- Home
- News & Insights
Search by
Latest
Turkish Constitutional Court: Overly formalistic review of mandatory mediation records violates the right of access to court in reinstatement cases
On 21 September 2026, the Turkish Constitutional Court (“Constitutional Court”) published in the Official Gazette (No. 33377) its decision dated 3 March 2026 on in respect of an individual application (Application No. 2022/82055) (the "Decision"). The Constitutional Court held that a regional court of appeal violated the applicant’s right of access to court by adopting an overly formalistic approach. The regional court had dismissed a reinstatement claim on the ground that the mandatory mediation requirement had not been fulfilled, as the reinstatement claim had not been selected on the mediation application form. The Constitutional Court, however, found that this approach was unjustified, noting that the final
New Judicial Reform Package in Türkiye Introduces Significant Changes
On 31 July 2026, Law No. 7589 on Amendments to Certain Laws to Enhance the Efficiency and Effectiveness of the Judiciary ("Law No. 7589") was published in the Official Gazette of Türkiye. The law represents the latest stage of Türkiye’s judicial reform efforts, commonly referred to as the "12th Judicial Reform Package". Law No. 7589 introduces a broad range of amendments affecting civil and administrative procedure, criminal justice, inheritance law, and cybercrime regulation. The reforms are primarily aimed at improving the efficiency of judicial proceedings, reducing delays, and addressing practical issues that have arisen in the application of existing legislation. From a civil litigation perspective, the
From Competition Law to Criminal Exposure: Raids on Türkiye’s Poultry Sector Signal a Potential New Enforcement Era
A recent wave of enforcement activity in the Turkish poultry sector during June 2026 raises an important question: whether conduct traditionally addressed under competition law can now trigger criminal investigations? Following a comprehensive investigation, the Turkish Competition Authority (“TCA”) imposed administrative monetary fines on several undertakings operating in the poultry market for allegedly exchanging competitively sensitive information. Subsequently, the same factual background became the basis of criminal proceedings initiated by public prosecutors in 12 cities across Türkiye, signalling a notable convergence between administrative and criminal enforcement frameworks. For boardrooms, legal counsels
KST Law (in cooperation with Kinstellar) contributes Turkey chapter to Chambers Global Practice Guide: Dispute Resolution 2026
The Dispute Resolution team, partner Koray Söğüt, and associates Hatice Nur Arslan, Ömer Faruk Kılıç and Açelya Kızgın, have authored the Turkey chapter of the Chambers Global Practice Guide: Dispute Resolution 2026, providing insights into the Turkish dispute resolution framework as part of a comparative guide covering more than 40 jurisdictions. The guide provides practical insights into the full spectrum of commercial dispute resolution across more than 40 jurisdictions. It compares litigation, arbitration and other forms of alternative dispute resolution, covering topics such as limitation periods, court procedures, confidentiality, interim and final relief, damages, costs and funding, class actions, disclosure
Turkish Constitutional Court Ruling Reshapes the Appellate Review Framework
In its decision published in the Official Gazette dated 21 May 2026, the Constitutional Court of Türkiye (the “Constitutional Court”) ruled that decisions rendered by the regional appellate courts granting a partial or full acceptance upon appellate review may still be appealed before the Court of Cassation (Yargıtay), even if the amount in dispute does not exceed the monetary threshold for cassation review (TRY 682,000 for 2026). According to its decision dated 26 February 2026 and numbered E.2026/49, K.2026/48 (the “Decision”), the Constitutional Court annulled sub-paragraph (a) of Article 362/1 of the Code of Civil Procedure No. 6100 (“CCP”), which restricted the right to appeal before the Court of Cassation
Turkish Constitutional Court (Pilot Judgement): Prolonged Seizure Annotations under Article 128 Breach Property and Remedy Rights
In its decision dated 12 December 2024 and published in the Official Gazette No. 33046 on 13 October 2025, the Constitutional Court examined the constitutionality of long-term seizure measures imposed under Article 128 of the Criminal Procedure Code (Law No. 5271) through land registry annotations. The Constitutional Court held that the extended maintenance of such seizure annotations, even without physical confiscation, constitutes a disproportionate interference with the right to property protected under Article 35 of the Constitution, and that the limited interpretation of Article 141(1)(j), which allows compensation only where there is physical seizure- renders the right to an effective remedy under
Turkish Constitutional Court: Excluding Inflation and Currency Fluctuations from Proving Additional Damages Violates Property and Access to Justice Rights
The Turkish Constitutional Court’s Plenary Decision in Caner Şafak (published in the Official Gazette on 29 September 2025) reviewed the prevailing judicial approach to proving additional damages. What is Additional Damage? Article 122 of the Turkish Code of Obligations (“TCO”) defines additional damage as a creditor’s loss exceeding statutory or contractual interest. In other words, it covers real losses arising from late payment that go beyond default interest. For instance, if a creditor must borrow at a higher interest rate or suffers from adverse exchange rate movements due to delayed payment, such losses qualify as additional damages. Current Practice For many years, Türkiye’s Court
Rekabet Yasağı Uyuşmazlıklarında Asliye Ticaret Mahkemesi’nin Görevli Olduğuna Karar Verildi
Eylül 2025 – 12 Eylül 2025 tarihinde yayınlanan Resmi Gazete ile Yargıtay İçtihatları Birleştirme Büyük Genel Kurulu’nun (“Yargıtay İBK”) rekabet yasağına ilişkin uyuşmazlıklarda görevli mahkeme belirlemesine ilişkin bağlayıcı kararı (“Karar”) yayımlandı. Karar Öncesi Uygulama Uygulamada, işçi-işveren ilişkilerinden kaynaklanan rekabet yasağı uyuşmazlıklarında görevli mahkeme konusuna yönelik Yargıtay daireleri arasında farklı yaklaşımlar bulunmaktaydı. Yargıtay 9. Hukuk Dairesi, iş sözleşmesinden kaynaklanan uyuşmazlıklara bakan iş mahkemelerinin rekabet yasağı hükümlerinden doğan uyuşmazlıklarda da görevli olduğuna karar verirken; Yargıtay 11. Hukuk Dairesi
Jurisdiction in Non-Compete Disputes Clarified by Turkish Court of Cassation
On 12 September 2025, a landmark decision of the Turkish Court of Cassation’s Board for the Unification of Case Laws (Yargıtay İçtihatları Birleştirme Büyük Genel Kurulu) (“Decision”) has been published in the Official Gazette. With this landmark Decision, the issue of which court is competent for disputes arising from non-compete obligations has been resolved. Background The question of jurisdiction over employment-related non-compete disputes has long been debated. In practice, different chambers of the Court of Cassation (Yargıtay) had taken divergent positions. The 9th Civil Chamber held that labour courts (iş mahkemeleri), which hear disputes arising from employment agreements, should have