Prof. Dr. Topo Santoso, S.H., M.H., is a Professor of Law at the Faculty of Law, Universitas Indonesia. He served as Dean of the Faculty of Law at Universitas Indonesia from 2013 to 2017. Since 1994, he has been a permanent faculty member teaching undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral programs at the Faculty of Law, Universitas Indonesia, specializing in criminal law, election law, criminological studies, and comparative legal systems.
Prof. Topo completed his Bachelor of Laws (S.H. – Sarjana Hukum) at the Faculty of Law, Universitas Indonesia (1988–1992) and earned his Master of Laws (M.H. – Magister Hukum) from the Postgraduate Program at Universitas Indonesia (1997–2000). He obtained his Ph.D. in Law from the Faculty of Law at the University of Malaya, Malaysia, in 2009. To broaden his international legal perspective, he completed several specialized training programs abroad, including common law studies at Bond University in Australia (1994), international law coursework at the Southwestern Legal Foundation in Texas (1995), legal English and international financial systems programs at Harvard Law School and Harvard Extension School (1996), and clinical legal education programs in Washington D.C. (2014) and Eskisehir, Turkey (2015).
As a prominent legal educator, Prof. Topo serves as a doctoral dissertation supervisor at the Faculties of Law of Universitas Indonesia, Universitas Padjadjaran, Universitas Sumatra Utara, Universitas Jambi, Universitas Sriwijaya, and Universitas Sebelas Maret. He has also been appointed as a doctoral examiner at esteemed domestic and international institutions, including Leiden University, Tilburg University, the University of Melbourne, the University of Malaya, Universitas Gadjah Mada, and Universitas Diponegoro. Beyond university academia, he actively contributes to judicial and prosecutorial training as an instructor for the Anti-Corruption Court (Tipikor – Tindak Pidana Korupsi) Judicial Education Program under the Supreme Court of Indonesia, Prosecutorial Candidate Training (PPPJ – Pendidikan & Pelatihan Pembentukan Jaksa) at the Attorney General’s Office of the Republic of Indonesia, and Continuing Legal Education for Advocates (PKPA – Pendidikan Khusus Profesi Advokat).
Prof. Topo has played key roles in national legislative drafting, judicial reform, and public policy. He served on the Drafting and Socialization Teams for the new National Criminal Code (KUHP – Kitab Undang-Undang Hukum Pidana) under the Ministry of Law and Human Rights (2019–2025) and currently serves on the Judicial Reform Advisory Team with the Supreme Court of the Republic of Indonesia. His public service history includes serving as a member of the Central Election Supervisory Committee (2003–2004), a foreign election observer in the Philippines (2010), member of the Task Force for the Supervision and Evaluation of the Handling of Analysis Reports, Inspection Reports, and Information on Alleged Money Laundering Offenses, Ministry of Political, Legal, and Security Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia (2023), and an expert selector for Supreme Court Justices and Judicial Commission members. Additionally, he has provided expert legal testimony in over 30 criminal court cases across Indonesia, as well as constitutional and election dispute proceedings before the Constitutional Court of Indonesia (Mahkamah Konstitusi) and General Election Supervisory Agency (Badan Pengawas Pemilihan Umum).
Prof. Topo holds prominent leadership positions in major legal organizations, including Chairman of the Advisory Board of the Association of Criminal Law and Criminology Lecturers of Indonesia (ASPERHUPIKI – Asosiasi Dosen Hukum Pidana dan Kriminologi Indonesia), former First Chairman of the Indonesian Society of Criminal Law and Criminology (MAHUPIKI – Masyarakat Hukum Pidana dan Kriminologi Indonesia, 2018–2024), former Chairman of the Association of Comparative Law Lecturers in Indonesia (ADPHI – Asosiasi Dosen Perbandingan Hukum se-Indonesia, 2015–2018), board member of the International Academy of Comparative Law (Paris), and board trustee of PERLUDEM (Perkumpulan untuk Pemilu dan Demokrasi). He is a prolific scholar who has authored numerous books and research works, including Principles of Indonesian Criminal Law (Hart Publishing, Oxford, 2023), Comparative Legal Education in The Cambridge Handbook of Comparative Law (Cambridge University Press, 2024), Asas-Asas Hukum Pidana (2023), and Hukum Pidana Pemilu (2023). In recognition of his distinguished public service and academic excellence, he was awarded the Satyalancana Karya Satya 10-year (2008) and 20-year (2019) honor medals by the President of the Republic of Indonesia, along with multiple Faculty of Law, Universitas Indonesia Awards as Best Lecturer, Most Published Author, and the highest SINTA (Science and Technology Index) and Google Scholar H-Index recipient.
