Joining a Criminal Case as the Victim in Türkiye: Becoming an Intervening Party (Katılan) under CMK 237-243

Turkish criminal procedure gives a victim two layers of rights, and it is worth knowing which layer you are standing on.

The first layer belongs to every victim and complainant (şikâyetçi). CMK 234 lists these rights separately for the investigation and for the trial: asking for evidence to be collected, asking for copies of documents, being informed of the hearing, asking for witnesses to be summoned and, in the trial phase, joining the public case. Under CMK 234/3, these rights are explained to the victims of the offence and to the complainant, and this is written into the record.

The second layer belongs to the intervening party. Under CMK 237/1, the victim, the natural and legal persons harmed by the offence and the persons with financial liability (malen sorumlu) may join the public case at every stage of the prosecution phase before the first-instance court, until the judgment is given, by declaring that they are complainants. Once the court accepts the request, the intervening party is named in the provisions on putting questions in the hearing (CMK 201/1), on the debate over the evidence (CMK 216/1-2) and on the expert report (CMK 67/4-6), and may appeal independently of the prosecutor (CMK 242).

Two points frame everything that follows. Joining is a request that the court decides: under CMK 238/3, the court rules on whether the request is appropriate after hearing the prosecutor, the defendant and defence counsel, if there is one. And under CMK 240/1, joining does not stop the case. The trial continues, and the intervening party takes part in it from the point at which they join.

This note does not say whether a particular file will end in a conviction, how long a trial lasts or what it costs to take part. Those questions depend on the file, and the statute does not answer them.

The summons. Under CMK 233/1, the victim and the complainant are summoned by a summons (çağrı kâğıdı) issued by the prosecutor or by the presiding judge or judge, and are heard. Sentences added by Law No. 7331 in July 2021 provide that, once the case moves to the prosecution phase, the indictment is attached to the summons. In addition, information on the indictment and the hearing date is also notified by telephone, telegraph, fax or electronic mail, where such contact details are in the file. Under CMK 233/2, the provisions on witnesses apply to this summons and to bringing a person by force. The page on being summoned as a witness sets out those provisions.

For someone who has gone home after the incident, the second sentence matters in a practical way. The notification by telephone or electronic mail depends on the details being in the file. A foreign victim who changes number, address or electronic mail account after making a statement may want to make sure the prosecutor's office or the court has a current way to reach them.

Rights during the investigation. Under CMK 234/1-a, the victim and the complainant may, in the investigation phase:

1. ask for evidence to be collected;
2. ask the prosecutor for copies of documents, on condition that this does not undermine the confidentiality and purpose of the investigation;
3. where they have no lawyer, ask the bar to appoint a lawyer for them, for a list of offences set out in the article, including offences carrying a minimum prison term of more than five years and intentional injury, torture or torment committed against women;
4. have their lawyer examine the investigation documents and the items seized and kept, in accordance with CMK 153;
5. use the right to object to the prosecutor's decision that there is no need to prosecute (kovuşturmaya yer olmadığı kararı), under the procedure set out in the law.

Rights during the trial. Under CMK 234/1-b, in the prosecution phase the victim and the complainant may be informed of the hearing, join the public case, ask for copies of the minutes and documents, ask for witnesses to be summoned, ask for a bar-appointed lawyer under the same conditions as above and, on condition of having joined the case, apply for remedies against the decisions that conclude the case.

Under CMK 234/2, where the victim has not reached eighteen, is deaf or mute, or is disabled to a degree that they cannot express themselves, and has no lawyer, a lawyer is appointed without a request being required.

Who. CMK 237/1 names three groups: the victim, the natural and legal persons harmed by the offence, and the persons with financial liability. Whether a particular person was harmed by the offence in that sense is for the court to assess.

Until when. The same paragraph allows joining at every stage of the prosecution phase before the first-instance court, until the judgment is given. CMK 237/2 closes the door at the appeal stage: a request to join cannot be made in the appeal proceedings. There is one exception in the text. Requests to join that were made before the first-instance court and rejected, or that were not decided, are examined and decided if they are expressly stated in the appeal application.

How. Under CMK 238/1, joining takes place after the public case has been filed, either by a petition (dilekçe) given to the court or by an oral request to join that is entered in the hearing minutes. Under CMK 238/2, where a person harmed by the offence makes a statement in the hearing indicating a complaint, they are asked whether they wish to join the case. Under CMK 238/3, the court decides whether the request is appropriate after hearing the prosecutor, the defendant and defence counsel, if there is one.

A victim who is abroad can follow the steps the statute describes in this order:

1. Find out whether a public case has been filed. Joining is made after the public case is filed (CMK 238/1). During the investigation, the rights are those in CMK 234/1-a set out above.
2. Prepare a petition. The petition states the complaint and the request to join. CMK 2/1-d defines counsel (vekil) as the lawyer who represents the intervening party, the person harmed by the offence or the person with financial liability in criminal proceedings. How a power of attorney is given from abroad is explained in power of attorney for a Turkish criminal case from abroad.
3. Wait for the court's decision. The court hears the prosecutor, the defendant and defence counsel, and decides whether the request is appropriate (CMK 238/3).
4. Act before the judgment. After the first-instance judgment, a new request to join cannot be made in the appeal proceedings (CMK 237/2).

