OVERVIEW

The formal incorporation of a class action mechanism into the Indonesian legal system was introduced with the enactment of Law No. 23 of 1997 on Environmental Management (“1997 Environmental Law”). The use of this mechanism and its history, however, dates back to nearly 30 years before when in the late 1980s many cases were initiated as class actions despite there not being any formal legislation as the basis for such lawsuits.

Cases from this early era include the 1987 Bentoel Remaja case, the 1988 Dengue Epidemic case in Jakarta, the Ciujung River contamination case, the Patal Senayan labor case, and the PT. PLN power blackout case.[1] Another noticeable class action was the 1989’ PT Pupus Iskandar Muda case, involving 602 members of the Lhokseumawe society. This case is considered the first environmental case where a large number of plaintiffs who had been inflicted with damages due to pollution attempted to sue a common defendant.[2]