Jurnal Hukum to-ra : Hukum Untuk Mengatur dan Melindungi Masyarakat
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ARBITRATOR CONFLICTS AND PUBLIC POLICY IN ENFORCING FOREIGN AWARDS IN INDONESIA
Abstract
This article examines the disclosure of arbitrator conflicts of interest in international commercial arbitration involving Indonesian parties. It addresses two issues: (1) the degree of synchronization between Indonesian arbitration law and the IBA Guidelines on Conflicts of Interest in International Arbitration, and (2) the implications of a breach of disclosure obligations for the recognition and enforcement of foreign arbitral awards in Indonesia. This normative legal study applies statutory, conceptual, case, and comparative approaches. The findings show that Law Number 30 of 1999 recognizes disclosure duties and challenge procedures but does not provide the conflict classifications, look-back periods, or objective parameters contained in the 2024 IBA Guidelines' Traffic Light System. A failure to disclose does not automatically annul an award or bar its enforcement. Nevertheless, when the non-disclosure is material and creates justifiable doubts concerning the arbitrator's independence or impartiality, it may support refusal of enforcement on due-process and public-policy grounds under the 1958 New York Convention and Law Number 30 of 1999.
Keywords
Declarations
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Submitted
25 July 2026 -
Revised
27 July 2026 -
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Published
8 August 2026


