Supreme Court Issues New Regulation on Pretrial Motions to Prevent Protracted Cases
The Supreme Court (MA) has issued a new regulation on pretrial motions. The new rule was created to provide legal certainty.
As seen on the official MA website on Friday (21/8/2026), the new regulation on pretrial motions is set out in Supreme Court Circular (SEMA) Number 3 of 2026 concerning the Transfer and Conduct of Examination of the Main Case in the Event of a Pretrial Motion.
In the circular, the MA notes that Article 163 paragraph (1) letter e of the Criminal Procedure Code (KUHAP) only regulates that the examination of the main case in court cannot be conducted while a pretrial examination is ongoing. The MA stated that this new SEMA was issued to realise the principle of simple justice.
“To provide legal certainty and realise the principle of simple, fast, and low-cost justice,” the MA stated in SEMA Number 3 of 2026.
The following is the content of SEMA Number 3 of 2026:
If there is a pretrial motion that has been registered or is being examined at the district court, the main case may still be transferred, but the examination of the main case cannot be conducted until a pretrial ruling is issued.
A pretrial motion registered after the main case has been transferred does not hinder the examination of the main case.
For a pretrial motion filed after the main case has been transferred, the pretrial motion shall still be registered, heard, and decided with a ruling declaring the pretrial motion inadmissible.