Justice System Overview
Comprehensive information about the Turkish justice system and court types
Content
Turkish Justice System
The justice system in Turkey is an independent judicial body based on constitutional foundations. The system consists of courts at different levels and with different jurisdictions. Each court type has its own unique jurisdiction and operation.
The diagram below shows the hierarchical structure of the Turkish justice system and court types.
Court Types
The main court types in the Turkish justice system and their features are explained in detail below:
Description
The Constitutional Court is Turkey's highest judicial body, responsible for protecting the constitutional order. It has critical duties including supervising the constitutionality of laws, presidential decrees, and parliamentary bylaws, ruling on individual applications, and trying high-ranking state officials as the Supreme Tribunal. The court consists of 15 members who serve for 12 years.
Jurisdiction
Conduct constitutional review, rule on individual applications, try the President, members of the Council of Ministers, members of the Court of Cassation, Council of State, and HSK as the Supreme Tribunal.
Description
The Court of Cassation is the highest appellate court in the judicial branch and conducts final review of decisions in civil and criminal cases. It is responsible for ensuring uniformity of case law in the judicial branch, correcting illegal situations, and reviewing lower court decisions for legal compliance. Members are selected by the Board of Judges and Prosecutors from among judicial judges and prosecutors with specific seniority and experience, and serve for 12 years.
Jurisdiction
Conduct appellate review in civil and criminal cases, ensure uniformity of case law in judicial branch, review lower court decisions.
Description
High Criminal Courts are specially authorized courts responsible for hearing cases involving serious crimes. They handle severe offenses such as intentional homicide, robbery, extortion, embezzlement, drug trafficking, as well as cases requiring aggravated life imprisonment, life imprisonment, and prison sentences of more than ten years. These courts ensure that serious crimes are tried in a more detailed and careful manner.
Jurisdiction
Crimes requiring aggravated life imprisonment, life imprisonment, and prison sentences over ten years, serious crimes such as intentional homicide, robbery, extortion, embezzlement, drug trafficking.
Description
Civil Courts of First Instance are general courts with jurisdiction over cases related to property rights and personal rights, unless otherwise provided by law. These courts, responsible for handling private law disputes, hear cases in various areas such as commercial disputes, law of obligations, family law, inheritance law, and real estate law. They are general courts together with Civil Courts of Peace and are courts of primary jurisdiction.
Jurisdiction
Cases related to property rights and personal rights, commercial disputes, law of obligations, family law, inheritance law, real estate law cases.
Description
Labor Courts are specialized courts for resolving disputes arising from employer-employee relationships. They handle all labor law disputes including disputes arising from employment contracts, wage claims, compensation cases from workplace accidents and occupational diseases, severance and notice pay, and reinstatement cases. These courts are established as courts of special jurisdiction due to the complex nature of labor law.
Jurisdiction
Disputes arising from employment contracts, wage claims, compensation cases from workplace accidents and occupational diseases, severance and notice pay, reinstatement cases.
Description
Enforcement Courts are courts of special jurisdiction that ensure collection of receivables through enforcement. They handle objections in enforcement proceedings, enforcement bankruptcy decisions, issuance of certificates of insolvency, objections to attachment proceedings, and cases filed against enforcement officers' actions. These courts operating under the Enforcement and Bankruptcy Law are responsible for protecting creditors' rights and ensuring enforcement procedures are conducted in accordance with the law.
Jurisdiction
Objections in enforcement proceedings, enforcement bankruptcy decisions, issuance of certificates of insolvency, objections to attachment proceedings, cases against enforcement officers' actions.
Key Points
- •The Constitutional Court supervises the constitutionality of laws and is the highest constitutional judicial body.
- •The Court of Cassation reviews decisions of lower courts for legal compliance.
- •First instance courts are where cases are first tried.