DISPARITIES IN ISBAT NIKAH RULINGS ON UNDERAGE MARRIAGES

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.29123/jy.v19i1.762

Keywords:

disparity of rulings, marriage validation (isbat nikah), underage marriage, normative legalism, judicial progressivism

Abstract

This study aims to analyze the disparity in judges’ legal reasoning in adjudicating petitions for marriage validation (isbat nikah) filed by couples who married before attaining the minimum age requirement without first obtaining a marriage dispensation. The study focuses on two distinct court rulings, namely Judgments Number 155/Pdt.P/2024/PA.JB and Number 41/Pdt.P/2024/PA.Lbg. This disparity stems from the varying methods of law-finding (rechtsvinding) applied by judges in addressing to the absence of a marriage dispensation petition before the marriage was solemnized. This study employs normative legal research using case and comparative approaches. The findings reveal a fundamental difference in the interpretation of the legal requirements for a valid marriage and the minimum age limit under Law Number 16 of 2019. On the one hand, the judges adopted a formal-legalistic approach by rejecting the petition to ensure legal certainty. On the other hand, the judges tended to validate the marriage to protect the private- law rights of the child and the wife. The novelty of this study lies in the finding that such disparity is not merely a technical difference in the interpretation of legal provisions but rather reflects a paradigmatic conflict between normative legalism and judicial progressivism within the religious court system. This study contributes theoretically by highlighting the tension between substantive justice and the rigidity of positive-law norms in adjudicating family law cases. These findings affirm that the standardization of judicial guidelines at the administrative level remains inadequate, thereby necessitating a reconstruction of legal thought capable of bridging state legal protection with the welfare of legal subjects who have not yet met the minimum age requirement for marriage.

Author Biography

  • Achmad Muchsin, Universitas Islam Negeri K.H. Abdurrahman Wahid Pekalongan

    Achmad Muchsin, lahir di Wonosobo pada tanggal 6 Mei 1975. Pendidikan S1 diselesaikan di Institut Agama Islam Negeri Sunan kalijaga Yogyakarta Jurusan Perbandingan Madzhab dan Hukum pada tahun 2003. Pendidikan S2 Ilmu Hukum diselesaikan pada tahun 2006 di Sekolah Pasca Sarjana Universitas Gadjah Mada Yogyakarta dan pendidikan S3 pada tahun 2023 di Fakultas Hukum Universitas Islam Indonesia Yogyakarta.. Sejak tahun 2009 sampai dengan saat ini bekerja sebagai dosen tetap (PNS) pada Fakultas Syari’ah Universitas Islam Negeri (UIN) K.H. Abdurrahman Wahid Pekalongan. Beberapa karya ilmiah yang telah dihasilkan, antara lain: Upaya Perlindungan Hukum Terhadap Pekerja/ Buruh Wanita (Analisis Yuridis Terhadap Pekerja/Buruh Wanita Pemetik Teh Pada PT. Perkebunan Tambi Kabupaten Wonosobo);  Perlindungan Hukum Terhadap Pasien Sebagai Konsumen Jasa Pelayanan Kesehatan Dalam Transaksi Terapeutik (Jurnal Hukum Islam, Vol. 7 No. 1, April 2009); Penegakan Hukum Terhadap Tindak Pidana Korupsi Oleh Lembaga Penegak Hukum; Kedudukan Hukum Pekerja/Buruh Outsourcing Dalam Hubungan Industrial Pasca Putusan Mahkamah Konstitusi Nomor 27/PUU-IX/2011; Hak Konstitusional Peserta Didik Sebagai Konsumen Jasa Layanan Pendidikan Dalam Perspektif Undang-Undang Nomor 8 Tahun 1999 Tentang Perlindungan Konsumen; Hukum Lingkungan Administrasi; Studi Atas Kebijakan Pemerintah Daerah Kota Pekalongan Dalam Upaya Pencegahan Dan Penanggulangan Kerusakan Lingkungan; Dampak Pembangungan Kota Pekalongan Terhadap Kawasan Pesisir Utara Kota Pekalongan;  dan lain-lain.

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Published

2026-08-31

Issue

Vol. 19 No. 1 (2026): OPEN LEGAL POLICY

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Articles

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Copyright (c) 2026 Siti Nur Azizah, Achmad Muchsin

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DISPARITIES IN ISBAT NIKAH RULINGS ON UNDERAGE MARRIAGES. (2026). Jurnal Yudisial, 19(1), 85-106. https://doi.org/10.29123/jy.v19i1.762