Article 107 of the Civil Procedure Code repealed
Law no. 7589, known publicly as the 12th Judicial Package, was published in the Official Gazette of 31 July 2026, issue 33326, and entered into force on that date. Article 19 of the law repealed article 107 of the Civil Procedure Code.
That article governed the unquantified claim action. It allowed a claimant who could not reasonably be expected to state the amount or value of the claim precisely at the time of issue to bring proceedings by identifying the legal relationship and a minimum figure.
The unquantified claim action was widely used in employment claims. Because the precise amount of severance and notice pay, overtime and annual leave entitlements usually emerges only after expert examination, employees relied on it to interrupt limitation in respect of the whole of the claim.
That route has now closed. The legislature did not leave a gap, however: as set out below, it strengthened the partial claim so as to reach a comparable result.
Increasing the claim in partial proceedings, and limitation
Article 20 of the law added a fourth paragraph to article 109 of the Civil Procedure Code. Where only part of a claim is pursued, the subject matter of the claim may be increased once only in the same proceedings, free of the prohibition on expanding the case, up to the close of the investigation stage.
The decisive part is the second sentence: limitation is treated as interrupted on the date of issue in respect of the increased part as well. A claimant who stated a modest figure in the claim form therefore enjoys protection from the date of issue for the increased part too.
Under the previous practice this was the chief risk of a partial claim: as limitation was treated as interrupted only on the date of amendment for the increased part, an employer could rely on limitation to defeat part of the claim. The new paragraph removes that risk.
The right to increase is, however, available once only. Determining the correct extent of the increase after the expert report has therefore become critical, since no second increase is available.
Statutory interest is now tied to the rediscount rate
Article 10 of the law replaced article 1 of law no. 3095 on Statutory Interest and Default Interest in its entirety. Statutory interest is no longer a fixed percentage set by legislation.
Under the new wording, where interest is payable under the Turkish Code of Obligations or the Turkish Commercial Code and the amount has not been fixed by contract, payment is made at eighty per cent of the rediscount rate applied by the Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye in short-term credit transactions on 31 December of the preceding year.
The article also introduces a mid-year adjustment: if the rediscount rate on 30 June differs by five points or more from the rate applied on 31 December of the preceding year, eighty per cent of the rate determined on 30 June applies for the second half of the year.
The change answers longstanding criticism that a fixed statutory rate, left unrevised, lost its meaning against inflation. For a claimant, the effect is that interest accruing during proceedings is calculated closer to market conditions.
Interest in claims for bodily harm and loss of support
The paragraph added by article 18 of the law to article 55 of the Turkish Code of Obligations bears directly on work accident and traffic accident files.
Interest now runs from two different starting points. For the period in which the earnings of the injured party or of the person providing support are known, statutory interest runs on the compensation calculated for that period from the date of the tort or of the event causing the loss.
For the period in which those earnings cannot be known, interest runs from the date of judgment. In practice this means interest begins later in respect of the projected remaining-life period.
The same paragraph introduces a rule on set-off: sums paid by way of performance before the investigation stage begins are set off proportionately against the compensation determined as at the date of payment. How early payments by an insurer or employer are to be taken into account is thereby clarified.
Which rule applies to which file?
Article 25 of the law contains detailed transitional provisions determining which text applies to pending files.
Unquantified claim action: the repealed article 107 continues to apply to proceedings issued before the date of repeal. Claims issued before 31 July 2026 therefore continue under the former provision, while the route is unavailable for proceedings issued after that date.
Interest in bodily harm claims: the amendment to article 55 of the Turkish Code of Obligations applies only to torts or events causing loss occurring after the amendment entered into force. The former provisions continue to govern earlier events.
Under the commencement provision, all the provisions discussed here entered into force on the date of publication, 31 July 2026.
What changes in employment claim files?
For an employee contemplating a claim, the route has changed as follows. The unquantified claim action is no longer an option; the claim is brought as a partial claim, and the single right of increase is exercised after the expert report.
As to limitation the employee is now better protected: because the date of issue governs the increased part as well, the risk of limitation on amendment has largely disappeared. It should not be overlooked, however, that the increase must be made before the close of the investigation stage and on a single occasion.
The requirement of mediation before proceedings is unchanged; applying to a mediator remains a condition precedent in employment claims. On entitlement to severance pay, see our severance pay article.
For more on our work in this field, see our employment law page. General information on enforcement of a claim is on our enforcement and bankruptcy law page.
Resources
- Law no. 7589 on Amendments to Certain Laws for the Effective and Efficient Functioning of the Judiciary, arts. 10, 18, 19, 20 and 25 — Official Gazette of 31 July 2026, issue 33326
- Civil Procedure Code no. 6100, art. 107 (repealed) and art. 109/4 — mevzuat.gov.tr
- Law no. 3095 on Statutory Interest and Default Interest, art. 1 (as amended by law no. 7589)
- Turkish Code of Obligations no. 6098, art. 55 (paragraphs added by law no. 7589)
You can access the current versions of legal texts via mevzuat.gov.tr.