Türkiye is planning to implement a new legal reform package to restructure processes, the penal justice system and judicial procedures, with the aim of increasing accessibility and delivering justice more quickly.
The Justice Ministry is expected to release its 2024-2028 Legal Reform Strategy Document this week, which officials said will “launch a new era” in justice services.
The strategy was raised at the ruling Justice and Development Party’s (AK Party) Central Decision-Making and Administrative Committee meeting last week, where Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç laid out the details of the reforms.
The reforms are based on the rule of law and will deliver timely and predictable justice. It will provide “effortless” access to justice while reconfiguring corporate structures, the penal justice system, and legal and administrative judicial procedures.
The reforms will increase the number of courts based on case volume while bolstering physical and technical capacity. It also includes developing a judicial assistant system integrated with technical capacity such as digitalization and artificial intelligence in law. This means judicial service contact points with personnel and digital infrastructure will be set up in districts without courthouses.
The reform foresees strengthened defense and simplified legal processes.
Other steps in the reform involve introducing new practices aligned with the compensatory justice mentality to improve the quality of Turkish justice. Namely, the newly-launched assistant judge and prosecutor system is being advanced and a Legal Professions Entrance Exam will be implemented. In-service and pre-professional education in law and specialization in justice will be developed.
Moreover, to ensure a more effective execution of court hearings, the system of expert witnesses will be enhanced while the guarantees of the right to trial within reasonable time will be increased. This means the number of judges, prosecutors and legal personnel will go up and alternative dispute solution methods will be developed.
The Human Rights Compensation Commission will be fortified and a target time application will be introduced, as well as regulations on the appointment, auditing and promotion of judges and prosecutors.
The Forensic Science Department and the courts of appeal will also receive a boost in scientific and technical capacity.
The reform also aims to end delays arising from notification processes, carry out sustainable transforms of judicial buildings, and increase the variety of eco-friendly practices and justice services.
