ANKARA BAR ASSOCIATION XIII. INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS ON LAW

PURPOSE: DEMOCRATIC RULE OF LAW

METHOD: JUDICIAL REFORM

As a method, the contribution that judicial reform makes or can make to the strengthening of the democratic rule of law should be discussed/debated with all the components, the government and the opposition, who stand by democracy and law and strive for all people living in the geography of our country to achieve the 'just'. For this reason, as Ankara Bar Association we have, not with a sectarian attitude that ignores what has been done before, but with critical studies that support all previous studies; but aim to develop them with a more advanced understanding, determined the subject of the International Congress of Law that will take place between the dates 11-14 January, 2024 to be the judicial reform, in order to contribute to the 'Judicial Reform Strategy Plan' to be applicable to our country and contribute for this strategy to bring success in achieving 'what is just' when implemented.

We hope that the participants of the Congress will include in their papers, their views on the issues identified in the Judicial Reform Strategy Plan prepared by the Ministry of Justice and the subjects listed below as the objectives to be achieved, their standpoints on the monitoring reports (results) that have been implemented to date in accordance with this strategy, and their ideas that they think will take both the strategy plan and the implementation further.

It is possible to list the main topics that come to the fore in the discussions regarding the Judicial Reform Strategy as "strengthening the rule of law, protecting and developing rights and freedoms more effectively, strengthening the independence and impartiality of the judiciary, increasing the transparency of the judicial system, simplifying judicial processes, facilitating access to justice, strengthening the right to defence and protecting the right to be tried within a reasonable time more effectively". In this scope, the Congress is open to contributions within the framework of the themes mentioned below:

• Protection and improvement of rights and freedoms
• Independence of judicial power, impartiality and transparency of the judiciary
• Legal education, professional internships, pre-professional and in-professional training, admission to the profession and professional organisation (in the professions of lawyer, judge and prosecutor)
• Ensuring the effective use of the right to defence
• Facilitating access to justice
• Increasing the effectiveness of the criminal justice system / impunity
• Simplification of civil and administrative proceedings
• Alternative dispute resolution methods

The themes mentioned above being the main titles, we also have some special areas of emphasis in this Congress, such as freedom of expression, limitation of freedom of expression, criticism/defamation debates due to their importance. These titles are found in the Evaluation Criteria available at https://ankarabarosu.org.tr/hukukkurultayi/2024/ Regarding these main headings and in the special areas specified in the evaluation criteria, experts from the national and international community and experts working on different fields are expected to evaluate these issues from political, economic, sociological, philosophical as well as legal perspectives, and to propose new agendas by defining the status quo apropos these concepts in our country and in the world.

 

Evaluation Procedure

It is possible to participate in the Congress with papers written in Turkish and English. In addition, a group of participants can propose a special session together. 

Abstracts of papers and posters/presentations to be presented at the Congress will be evaluated in confidentiality regarding the names of authors by the Scientific Committee If a special session is proposed, the papers will be evaluated together by the Scientific Committee. The evaluation will be based on the relationship of the proposed abstract with the themes of the Congress, the original contribution and consistency of the ideas presented in the abstract. 

Documents to be sent for participation;

• An abstract of the paper written in Turkish and/or English consisting of maximum five hundred words,
• Five keywords related to the content of the paper,
• Title, full name and a short CV of maximum one hundred and fifty words of the author of the paper,
• Contact information of the author must be included.  

 

Evaluation Criteria

Special Themes

• One of the fundamental characteristics of the democratic rule of law and a topic which has always been much debated: freedom of expression, limitation of freedom of expression, debates regarding criticism/insult
• Within the context of the freedom of communication regulated under the same title and in Initial Provisions of Turkish Constitution, the necessity of determining objective and concrete criteria in the implementation of access blocking to Internet sites
• In order to achieve guarantee of judicial independence and impartiality, changing the structure and rules of functioning of the HSK (Council of Judges and Prosecutors) to the extent to ensure the aforementioned security (For example, separation and independence of the Boards of Judges and Prosecutors; ensuring that their admission to the profession and their appointments are made directly by the Boards composed of Judges; ensuring that supreme magistrates are appointed through elections to be held directly by judges, taking into account their personnel files within the Board; preventing all practices that would create the risk that judges and prosecutors share the same building, the same bench and the same file; and the risk of judges and prosecutors to exchange views on files without the involvement of the lawyer; legal regulations for prosecutors to participate actively in judicial activities, etc.)
• Recognising that the sine qua non of an ethical professional activity is a good professional education, redefining the education in law faculties; the qualification of academicians; the conditions for admission to the faculty; the internship training of graduates; the admission criteria for lawyers, judges and prosecutors to the profession; closing law faculties that do not comply with the standards; organising the internship training of lawyers, judges and prosecutors at the master's level in partnership with universities and requiring thesis acceptance for the admission of lawyers, judges and prosecutors to the profession, in-professional training and in-professional qualification exams 
• Increasing the number of vocational schools of justice and vocational high schools of justice and ensuring that they provide education within the body of a Faculty of Law, assuring the compulsory (not prioritised) employment of graduates of these schools in all units and judicial places affiliated to the Ministry of Justice, raising the standard of education in all these schools to the extent of required level and protecting this quality  
• The possibility for the injured party to file a lawsuit for compensation directly against judges and prosecutors due to their misconduct that may occur during their professional activities  
• The procedural safeguards that can be provided through SEGBİS (Audio-Visual Information System) by recording and analysing of all hearings, as well as providing the parties with the audio recording upon request  
• Increasing the prestige of the profession of Lawyer (e.g. through strengthening bar associations financially, dues policies of bar associations, revoke of the legal regulation requiring notarial approval of the power of attorney, which consists of a mere contract, etc.) 
• Reasoned writing of administrative actions and decisions, suspensive effect of administrative judgements (stay of execution), administrative mediation 
• Omnibus bills  
• Expert witnesses (in order to achieve what is just and fair, the necessity of a compulsory regulation regarding expert witnesses to make oral statements and be questioned by the attorneys of the parties, and the written report must be prepared after this questioning, etc.)  
• Justification of judicial decisions  
• Strengthening the binding force of the decisions of the Constitutional Court  
• Improving the physical conditions of courthouses (gathering courthouses in one building in provinces with multiple courthouses, developing UYAP system and CELSE applications, systematic abolition of the obligation to obtain additional permission for the attorney/defence counsel to follow the file at the investigation stage, limiting the prosecutor's authority to restrict this right and practice of this authority as an exception only under the conditions stipulated in CMK (Criminal Procedure Code) art. 153/2, etc.)  
• Strengthening alternative dispute resolution methods and to the extent necessary, subjecting them to legal regulations, aiming for achieving fair solutions before prioritizing to speedy processes and solutions, penalising unfair litigation attempts with strong compensation  
• Amnesty, which have become almost a routine practice, and execution practices resulting de facto in amnesty  
• Difficulties faced by disadvantaged groups in accessing justice and proposed solutions  

Abstracts and full paper should be submitted to the following e-mail address:  kurultay2024@ankarabarosu.org.tr

The Congress Directive can be accessed here: www.ankarabarosu.org.tr/hukukkurultayi/2024