Judicial Discretion in Marriage Dispensation Cases: A Socio-Legal Study at the Bangkinang Religious Court, Kampar-Riau, Indonesia
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Abstract
The enactment of Law No. 16 of 2019, which raised the minimum marriage age to 19, has paradoxically contributed to a significant increase in marriage dispensation applications in Indonesia. This study examines the exercise of judicial discretion in marriage dispensation cases at the Bangkinang Religious Court and analyzes its socio-legal implications for children and their families. Employing a qualitative socio-legal approach, the research is based on document analysis of four court decisions in 2024 and in-depth interviews with judges, families, and community actors. The findings reveal that judicial discretion is not solely grounded in statutory norms but is substantially shaped by contextual considerations, including moral urgency, psychological readiness, economic capacity, and familial support. However, the frequent granting of dispensations raises critical concerns regarding the erosion of child protection principles and the potential normalization of underage marriage. The study argues for the establishment of clearer regulatory guidelines and a multidisciplinary assessment framework to ensure that judicial discretion aligns with the best interests of the child and broader social justice objectives.
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How to Cite
Padmilah, Padmilah, Ilyas Husti, Zailani Zailani, and Khairunnas Jamal. “Judicial Discretion in Marriage Dispensation Cases: A Socio-Legal Study at the Bangkinang Religious Court, Kampar-Riau, Indonesia”. Islamica: Jurnal Studi Keislaman 20, no. 2 (April 8, 2026): 243-264. Accessed April 9, 2026. https://islamica.uinsa.ac.id/index.php/islamica/article/view/1275.
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
References
1. Academic journals, books, and ounline resources
Ashar, Sameer, and Annie Lai. “Access to Power.” Daedalus 148, no. 1 (2019): 82–87. https://doi.org/10.1162/daed_a_00538.
Ayudiputri, Zulfa Zuhriyyah, Anisa Afianti Nur, Siska Amanda, and Fahma Fadila Hanifa. “Determinants of Child Marriage in Indonesia: A Systematic Review.” Journal of Community Medicine and Public Health Research 5, no. 2 (2024): 216–227. https://doi.org/10.20473/jcmphr.v5i2.45777.
Bourdieu, Pierre. “The Force of Law: Toward a Sociology of the Juridical Field.” Hastings Law Journal 38, no. 5 (1987). https://repository.uclawsf.edu/hastings_law_journal/vol38/iss5/3.
Cameron, Lisa, Diana Contreras Suarez, and Susan Wieczkiewicz. “Child Marriage: Using the Indonesian Family Life Survey to Examine the Lives of Women and Men who Married at an Early Age.” Review of Economics of the Household 21 (2023): 725–726. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11150-022-09616-8.
Connolly, Sheelah, Dermot O’Reilly, and Michael Rosato. “House Value as an Indicator of Cumulative Wealth is Strongly Related to Morbidity and Mortality Risk in Older People.” International Journal of Epidemiology 39, no. 2 (2010): 383–391. https://doi.org/10.1093/ije/dyp356.
Daly, Aoife. Children, Autonomy and the Courts: Beyond the Right to Be Heard. Leiden: Brill-Nijhoff, 2017.
Delprato, Marcos, Kwame Akyeampong, Ricardo Sabates, and Jimena Hernandez-Fernandez. “On the Impact of Early Marriage on Schooling Outcomes in Sub-Saharan Africa and South West Asia.” International Journal of Educational Development 44 (2015): 42–55. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedudev.2015.06.001.
Dworkin, Ronald. Taking Rights Seriously. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1977.
Halliday, Terence C., Lucien Karpik, and Malcolm M. Feeley. “The Legal Complex in Struggles for Political Liberalism.” In Fighting for Political Freedom: Comparative Studies of the Legal Complex and Political Liberalism. Oxford: Hart Publishing, 2007.
Hart, H. L. A. The Concept of Law. 2nd ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1994.
Herring, Jonathan. Family Law. 8th ed. Harlow: Pearson Education, 2019.
Kabeer, Naila. “Gender Equality, Inclusive Growth, and Labour Markets.” In Women’s Economic Empowerment: Insights from Africa and South Asia, edited by Kate Grantham, Gillian Dowie, and Arjan de Haan. Routledge, 2021. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003141938.
