Litigation and Enforcement 2023 in Turkey
What are the main dispute resolution methods used to resolve large commercial disputes? The main and most commonly used method for resolving large commercial disputes in Turkey is litigation. Civil litigation is based on the principle that the parties to the dispute prepare their case. The judge is bound to hear claims, defences and evidence brought by the parties. However, the judge is entitled to make a legal assessment ex officio. The management of proceedings is at the… »
Arbitration Procedures and Practice 2023 in Turkey
How is commercial arbitration used and what are the recent trends? Use of Commercial Arbitration and Recent Trends In Turkey, arbitration traditionally evolved as a dispute resolution mechanism, which was used more frequently in large commercial disputes where a foreign party is involved and mostly when a legal counsel is involved in the preparation of the principal contract between the parties. For all other matters, particularly concerning disputes of smaller value… »
Notification Obligation to Tax Office for Registered Transactions in the Trade Registry is Abolished
The General Communiqué no. 546 on Tax Procedural Law (the "Communiqué") which determines the procedures and principles regarding the acceptance of the notifications made electronically by the Ministry of Trade to the Ministry of Treasury and Finance (the "Ministry") from the transactions registered in the trade registry as notifications made by taxpayers was published in the Official Gazette dated 18 January 2023, to be effective as of 1 February 2023. Within the scope of the… »
Amendment to Press Labour Law
Under Turkish law, journalists are subject to Law No. 5953 on Arrangement of Relations Between Employers and Employees in the Field of Press (“Press Labour Law”), which sets out the terms and conditions of their employment. Former wording of Article 1 of Press Labour Law stated that the law covered those who work in any kind of intellectual or artistic works at news and photo agencies, periodical publications and newspapers published in Turkey and who fall outside the… »
Cyber Insurance and Insuring NFTs
With the frequent occurrence of cyber-attacks, having insurance coverage against these attacks has become increasingly crucial, and many insurance companies have started to provide cybersecurity insurance services. Like cryptocurrencies, NFTs which are digital assets with a specific value, are based on blockchain technology and stored in the blockchain. The blockchain is a database containing records that, once added, are almost impossible to change and is a digital ledger… »
New Regulation on Named Patient Programs is Published
Pharmaceuticals that are not authorized in Turkey and/or not available in the market despite being authorized, shall be procured from abroad upon request of physicians and special authorization in cases where patients require such pharmaceuticals. Until recently, this exceptional import regime for pharmaceuticals was regulated by the Guideline on the Supply of Pharmaceuticals from Abroad published by the Turkish Medicines and Medical Devices Agency ("Agency"). On February 3… »
Proof of Bad Faith: The Turkish Court of Cassation Adopts a Surprising Stance
Güldeniz Doğan Alkan and Cansu Evren of Gün + Partners say that a recent ruling raises the question of how many trademarks should be imitated for an act of bad faith to be recognised In a case, the Turkish Civil IP Court decided for the invalidation of a trademark registration identical to the plaintiff’s mark and trade name. The decision noted that: The plaintiff held a registration for the same class in the EU (but not in Turkey) before the trademark at issue; and The… »
Implementation of the Limitation of Goods and Services by the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office
The office provides an opportunity to limit the list of goods/services in terms of international trademark applications filed via WIPO However, it does not allow applicants to limit goods and services when it comes to national trademark applications This controversial approach eliminates a method commonly used by applicants to avoid potential disputes Limitation of goods/services The Turkish Patent and Trademark Office (‘office’) applies the Nice Classification for the… »
Corporate Governance and Directors Duties in Turkey Overview
The Q&A gives a high-level overview of corporate governance trends; the main forms of corporate entity used; the corporate governance legal framework; corporate social responsibility and reporting; board composition and restrictions; directors' remuneration; management rules and authority; directors' duties and liabilities; transactions with directors and conflicts; disclosure of information; shareholders' rights, company meetings, and minority shareholder action; and… »
DELPHI v DEPLHI: PTO’s Decision Sheds Light on Interpretation of Bad Faith
Delphi Technologies opposed the registration of DEPLHI in Classes 1, 3 and 4 based on its earlier mark DELPHI The board found that the goods covered by the application were similar and related to the goods/services covered by the earlier mark, as they were all used in the auto spare parts sector ‘Delphi’ has no meaning in Turkish and it was unlikely that this word would have been chosen as a trademark as a coincidence In a recent decision, the Re-examination and Evaluation… »
Countdown to Revocation Requests at The TPTO
In one year’s time, trade mark revocation proceedings will be possible before the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office (TPTO). Güldeniz Doğan Alkan and Cansu Evren discuss the changes. Article 26 of the IP Code After years of proceeding with a Decree Law, the Intellectual Property Code no. 6769 entered into force in Turkey on 10 January 2017. Article 26 of the IP Code regulates the revocation of a trade mark registration. It foresees that the trade mark shall be revoked in the… »
Determination of Evidence in Disputes Over Pharmaceutical Patents
Introduction The determination of evidence, one of the most important temporary legal protection measures regulated in Turkish law, is an institution that ensures the protection of evidence which will assist in proving the matter in question. Considering that the adversarial trial process is adopted in Turkish civil procedure law, the significance of the rights holder being able to have the evidence that will help them prove themselves effectively determined is clear.… »