Recognition and Enforcement

Recognition means a foreign court judgment having the effect of a final judgment and conclusive evidence in Turkey. Enforcement means the judgment becoming enforceable in Turkey. Both are governed by Law No. 5718 on International Private and Procedural Law (MÖHUK).

Enforcement of Foreign Court Judgments

For a foreign court judgment to be enforced:

• The judgment must be final under the law of the country where it was given,
• There must be reciprocity between Turkey and that country (by treaty, law or actual practice),
• The judgment must not concern a matter within the exclusive jurisdiction of Turkish courts,
• The judgment must not be manifestly contrary to Turkish public order,
• The defendant must have been duly summoned and its right of defence not restricted.

The Turkish court does not re-examine the merits. Reciprocity is not required for recognition.

Foreign Arbitral Awards

Turkey is a party to the 1958 New York Convention. Commercial arbitral awards made in a contracting state are enforced in Turkey except on the Convention’s limited grounds for refusal (invalid arbitration agreement, breach of the right of defence, excess of authority, public policy and similar). Awards outside the Convention are subject to MÖHUK. For enforcement purposes, an arbitration clause is therefore often safer than a court judgment in international contracts.

Procedure

• The enforcement action is filed with the court of the domicile in Turkey of the person against whom enforcement is sought, or otherwise with the courts specified in the law.
• The original or a certified copy of the judgment, its finality annotation and certified translations are attached; an apostille is required.
• After the enforcement decision, the foreign judgment is enforced like a Turkish judgment.

For contract clauses choosing a foreign court, see Jurisdiction Agreement.