The plaintiff consented to the defendant’s trademark under an agreement but later sought invalidation of the earlier-filed trademark.
The Court of Cassation held that the agreement covered the earlier trademark based on the parties’ actual and implied intentions.
Filing an invalidation action despite prior consent was found to be contrary to the principle of good faith.
In Decision No. 2025/2697 E, 2025/6214 K of 13 October 2025, the Court of Cassation (CoC) upheld the…
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Higher Board of the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office upheld Beiersdorf’s opposition against a later trademark sharing NIVEA's distinctive blue-and-white composition
The Board highlighted the later mark could cause a likelihood of confusion with NIVEA, give the earlier’s strong distinctiveness and recognisability from its blue and white colour scheme
This precedent confirms colour and composition similarities can be decisive in trademark disputes when earlier marks have…
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With the Communiqué (Communiqué No: 2026/2) (“Update”), published by the Turkish Competition Authority (“Authority”) in the Official Gazette dated 11 February 2026 and numbered 33165, which foresees amendments to the Communiqué Concerning Mergers and Acquisitions Requiring the Approval of the Competition Board (Communiqué No: 2010/4), significant changes have been introduced for the purpose of determining the transactions subject to the approval of the Competition Board.
In…
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An Assessment in Light of a Recent Court of Cassation Decision
Undoubtedly, the initiation of patent infringement actions by patent holders for the purpose of protecting their exclusive rights, as well as the notification of third parties outside the proceedings who are suspected of involvement in infringing activities, fall within the scope of the rights conferred by patent law. Nevertheless, particularly in disputes between originator and generic pharmaceutical companies…
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Each year begins with an adjustment of the minimum wage, severance pay, and administrative fines set out under the Labour Act. This article provides an overview of the 2026 changes, which came into effect on 1 January 2026.
Minimum wage
In 2025 the monthly minimum wage rate was 26,005.50 Turkish liras (gross). As of 1 January 2026, this has increased to 33,030.00 Turkish liras (gross). The new rate applies from 1 January 2026 to 31 December 2026.
The minimum wage applies to…
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As a result of the effective supervision carried out by the Advertisement Board (“Board”) in 2025, a significant number of guiding decisions were rendered in the field of commercial advertising and unfair commercial practices. The substantial increase in administrative fines that the Board may impose, introduced by the amendments to the Law on the Protection of Consumers dated 30 October 2024, has markedly strengthened the effectiveness and deterrent impact of the Board’s…
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One of the most frequently raised objections in proceedings for the recognition and enforcement of foreign court and arbitral awards, as well as in actions for the setting aside of foreign arbitral awards, is the allegation that the decision is contrary to public policy. Owing to its broad and interpretative nature, the concept of public policy has become a standard line of defence invoked in almost every recognition, enforcement, or annulment proceeding.
Until the Court of…
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Existing Facilitations for Capital Loss and Over-Indebtedness Calculations are Extended until 2026
Article 376 of the Turkish Commercial Code numbered 6102 (the “TCC”) regulates the measures to be taken and the precautions to be implemented by the board of directors of the company, and the procedures to be followed in cases where the company suffers capital loss or becomes over-indebted, in order to ensure the protection of the financial structure of the company and to secure…
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On 19 December 2025, Presidential Decision No. 10702 amending the Decision on the Pricing of Medicinal Products for Human Use (“Decision”), which was originally put into force by the Council of Ministers’ Decision dated 6 February 2017 and numbered 2017/9901, was published in the Official Gazette.
With this amendment, changes have been introduced regarding (i) profit margins applied to warehouse and pharmacy sales prices and (ii) the Euro exchange rate used in the pricing of…
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Plant protection products are defined in legislation in a broad and highly technical manner. They refer to preparations offered to users in various forms which are used to protect plants and plant products against harmful organisms or to prevent the effects of such organisms, excluding products intended solely for plant nutrition. These products may also affect plant growth, control or prevent undesirable developments in plants or plant parts, or eliminate unwanted plants.…
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1- Major Legal Developments
For industry stakeholders, most of the year was spent on implementing the developments from last year into their practice, as the most recent major legal developments came around at the end of 2024.
The Personal Data Protection Law (the “Law”) is the main regulatory framework for data privacy in Türkiye. It was ratified in 2016, and the Personal Data Protection Authority (the “DPA”) was established by the Law. In 2024, the Law had some major…
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The Trademarks Department of the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office (the Trademarks Department) has recently highlighted, in a dispute where the similarity of device marks and the well-known status argument were primary issues, that the evidence submitted in response to a proof-of-use request proved to be critically important to the success prospects of the opposition file.
Opposition grounds and device mark differences
The device trademark application shown below…
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