Justice Ministry to introduce family mediation system

ANTALYA

Türkiye is set to launch a family mediation system designed to support families during crises and resolve disputes amicably, Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç announced on Nov. 23.

Tunç outlined the initiative's goals during an event in the southern city of Antalya, emphasizing its role in safeguarding family unity while reducing the strain of prolonged judicial processes.

“We will review it one last time and submit it to our president,” he said. “We discussed the details in our cabinet, brought all parties together and held numerous meetings. This work has been ongoing for over a year.”

The family mediation system builds on the success of a similar initiative introduced for tenant-landlord disputes, according to Tunç.

"Our president will announce this document, implementing significant innovations in our legal system,” he added.

The system has halved the number of related legal inquiries, alleviating pressure on the judiciary, Tunç argued.

"We attach great importance to family mediation in democratic states governed by the rule of law," he said. "It helps protect family members from the strain of judicial processes, allowing them to move forward without unnecessary delays."

The Justice Ministry's data issued in June said over 96,000 disputes between landlords and tenants were settled through the mandatory mediation scheme.

The system was introduced in September last year. Over the past nine months, mediators have received more than 191,000 disputes over rents and managed to resolve nearly 96,500 cases.

Under this scheme, landlords and occupants should first seek to find a solution to their disagreements through mediation. Only if this attempt fails, then they can take their cases to court.

Landlords and tenants mostly come to loggerheads over rent hikes.