Kidman, Rachel E. “Child Marriage and Intimate Partner Violence: A Comparative Study of 34 Countries.” International Journal of Epidemiology 46, no. 2 (2017): 662–675. https://doi.org/10.1093/ije/dyw225.
Melbourne Institute. Child Marriage in Indonesia: Consequences and Policy Responses. Melbourne: University of Melbourne, 2020.
Merry, Sally Engle. “Legal Pluralism.” Law & Society Review 22, no. 5 (1988): 869–896. https://doi.org/10.2307/3053638.
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Ramadhita. “Diskresi Hakim: Pola Penyelesaian Kasus Dispensasi Perkawinan.” De Jure: Jurnal Hukum dan Syar’iah (2014). https://doi.org/10.18860/j-fsh.v6i1.3192.
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Syuib, M., and Nadhilah Filzah. “Kewenangan Hakim Menerapkan Diskresi dalam Permohonan Dispensasi Nikah.” Samarah: Jurnal Hukum Keluarga dan Hukum Islam (2019). https://doi.org/10.22373/sjhk.v2i2.4747.
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Teerawichitchainan, Bussarawan, and Timothy Qing Ying Low. “The Situation and Well-being of Custodial Grandparents in Myanmar.” Social Science & Medicine 277 (2021): 113914. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2021.113914.
UNICEF Indonesia. Child Marriage in Indonesia: Progress and Challenges. Jakarta: UNICEF, 2020.
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Valverde, Mariana. Chronotopes of Law: Jurisdiction, Scale and Governance. Abingdon: Routledge, 2015.
Villar, Paola. “Paternal Mortality, Early Marriages, and Marital Trajectories in Senegal.” World Development 142 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2021.105421.
Wodon, Quentin, Chata Male, Ada Nayihouba, Adenike Onagoruwa, Aboudrahyme Savadogo, Ali Yedan, Jeff Edmeades, Aslihan Kes, Neetu John, Lydia Murithi, Mara Steinhaus, and Suzanne Petroni. Economic Impacts of Child Marriage: Global Synthesis Report. Washington, DC: World Bank Group, 2017.
2. Legal Materials / Court Decisions
Decision of the Bangkinang Religious Court No. 3/Pdt.P/2024/PA.Bkn.
Decision of the Bangkinang Religious Court No. 33/Pdt.P/2024/PA.Bkn.
Decision of the Bangkinang Religious Court No. 49/Pdt.P/2024/PA.Bkn.
Decision of the Bangkinang Religious Court No. 66/Pdt.P/2024/PA.Bkn.
Ashar, Sameer, and Annie Lai. “Access to Power.” Daedalus 148, no. 1 (2019): 82–87. https://doi.org/10.1162/daed_a_00538.
Ayudiputri, Zulfa Zuhriyyah, Anisa Afianti Nur, Siska Amanda, and Fahma Fadila Hanifa. “Determinants of Child Marriage in Indonesia: A Systematic Review.” Journal of Community Medicine and Public Health Research 5, no. 2 (2024): 216–227. https://doi.org/10.20473/jcmphr.v5i2.45777.
Bourdieu, Pierre. “The Force of Law: Toward a Sociology of the Juridical Field.” Hastings Law Journal 38, no. 5 (1987). https://repository.uclawsf.edu/hastings_law_journal/vol38/iss5/3.
Cameron, Lisa, Diana Contreras Suarez, and Susan Wieczkiewicz. “Child Marriage: Using the Indonesian Family Life Survey to Examine the Lives of Women and Men who Married at an Early Age.” Review of Economics of the Household 21 (2023): 725–726. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11150-022-09616-8.
Connolly, Sheelah, Dermot O’Reilly, and Michael Rosato. “House Value as an Indicator of Cumulative Wealth is Strongly Related to Morbidity and Mortality Risk in Older People.” International Journal of Epidemiology 39, no. 2 (2010): 383–391. https://doi.org/10.1093/ije/dyp356.
Daly, Aoife. Children, Autonomy and the Courts: Beyond the Right to Be Heard. Leiden: Brill-Nijhoff, 2017.
Delprato, Marcos, Kwame Akyeampong, Ricardo Sabates, and Jimena Hernandez-Fernandez. “On the Impact of Early Marriage on Schooling Outcomes in Sub-Saharan Africa and South West Asia.” International Journal of Educational Development 44 (2015): 42–55. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedudev.2015.06.001.
