Counseling and Facilitation of Testament Deed Preparation for Older Adults and Low-Income Urban Families to Prevent Inheritance Disputes

Abstract

This community service article examines a legal counseling and facilitation program on testament deed preparation for older adults and low-income urban families in an urban Indonesian setting. The program was designed in response to the continuing vulnerability of families who possess limited legal literacy, fragmented family communication, and inadequate access to formal legal assistance in inheritance matters. Indonesian civil law recognizes inheritance by testament, while the Civil Code also preserves mandatory portions for certain heirs and places formal requirements on valid wills, making legal understanding essential for prevention of future disputes. Using a qualitative research design embedded in community service, data were collected through observation, semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, field notes, and document review during counseling, screening, and facilitation stages. Program participants consisted of 40 individuals, including older adults, family members, community cadres, and neighborhood leaders. The findings indicate that counseling improved participants’ legal understanding, reduced hesitation to discuss end-of-life property planning, and clarified the distinction between testamentary freedom and legal limitations under Indonesian inheritance law. Facilitation further revealed that the main barriers were fear of family conflict, incomplete civil documentation, low confidence in approaching a notary, and misconceptions that wills are relevant only for wealthy households. The article argues that community-based legal outreach can function as an early dispute-prevention strategy by combining legal education, family mediation, and referral pathways to formal legal services.