Insights
Court of Cassation's Latest Approach to Actions for Unquantified Amounts of Receivables
Introduction When the new Code of Civil Procedure was enacted in 2011, it introduced a new case type to Turkish litigation, enabling plaintiffs to file actions for unquantified amounts of receivables, the determination of which is left to the courts. When filing such actions, plaintiffs must: state the amount of determinable receivables as the minimum amount subject to the dispute; pay a case fee based on this amount; extend their claim to the amount calculated by the court;… »
Turkish Court of Appeal Rules on Abuse of the Right to Sue
In a recent case concerning trade mark law, the Turkish Court of Appeal ruled that even in cases of bad faith on the part of the defendant, the claimant can face the principle of loss of right due to silence as well as the barrier of abuse of the right to sue. The decisions As some readers may be aware, two German companies, Speck Pumpen Verkaufsgesellschaft GmbH and Winter Pumpen GmbH, had a dispute over the SPECK trade mark. This trade mark conflict included some actions… »
ICTA’s Decision on Social Network Providers
Definition of "Social Network Provider" has been added to the Law numbered 5651 on the Regulation of Internet Broadcasts and Prevention of Crimes Committed through Such Broadcasts (“Internet Law”) with the amendments that entered into force as of October 01, 2020. Although the amendments have regulated main issues concerning social network providers, the details of their obligations and sanctions have been subject to discussions and required more clarification. Accordingly on… »
Advertisement Board Imposed Sanctions due to False Health Claims in Advertising of Food Supplements
In its decision dated 14th of July 2020 the Advertisement Board imposed sanction against the advertisement of a food supplement branded “No Attack”. According to Advertisement Board the advertising of this food supplement by celebrities in Turkey as well as the producer itself incorporated false health claim. Hence the Advertisement Board ordered to cease the broadcast of the said advertisements in any media and imposed administrative monetary fine corresponding to TRL… »
The Regulation on Sales, Advertisement and Promotion of Medical Devices Has Been Amended
The regulation amending The Regulation on Sales, Advertisement and Promotion of Medical Devices was published in the Official Gazette No. 31232 dated 02.09.2020. The most important amendments made to the Regulation on Sales, Advertisement and Promotion of Medical Devices (“Regulation”) related to the restrictions imposed on medical device sales and advertising activities and regulations on notices to be made in personnel changes. 1. New Regulations Imposed on Sales of Medical… »
Data Protection Law in General
On April 7, 2016, a new law on the protection of personal data came into force in Turkey: The Law on the Protection of Personal Data numbered 6698 (“Data Protection Law”). It is the first law of its kind in Turkey, specifically regulating the protection of personal data. The Data Protection Law is a step towards harmonizing Turkish legislation with EU legislation, and it was prepared based on Directive 95/46/EC on data protection (“Data Protection Directive”). The Data… »
Restrictions on Dividend Distribution Extended to 31 December 2020
Within the scope of the fight against the Covid-19, the provisional article 13, which was added to the Turkish Commercial Code ("TCC") on April 16, 2020, brought some restrictions on the dividend distribution rights of equity companies until 30 September 2020 and the exemptions regarding the companies covered by the regulation, the procedures and principles in relation to the practice were determined by the Communiqué issued by the Ministry of Commerce ("Ministry") and… »
Amendments to the Law No: 5651 Concerning Social Media
The law amending the Law No. 5651 on the Regulation of Internet Broadcasts and Prevention of Crimes Committed through Such Broadcasts (the “Law No: 5651”) was accepted by the Turkish Grand National Assembly on July 29, 2020 and published in the Official Gazette on 31 July 2020. These amendments, which have been on the agenda for a long time and known as social media regulations, bring fundamental changes. New provisions have been added to the Law No. 5651. Essentially… »
District Court Upholds Foreign Mark Owner’s Opposition Based on ‘Genuine Right Ownership’ Ground
Cummins Inc opposed the registration of the mark GENUINE PARTS on the ground of ‘genuine right ownership’ The District Court ruled that Cummins had genuine rights in the mark due to its registrations in the European Union and the United States As the applicant and Cummins operated in the same field of business, the application had been filed in bad faith Background The principle of ‘genuine right ownership’, which is regulated by Article 6/3 of the Turkish Intellectual… »
Discovery of Evidence and Preliminary Injunction Demands During COVID-19
Co-published An IP court has accepted the discovery of evidence demand made by an originator company against a generic pharmaceutical company after the court’s expert panel confirmed that patent infringement had occurred, but has then rejected the originator’s request for a preliminary injunction due to the so-called ‘Bolar’ exemption. Facts An originator company filed a discovery of evidence request with a preliminary injunction demand against a generic company that… »
COVID-19 Impact on Trademarks
Having affected the whole world, Covid 19 pandemic also had an impact on trademark law as the other areas of law. When considered in detail, it can be seen that trademark law is affected in various aspects by the Covid 19 pandemic. As a matter of fact, one of the most apparent examples of this impact is that the number of trademark applications related to the Covid 19 period has risen, although the number of trademark applications in total has decreased. Worldwide known… »
How Did COVID-19 Impact Employers in Turkey?
Closures Certain sectors were temporarily closed, by administrative order, ceasing all business operations. Those businesses that remained open introduced several workplace practices in order to minimise the risk of transmission, in line with their occupational health and safety obligations, which have been heightened in current circumstances. Governmental facilities granted to employers The Governmental authorities provided a prohibition on the termination of employment for… »