Dworkin, Ronald. Taking Rights Seriously. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1977.
Halliday, Terence C., Lucien Karpik, and Malcolm M. Feeley. “The Legal Complex in Struggles for Political Liberalism.” In Fighting for Political Freedom: Comparative Studies of the Legal Complex and Political Liberalism. Oxford: Hart Publishing, 2007.
Hart, H. L. A. The Concept of Law. 2nd ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1994.
Herring, Jonathan. Family Law. 8th ed. Harlow: Pearson Education, 2019.
Kabeer, Naila. “Gender Equality, Inclusive Growth, and Labour Markets.” In Women’s Economic Empowerment: Insights from Africa and South Asia, edited by Kate Grantham, Gillian Dowie, and Arjan de Haan. Routledge, 2021. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003141938.
Kidman, Rachel E. “Child Marriage and Intimate Partner Violence: A Comparative Study of 34 Countries.” International Journal of Epidemiology 46, no. 2 (2017): 662–675. https://doi.org/10.1093/ije/dyw225.
Melbourne Institute. Child Marriage in Indonesia: Consequences and Policy Responses. Melbourne: University of Melbourne, 2020.
Merry, Sally Engle. “Legal Pluralism.” Law & Society Review 22, no. 5 (1988): 869–896. https://doi.org/10.2307/3053638.
-----. Human Rights and Gender Violence: Translating International Law into Local Justice. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2005.
Peleg, Noam. “A Guide to Resources.” International Journal of Children’s Rights 23, no. 2 (2015): 477–478. https://doi.org/10.1163/15718182-02302004.
Rahayu, Astuti. “Child Marriage and Its Impact in Indonesia in 2021.” Journal of International Conference Proceedings 5, no. 5 (2022). https://doi.org/10.32535/jicp.v5i5.1977.
Ramadhita. “Diskresi Hakim: Pola Penyelesaian Kasus Dispensasi Perkawinan.” De Jure: Jurnal Hukum dan Syar’iah (2014). https://doi.org/10.18860/j-fsh.v6i1.3192.
Republic of Indonesia. Law No. 16 of 2019 on Amendments to Law No. 1 of 1974 on Marriage.
Syuib, M., and Nadhilah Filzah. “Kewenangan Hakim Menerapkan Diskresi dalam Permohonan Dispensasi Nikah.” Samarah: Jurnal Hukum Keluarga dan Hukum Islam (2019). https://doi.org/10.22373/sjhk.v2i2.4747.
Tamanaha, Brian Z. “The Third Pillar of Jurisprudence: Social Legal Theory.” William & Mary Law Review 56, no. 6 (2015): 2235–2248.
-----. A General Jurisprudence of Law and Society. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199244676.001.0001.
Teerawichitchainan, Bussarawan, and Timothy Qing Ying Low. “The Situation and Well-being of Custodial Grandparents in Myanmar.” Social Science & Medicine 277 (2021): 113914. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2021.113914.
UNICEF Indonesia. Child Marriage in Indonesia: Progress and Challenges. Jakarta: UNICEF, 2020.
UNICEF. Ending Child Marriage: Progress and Prospects. New York: UNICEF, 2014.
United Nations. Convention on the Rights of the Child. 1989.
Valverde, Mariana. Chronotopes of Law: Jurisdiction, Scale and Governance. Abingdon: Routledge, 2015.
Villar, Paola. “Paternal Mortality, Early Marriages, and Marital Trajectories in Senegal.” World Development 142 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2021.105421.
Wodon, Quentin, Chata Male, Ada Nayihouba, Adenike Onagoruwa, Aboudrahyme Savadogo, Ali Yedan, Jeff Edmeades, Aslihan Kes, Neetu John, Lydia Murithi, Mara Steinhaus, and Suzanne Petroni. Economic Impacts of Child Marriage: Global Synthesis Report. Washington, DC: World Bank Group, 2017.
2. Legal Materials / Court Decisions
Decision of the Bangkinang Religious Court No. 3/Pdt.P/2024/PA.Bkn.
Decision of the Bangkinang Religious Court No. 33/Pdt.P/2024/PA.Bkn.
Decision of the Bangkinang Religious Court No. 49/Pdt.P/2024/PA.Bkn.
Decision of the Bangkinang Religious Court No. 66/Pdt.P/2024/PA.Bkn.