This study aims to analyze the legal framework governing the application of choice of law in international business contracts between Indonesian business actors and foreign partners, identify the juridical obstacles encountered in its implementation, and formulate an ideal legal framework capable of ensuring legal certainty, justice, and legal utility. This research employs a normative legal research method using statutory, conceptual, comparative, and case approaches. The legal materials consist of primary legal sources, including the Indonesian Civil Code, Law Number 30 of 1999 concerning Arbitration and Alternative Dispute Resolution, as well as international legal instruments such as the UNIDROIT Principles of International Commercial Contracts, the Hague Principles on Choice of Law in International Commercial Contracts 2015, and the Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards 1958 (New York Convention). Secondary legal materials include legal textbooks, scientific journals, previous research, and scholarly opinions. The collected legal materials are analyzed qualitatively using a descriptive-analytical approach. The findings reveal that the application of choice of law in international business contracts reflects the principle of freedom of contract and has been widely accepted in international commercial practice. Nevertheless, its implementation in Indonesia continues to face significant challenges, including the absence of a codified Private International Law, the lack of explicit regulations governing the limitations of choice of law, and the continued reliance on legal doctrines, judicial precedents, and the principle of public policy. This study proposes the reconstruction of Indonesia’s legal framework through the enactment of a comprehensive Private International Law Act regulating choice of law, choice of forum, the recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments and arbitral awards, and harmonization with internationally accepted principles of commercial law.
Copyrights © 2026