President Erdoğan Announces Judicial Reform Plan

On January 23, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced a comprehensive judicial reform plan aimed at bolstering the independence, efficiency, and predictability of Türkiye's judiciary. Speaking at an event in Ankara, Erdoğan outlined the key objectives of the new strategy document, which focuses on ensuring timely trials, enhancing public trust in the justice system, and reinforcing the rule of law.

Key Pillars of the Judicial Reform

Erdoğan emphasized the right to a fair trial and victim-focused policies as central to the reform. The plan includes measures to:

• Expand Judicial Capacity: Increase the number of courts and transition some single-judge courts into judicial panels.
• Streamline Processes: Set a target of resolving appeals and cassation reviews within six months and limit hearing postponements to no more than two months.
• Digital Integration: Mandate electronic notifications to improve judicial efficiency.

Legal Education and Criminal Law Adjustments

The reform also proposes significant changes in legal education and criminal law:

• Law School Standards: Raise the success ranking required for law school admissions to improve the quality of legal professionals.
• Notary Assistants: Introduce the position of notary assistants to enhance notary services.
• Revised Criminal Penalties: Adjust sanctions to better protect individual rights and freedoms, including alternative measures to incarceration.
• Harsher Penalties: Increase penalties for traffic violations, shootings at public events, and crimes affecting physical integrity, freedom, and the environment.

Family Law and Constitutional Reform

Erdoğan also reiterated his commitment to reform family law, including changes in family court procedures, divorce, and alimony. Additionally, he linked the judicial reform to his government’s broader legislative agenda, notably the push for a new constitution. "The current constitution, rooted in the 1980 military coup, no longer reflects our democratic aspirations," Erdoğan said. However, advancing this proposal remains challenging, as his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) lacks the parliamentary majority to bring the issue to a referendum without support from opposition MPs.

Erdoğan’s Vision for Justice

Framing the reforms within a historical and cultural context, Erdoğan highlighted the centrality of justice in Türkiye’s heritage. "For a thousand years, this land has borne witness to our high sense of justice, cultivated with goodness and virtue from east to west," he remarked. The plan marks a significant step in Türkiye’s ongoing efforts to modernize its legal system, with the ultimate goal of creating a fair, transparent, and efficient judiciary.