The case does not wait. Under CMK 240/1, joining does not stop the case. Under CMK 240/2, a hearing whose date has been set, and other procedural steps, take place on the set day even if, because time is short, the person who has joined cannot be summoned or informed.

Decisions made before joining. Under CMK 241/1, decisions given before the person joined are not notified to the intervening party. Under CMK 241/2, the intervening party loses the right to apply for a remedy against those decisions when the period provided for the prosecutor expires. A victim who joins late joins the file as it stands.

The first hearing itself, and what happens there when a party is abroad, is described in your first hearing in a Turkish criminal court.

CMK 239/1 provides that, when the victim or the person harmed by the offence joins the case, they may ask for a lawyer to be appointed for them by the bar (baro tarafından avukat görevlendirilmesi) in a list of offences set out in the article, including offences carrying a minimum prison term of more than five years and intentional injury, torture or torment committed against women.

The verb is may ask. Paragraph 1 describes a request made by the intervening party. Paragraph 2 removes the need for that request in defined cases: under CMK 239/2, where the victim or the person harmed by the offence is a child, is deaf and mute, or is mentally ill to a degree that they cannot defend themselves, no request is required for a lawyer to be appointed.

The same list of offences appears in CMK 234/1-a-3 and 234/1-b-5 for the investigation and the trial, where the request is available to a victim or complainant who has no lawyer.

Whether the offence in a particular file falls within the list is a question of how the offence is described in the indictment and assessed by the court. For an assault, for example, the answer depends on the charge, and the page on assault covers assault files involving foreign nationals.

A victim who does not fall within the list is not prevented from being represented. They may appoint a lawyer of their own choosing as counsel (CMK 2/1-d). This note does not deal with the cost of either route.

Questions. Under CMK 201/1, the prosecutor and the lawyer who takes part in the hearing as defence counsel or as counsel (vekil) may put questions directly to the defendant, the intervening party, the witnesses, the experts (bilirkişi) and other persons summoned to the hearing, in keeping with the discipline of the hearing. The defendant and the intervening party may also put questions through the presiding judge or the judge. Where a question is objected to, the presiding judge decides whether it should be put, and the persons concerned may ask questions again where necessary.

Comment on each piece of evidence. Under CMK 215, after a co-accused, a witness or an expert witness is heard, and after any document is read out, the intervening party or their counsel, the prosecutor, the defendant and defence counsel are asked whether they have anything to say about it.

The debate over the evidence. Under CMK 216/1, in the debate on the evidence presented, the floor is given in this order: to the intervening party or their counsel, to the prosecutor, to the defendant and to defence counsel or the legal representative. Under CMK 216/2, the prosecutor and the intervening party or their counsel may reply to the statements of the defendant and defence counsel, and the defence may reply to theirs. Under CMK 216/3, the last word before the judgment is given to the defendant who is present. The note on evidence, closing speeches and the last word covers this stage in detail.

The expert report. Three paragraphs of CMK 67 name the intervening party and their counsel:

• 67/4: copies of the expert report may be handed directly during the hearing to the prosecutor, the intervening party, their counsel, the suspect or defendant, defence counsel or the legal representative, or sent to them by registered letter with return receipt.
• 67/5: when the expert examination is completed, these persons are given time so that they can ask for a new expert examination or state their objections; if their requests are rejected, a reasoned decision is given on the matter within three days.
• 67/6: they may obtain a scientific opinion from a qualified person in the field (uzmanından bilimsel mütalaa) about the event on trial, for use in preparing the expert report, or about the expert report itself. Additional time cannot be requested for that reason alone.

How a party commissions such an opinion is explained in obtaining your own expert opinion.

An appeal of one's own. Under CMK 242, the intervening party may apply for the remedies of appeal without depending on the prosecutor. If the decision is reversed on the intervening party's application, the prosecutor takes up the case again. A victim who has joined does not need the prosecutor's agreement to challenge the judgment.

Who the remedies are open to. Under CMK 260/1, the remedies are open to the prosecutor, the suspect, the defendant and those who have obtained the status of intervening party, and also to those whose request to join has not been decided or has been rejected, or who have been harmed by the offence in a way that would allow them to obtain the status of intervening party.

The deadline. Under CMK 273/1, the period for an appeal to the regional court of appeal (istinaf) is two weeks from the notification of the judgment together with its reasons. Under CMK 273/4, the fact that the persons applying have not stated their grounds in the petition does not prevent the examination. The note on the reasoned judgment and the two-week deadline explains how the notification works, and the appeals page sets out the stages above the first-instance court.

Withdrawal and death. Under CMK 243, if the intervening party withdraws or dies, the joining becomes void. The heirs may join the case in order to pursue the rights.

Settlement through conciliation. Where a file goes through conciliation (uzlaştırma), one paragraph deserves attention. Under CMK 253/19, where a settlement (uzlaşma) is reached, a compensation action cannot be brought on account of the offence, except for damage that could not be determined or that emerged later. A victim weighing a settlement offer should read that paragraph before agreeing; the page on conciliation in Türkiye describes the procedure.

If you are the victim of an offence in Türkiye and are considering whether to join the case, a lawyer can check whether a public case has been filed, prepare the petition and tell you what the file contains. The decisions on the facts and on the request to join remain with the court.