Legal Literacy- In Indonesian civil law, the validity of an agreement is regulated in Article 1320 of the Civil Code (BW). This article stipulates four main conditions that must be met in order for an agreement to be considered valid and binding on the parties involved. However, one of the common misconceptions is the assumption that an agreement must be made in writing in order to have legal force. In fact, based on the provisions of civil law, written form is not an absolute requirement for the validity of an agreement.

Conditions for a Valid Agreement

Article 1320 of the Civil Code stipulates four conditions for the validity of an agreement, namely:

  1. Agreement of the parties

    • The agreement must be based on the agreement or free will of the parties involved. This agreement must not be obtained through coercion, error, or fraud.

  2. Capacity to make an agreement

    • The parties making the agreement must have legal capacity, namely being of age (at least 18 years old or married) and not being in a condition that causes legal incapacity, such as being under guardianship.

  3. A specific object

    • The agreement must have a clear and determinable object, whether in the form of goods or services promised.

  4. A lawful cause

    • The agreement must not conflict with the law, public order, or morality. If the cause of the agreement violates these provisions, then the agreement becomes null and void.

In the provisions of Article 1320 of the Civil Code, it is not stated that the agreement must be made in writing in order to be considered valid. In other words, an oral agreement is actually valid as long as it meets the four conditions above. For example, a sale and purchase agreement made orally between two parties still has legal force, as long as there is an agreement, the parties have legal capacity, the object is clear, and the purpose does not conflict with the law. However, although an oral agreement is still valid, a written agreement is still recommended in legal practice to provide strong evidence in the event of a dispute in the future.