Small Claims Court Procedure in The Framework of Indonesian Law Reform: An Analysis of Community Legal Needs and Lawrence M. Friedman's Three Legal Sub-Systems Theory

The Small Claims Court Procedure, or gugatan sederhana, is a dispute resolution system regulated under Peraturan Mahkamah Agung (PERMA) Nomor 4 Tahun 2019. It was designed to provide the public with access to justice that is quick, simple, and low-cost. As part of legal reform, this procedure aims to achieve legal objectives more effectively in civil procedural law. Understanding this reform requires analyzing the legal system. Based on Lawrence M. Friedman’s legal system theory, there are three key subsystems: legal structure, legal substance, and legal culture. This research uses a socio-legal approach to examine the mechanisms of the Small Claims Court Procedure within Nomor 4 Tahun 2019, while applying Friedman’s three-subsystem theory. The study concludes that these subsystems—legal structure, legal substance, and legal culture—work synergistically to support the implementation of the Small Claims Court Procedure as a form of legal reform. However, there remains room for improvement in the legal culture, particularly in encouraging greater participation from the public and legal practitioners. This procedure is expected to contribute to the development of civil procedural law, addressing challenges that may arise from the perspectives of legal structure, legal substance, and the legal culture of both society and legal professionals.