This is the English version of a Turkish article. The original, with further detail and linked petition templates, is at Karar Düzeltme Kaldırıldı: Kesinleşmiş Karara Karşı Ne Yapılır?.
“We will apply to have the judgment rectified” is still commonly heard. In fact that route was abolished when the regional courts of appeal began work.
Today the ordinary remedies are appeal and cassation. This article sets out which route is open against which decision, the periods, and what remains once a judgment is final.
How the Remedies Work Now
The first route against a first-instance judgment is an appeal to the regional court of appeal. That court re-examines the case on the facts and the law, and where necessary holds a hearing and takes evidence.
Against its decision, cassation lies where the Act allows it. The Court of Cassation reviews only for conformity with the law: it does not go into the merits or hear witnesses.
Not every decision can be taken to cassation. For disputes below a monetary threshold and for certain kinds of case, the Act makes the appeal decision final, and the file ends there.
Rectification of judgments was abolished when this structure was created; there is today no ordinary route asking for a final judgment to be re-examined.
The Periods
The periods are short and run from service of the reasoned judgment:
- Appeal in civil cases: as a rule two weeks
- Cassation in civil cases: as a rule two weeks
- Appeal and cassation in criminal cases: as a rule seven days
Special periods apply in some kinds of case; employment and enforcement disputes have their own rules.
Because a detailed application cannot be drafted before the reasoned judgment is written, a protective notice of appeal is filed first to preserve the period, and the full application follows once the reasons are served.
Reopening the Proceedings
The first extraordinary route against a final judgment is reopening. But the grounds are listed exhaustively in the Act: disliking the outcome is not one of them.
The principal grounds:
- a judge barred from hearing the case took part in the judgment
- a document the judgment rested on turns out to be forged
- witness evidence the judgment rested on is established by a final judgment to have been false
- a document obtained afterwards that could not be obtained during the proceedings
- the lawyer or representative lacked authority
- a judgment of the European Court of Human Rights finding a violation
The application is made to the court that gave the judgment, within the short period the Act lays down from learning of the ground. There is also an absolute outer limit, after which reopening cannot be sought at all.
Individual Application to the Constitutional Court
The second extraordinary route is an individual application to the Constitutional Court. It is not a further review of the judgment's legality but an allegation of a violation of a fundamental right.
The conditions:
- an allegation that a right guaranteed by the Constitution and falling within the European Convention on Human Rights has been violated
- exhaustion of the ordinary remedies
- application within thirty days of service of the final decision
- a current and personal detriment to the applicant
If the Court finds a violation it may send the file to the relevant court to have the consequences removed, which can lead to a retrial.
The thirty days is absolute and no excuse is accepted. Missing it is the commonest way this right is lost.
Which Route, When
- The judgment is not yet final: appeal, then cassation where it lies. Do not omit the protective notice.
- The judgment is final and a statutory ground exists: reopening of the proceedings.
- A fundamental right is in issue and the ordinary remedies are exhausted: an individual application to the Constitutional Court — thirty days.
- If that too fails: an application to the European Court of Human Rights, where its conditions are met.
These are sequential stages, not alternatives. Skipping one closes the next: an application to the Constitutional Court made without appealing is declared inadmissible for failure to exhaust remedies.
The commonest mistake is assuming that nothing starts until the reasoned judgment arrives. Where the operative decision has been pronounced, file a protective notice of appeal. And keep your address for service current — not notifying a change is the single most common way of losing a right.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I still apply to have a judgment rectified?
No. Rectification was abolished when the regional courts of appeal were established; the ordinary remedies are appeal and cassation.
How long do I have to appeal?
As a rule two weeks from service of the reasoned judgment in civil cases and seven days in criminal cases, with special rules in some kinds of case.
Is every appeal decision open to cassation?
No. For disputes below the monetary threshold and certain kinds of case the appeal decision is final.
When can proceedings be reopened?
Only on the grounds listed in the Act — a barred judge, a forged document, false testimony established by a final judgment, a document obtained afterwards, want of authority, or a judgment of the European Court of Human Rights.
What is the deadline for the Constitutional Court?
Thirty days from service of the final decision, after the ordinary remedies have been exhausted. The period is absolute and no excuse is accepted.