Legal System of Turkey

Turkey is located in Middle East. It is geographically situated in southeastern europe and southwestern asia (that portion of turkey west of the bosporus is geographically part of europe), bordering the black sea, between bulgaria and georgia, and bordering the aegean sea and the mediterranean sea, between greece and syria. The country achieved independence on 29 october 1923 (republic proclaimed, succeeding the ottoman empire). The capital is Ankara.

Government Overview

Government Type: presidential republic Chief of State: President Recep Tayyip ERDOGAN (since 28 August 2014) Head of Government: President Recep Tayyip ERDOGAN (since 9 July 2018) Cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president Administrative Divisions: 81 provinces (iller, singular - ili); Adana, Adiyaman, Afyonkarahisar, Agri, Aksaray, Amasya, Ankara, Antalya, Ardahan, Artvin, Aydin, Balikesir, Bartin, Batman, Bayburt, Bilecik, Bingol, Bitlis, Bolu, Burdur, Bursa, Canakkale, Cankiri, Corum, Denizli, Diyarbakir, Duzce, Edirne, Elazig, Erzincan, Erzurum, Eskisehir, Gaziantep, Giresun, Gumushane, Hakkari, Hatay, Igdir, Isparta, Istanbul, Izmir (Smyrna), Kahramanmaras, Karabuk, Karaman, Kars, Kastamonu, Kayseri, Kilis, Kirikkale, Kirklareli, Kirsehir, Kocaeli, Konya, Kutahya, Malatya, Manisa, Mardin, Mersin, Mugla, Mus, Nevsehir, Nigde, Ordu, Osmaniye, Rize, Sakarya, Samsun, Sanliurfa, Siirt, Sinop, Sirnak, Sivas, Tekirdag, Tokat, Trabzon (Trebizond), Tunceli, Usak, Van, Yalova, Yozgat, Zonguldak National Holiday: Republic Day, 29 October (1923) Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Legal System

The legal system of Turkey is described as civil law system based on various European systems, notably the Swiss civil code International Law: has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt

Constitutional Framework

The constitution has the following history: several previous; latest ratified 9 November 1982 Amendment Process: proposed by written consent of at least one third of Grand National Assembly (GNA) of Turkey (TBMM) members; adoption of draft amendments requires two debates in plenary TBMM session and three-fifths majority vote of all GNA members; the president of the republic can request TBMM reconsideration of the amendment and, if readopted by two-thirds majority TBMM vote, the president may submit the amendment to a referendum; passage by referendum requires absolute majority vote

Judicial Branch

Highest Court(s): Constitutional Court or Anayasa Mahkemesi (consists of the president, 2 vice presidents, and 12 judges); Court of Cassation (consists of about 390 judges and is organized into civil and penal chambers); Council of State (organized into 15 divisions – 14 judicial and 1 consultative – each with a division head and at least 5 members) Judge Selection: Constitutional Court members - 3 appointed by the Grand National Assembly and 12 by the president of the republic; court president and 2 deputy court presidents appointed from among its members for 4-year terms; judges serve 12-year, nonrenewable terms with mandatory retirement at age 65; Court of Cassation judges appointed by the Board of Judges and Prosecutors, a 13-member body of judicial officials; Court of Cassation judges serve until retirement at age 65; Council of State members appointed by the Board and by the president of the republic; members serve renewable, 4-year terms Subordinate Courts: regional appeals courts; basic (first instance) courts; peace courts; aggravated crime courts; specialized courts, including administrative and audit

Legislative Branch

The legislative structure consists of unicameral

Citizenship and Suffrage

Citizenship by Birth: no Citizenship by Descent: at least one parent must be a citizen of Turkey Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Historical Background

Modern Turkey was founded in 1923 from the remnants of the Ottoman Empire by reformer and national hero Mustafa KEMAL, known as Ataturk or "Father of the Turks." One-party rule ended in 1950, and periods of instability and military coups have since fractured the multiparty democracy, in 1960, 1971, 1980, 1997, and 2016. 

Turkey joined the UN in 1945 and NATO in 1952. In 1963, Turkey became an associate member of the European Community; it began accession talks with the EU in 2005.

This article provides a summary of the legal system and governmental structure of Turkey based on the CIA World Factbook. The Factbook is a public domain publication of the United States Central Intelligence Agency.