Insights
Law on the Protection of Personal Data and Its Application
On April 7, 2016, the Law on the Protection of Personal Data (“Law”) came into force in Turkey as a special law regarding the protection of personal data. The Law is a step towards harmonising Turkish legislation with EU legislation, and it was prepared based on Directive 95/46/EC on data protection (“Data Protection Directive”). Although the Law is very similar to the Data Protection Directive, certain principles of the General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) were also… »
Lawful Personal Data Processing
Personal data can be processed based on the following legal grounds: If explicit consent of the data subject is obtained. If processing is clearly proposed. If processing is mandatory for the protection of life or to prevent the physical injury of a person in cases where that person cannot express consent or whose consent is legally invalid due to physical disabilities. If processing is necessary for and directly related to the establishment or performance of a contract and… »
Explicit Consent under Data Protection Law
Explicit consent has been defined as consent that relates to a specified issue, declared by free will, and based on information. As the definition suggest, the Law stipulates that no kind of “blanket consent” of not limited to a specific subject or transaction will be valid. For example, consent such as "I allow all kinds of data processing activities", will not suffice under the Law. The data subject must know for what s/he is giving consent and must clearly express his/her… »
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… »
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… »
Turkey's Ongoing Decline In Corruption Perception Index
Transparency International’s annual report 2022 Corruption Perceptions Index (“CPI 2022”), aiming to measure the perceived level of public sector corruption based on various sources with the contributions of businesspeople, NGOs and country experts, was released on January 31, 2023. The index ranks 180 countries/territories by their perceived level of public sector corruption on a scale from 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean). CPI is regarded as one of the most credible… »
Transfer of Personal Data to Third Parties
Sensitive and non-sensitive personal data may be transferred to third parties if the data subject’s explicit consent is obtained or if one of the additional legal grounds is applicable for such transfer. The Law does not define a third party; therefore, any individual or entity (other than the data controller and the data subject) may be considered a third party. This creates a problem, especially about transfers between data controllers and data processors, as there is no… »
Transfer of Data Abroad
Sensitive and non-sensitive personal data can be transferred abroad if the data subject’s explicit consent is obtained. Furthermore, other legal grounds will also apply to transferring personal data to a foreign country. However, the destination country must have “sufficient protection” to conclude the transfer abroad based on legal grounds (except for having obtained explicit consent). The Board will determine a list of jurisdictions that provide sufficient protection. The… »
Data Breach Notification
The Law requires data controllers to notify the relevant data subject and the Board as soon as possible after becoming aware of a data breach. In its decision dated January 24, 2019, and numbered 2019/9, the Board clarified the rules and procedures applicable to data breach incidents. The Board took the GDPR approach regarding the timing of breach notifications and clarified that “as soon as possible” within the Law must be interpreted as 72 hours from becoming aware of a… »
Turkish DPA Fines Meta and WhatsApp Try 5,3m For Failure to Fulfill Their Registration Obligation to the VERBIS
The Turkish Personal Data Protection Authority (the “Turkish DPA”),concerning the investigation initiated ex officio, into Meta and WhatsApp which processes the personal data of the data subjects in Turkey and is subject to the provisions of the Law on the Protection of Personal Data No. 6698 (“Law”) over imposed an administrative fine of TRY 2,665,000 (approx. EUR 128,560) separately for failure to fulfill their Data Controller’s Registry (VERBIS) registration and… »
Data Controllers’ Registry (VERBIS)
According to Article 16 of the Law, an obligation to register in the Data Controllers Registry (“VERBIS”) has been introduced for data controllers. In 2018, the Board issued decisions granting exemptions from the registration obligation to specific professional groups, associations, and political parties. The Board also granted a general exemption to data controllers residing in Turkey with less than 50 employees and less than TRY 25 million on their balance sheets. Data… »
Consequences of Data Breach
