Free Legal Services Provided by Public Notaries in the Perspective of Indonesian Positive Law

The primary issue in this research pertains to Article 37 of the Notary Law, which mandates that notaries offer legal services pro bono to the needy, lacking explicit specifications for their nature and extent. This ambiguity results in legal confusion, varying interpretations, and a conflict between notaries' social responsibilities and their income entitlements as professionals. This study employs a normative legal methodology utilising legislative, conceptual, and philosophical methods, analysing legal texts through grammatical, systematic, and teleological interpretative procedures. This research aims to normatively elucidate the nature of this obligation within Indonesian positive law, evaluate its standing in relation to the principles of fairness, utility, and legal certainty, and investigate the legal ramifications for notaries who fail to comply. The research findings suggest that the mandate to offer pro bono legal services embodies the social duty of notaries and aligns with the principle of legal equality and the value of social justice. The vagueness of the language in the UUJN has resulted in discrepancies in practice and possible problems with the economic rights of notaries.