, while KTUN is tested first by the PTUN.