The Law provides for both administrative fines and criminal liability where data breaches have occurred. Regarding criminal penalties, the Law refers to the relevant provisions of the Turkish Criminal Code that details sanctions for the unlawful recording, disclosing, or transferring of personal data. In addition to criminal sanctions, the Law also contains provisions detailing administrative fines applicable in a breach. Four breaches have been defined under the Law: The… »
News and Events
Webinar: The Effects of COVID-19 on Anti-counterfeiting Activities in EMEA Region
The panel came together to discuss the effect of Covid-19 and the respective measures taken in the EMEA region, on the anti-counterfeiting activities. The legal teams at headquarters and local subsidiaries and outside counsels will give an overall perspective based on insights, experiences, threats and opportunities. Moderator: Barış Kalaycı Speakers: Lindsay Sisnett, Hale Büyükbozkurt, Zeynep Seda Alhas Topics: The impacts of COVID-19 to anti-counterfeiting actions in…
Webinar: Legal Impacts of Digitalization in Workplace in Turkey
Filiz Toprak Esin, Begüm Yavuzdoğan Okumuş and Beril Yayla Sapan spoke about legal impacts of digitalization in workplace in Turkey at the webinar co-hosted by Mondaq and Gün + Partners. https://youtu.be/scagFgineho
We Are Proud to Be Ranked in the GDR 100 2021
We are proud to be ranked in the inaugural GDR 100 2021. GDR 100 is the only global ranking that captures the capabilities, track record and market reputation of the leading firms in the field – and the first data law ranking that does not exclusively focus on data protection and privacy. https://globaldatareview.com/survey/gdr-100/2021/article/introducing-the-gdr-100
Uğur Aktekin made the opening speech in FICPI-TÜRKİYE Intellectual Property Seminar
FICPI-TÜRKİYE "Intellectual Property Seminar" held in conjunction with Yaşar University in Izmir. Uğur Aktekin, our partner and president of the FICPI-TÜRKİYE, made the opening speech and on the 2nd panel he shared the stage with Prof. Sevilay Uzunallı and Hüseyin Yılmaz. https://ficpi.org.tr/etkinlikler/
"Turkey's Patent Map" Report by PatentEffect
"Turkey's Patent Map" report, prepared by PatentEffect, makes technological competency assessment of Turkey based on the analysis of local patent data. We are happy to contributing the publication with our insights about key developments and predictions for patent law in Turkey and hope that the report will be useful for development of patent awareness in our country.
Turkey Disputes Summit 2019
Mehmet Gün, our founding partner, made the opening speech and Pelin Baysal, co-chair of our dispute management practice, spoke on the "What should an arbitrator do when counsel fail to fulfil their job?" panel at "Turkey Disputes Summit 2019" organized by Legal500 and ISTA.
Turkey Legal Update November edition published
The November edition of Gün + Partners Turkey Legal Update, which aims to brief our community and clients about legal developments in Turkey, is launching today. This month we provide legal updates on the trends and developments in insurance industry, recent communique on share-based crowdfunding, new regulations with regards to the criminal procedure brought by the judicial reform package, and The New Trademark Examination Guideline recently published by TÜRKPATENT.
"Trademarks and Designs Copyrights Anti-Counterfeiting IP Prosecution"
We are delighted to have been selected as the “Trademark Firm of the Year” in Turkey by Global IP Awards of IAM/WTR, which recognise law and attorney firm excellence in the field of litigation, prosecution and transactional trademark work during 2019.
Talat Yörük was guest in Ellie in de Handel TV program
"Turkey is the third biggest provenance economy of counterfeit goods entering the EU after Hong Kong and China according to the research of EUIPO. Talat Yörük, senior associate in our anti-counterfeiting practice, shared his opinions at the “Ellie in de Handel” TV program on the Netherlands TV channel NPO 3. @Ellie Lust "
Selin Sinem Erciyas is the exclusive winner of Client Choice - intellectual Property – Patents category for Turkey
Congratulations to Selin Sinem Erciyas, partner in our patents and utility models practice, for being the exclusive winner of the Intellectual Property – Patents category for Turkey by Client Choice which recognizes those law firms and partners around the world that stand apart for the excellent client care they provide and the quality of their service.
Our New Lawyers
Selin Bilik, Ayşenur Çıtak and Ahmet Niyazi Ülkü completed their formal internship at our firm and obtained their lawyer licenses.
Our Firm and 5 Lawyers Are Shortlisted for Euromoney Legal Media Group's European Life Sciences Awards 2020
We are honored that our firm and 5 lawyers are shortlisted in 7 categories of Euromoney Legal Media Group's European Life Sciences Awards 2020 from Turkey. The awards highlight the firms, individuals and companies behind the most innovative and challenging Life Sciences legal work of the past year, as well as those driving the international market.