On 28 March 2023 the Indonesian Supreme Court decided to uphold the Decision of the Central Jakarta High Court No. 188 / PDT / 2021 dated 1 July 2021, and the Decision of the East Jakarta District Court No. 245 / Pdt.G / 2013 / PN.Jkt.Tim that granted Mrs. Yuni Arvita’s counterclaim against her two half-siblings, Mrs. Nukke Natalia Apriliana and Mr. Anto Aprilianto. With this decision, Mrs. Nukke Natalia Apriliana and Mr. Anto Aprilianto as Defendants in the counterclaim, are proven to have committed unlawful acts under Article 1365 of the Civil Code.
The decisions of the three levels of court show that the Notarial Deed of Grant (Hibah) obtained by Mrs. Yuni Arvita from her biological father is valid and cannot be revoked. The Certificate of Ownership for a plot of land in Duren Sawit area measuring 144 square meters, given by Mrs. Yuni Arvita’s biological father cannot be revoked, despite being challanged by Mrs. Nukke Natalia Apriliana and Mr. Anto Aprilianto who are half-siblings of Mrs. Yuni Arvita from different fathers. Mrs. Yuni Arvita’s biological father has been proven to have never married Mrs. Yuni Arvita’s mother so the land and building that were gifted were not considered as joint property to be divided equally with Mrs. Yuni Arvita’s two-half-siblings.
The Supreme Court believes that the East Jakarta District Court and the DKI Jakarta High Court were not wrong in applying the laws. It has been established that Mr. Anto Aprilianto and Mrs. Nukke Natalia Apriliana committed unlawful acts which is contrary to the Article 1365 of the Civil Code. For years, Mrs. Nukke Natalia Apriliana has occupied a building that stands on a plot of land that legally belongs to Mrs. Yuni Arvita as this property ownership is based on the Notarial Deed of Grant from her biological father. Mrs. Nukke Natalia Apriliana even refused to hand over or return the Land Certificate to Mrs. Yuni Arvita except on the condition that Mrs. Yuni Arvita is willing to sell the property that was given as a Grant by her biological father, to be divided equally for Mrs. Yuni Arvita’s half siblings namely Mrs. Nukke Natalia Apriliana, Mr. Anto Aprilianto, and Mr. Okke, even though the three of them are not descendants of Mrs. Yuni Arvita’s biological father and the Grantor.
In its cassation, the Supreme Court decided this case with the following verdict:
TO JUDGE
Responding to the Supreme Court’s decision, Donny A. Sheyoputra, S.H., M.Si (Han), LL.M. from the Sheyoputra Law Office who represents Mrs. Yuni Arvita, stated:
“We are very happy with the Supreme Court’s Decision which upholds the previous court decisions that rejected the lawsuit against Mrs. Yuni Arvita by Mrs. Nukke Natalia Apriliana and Mr. Anto Aprilianto. On the other hand, the counterclaim of our client, Mrs. Yuni Arvita, was granted because the panel of judges saw the fact that the assets obtained by our client were the result of a legitimate grant from her biological father. The Plaintiffs, Mrs. Nukke Natalia Apriliana and Mr. Anto Aprilianto, are half-siblings of our client from the marriage of a woman named Mrs. Agnes with her previous husband. These Plaintiffs are not the biological children of the man who gifted the land to our client, but they strangely demanded that our client’s assets be divided equally for them.”
Donny A. Sheyoputra further added, “To withhold our client’s Land Certificate for years and occupying a house on the plot of land owned by our client shows greed or cupidity. They are not related to our client’s biological father, and our client never wanted to ask for what was not hers from her mother’s marriage to her previous husband, who was their biological father. However, when Mrs. Yuni Arvita’s biological father entrusted the Land Certificate to his daughter, with a request that it would be given to Mrs. Yuni Arvita if she reaches adulthood or is married, they withheld it and forced our client to sell her only property to be divided equally with those who have no blood relation with her biological father. They argued that Mrs. Yuni Arvita’s biological father had married their mother, even though this never happened as both of them practicde different religions. This was proven from testimony of witnesses presented at the East Jakarta Court.”
“The only thing we regret in this court process is how long it took for the East Jakarta District Court to send the case files when the Plaintiff appealed to the Jakarta High Court. It took eight years to obtain a decision in favor of our client at the appeal level. This shows that the courts have not fully implemented a fast, simple, and low-cost court process. During the eight years of waiting for justice, the Plaintiff, Mrs. Nukke Apriliana, and her family have benefited by living in our client’s house without giving any compensation.Furthermore, she tried to revoke the Notarial Deed of Grant and forced our client to agree to sell the house and then divide it equally between them. They dare not do it if Mrs. Yuni Arvita’s biological father was still alive,” continued Donny.
Responding to the Supreme Court’s decision which is now legally final and binding, Mrs. Yuni Arvita, as the legal owner of the land and building gifted by her biological father, could not hide her happiness by saying, “I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude towards the panel of judges from the East Jakarta District Court, the High Court of Jakarta, and the Supreme Court of the Republic of Indonesia. All court decisions in this case are based on my factual claims and evidence that have been given throughout several hearings. I would also like to thank the members of the Sheyoputra Law Office for their assistance in this long running case, especially Pak Donny Sheyoputra and Pak Yanto Jaya. I really appreciate their hard work and effort that they have put into this decade-long case and how they have walked me through from the very beginning until the final decision: I have my right to the house from my biological father. Last but never least, thank you to all the witnesses who stayed by my side and told all the truth.”
