Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ulaş Karan (Istanbul Bilgi University): Recent Developments in the Turkish Constitutional System

About the Speaker:
Ulaş Karan is an Associate Professor of Constitutional and Human Rights Law at Istanbul Bilgi University. He holds an LLM in Human Rights Law (2006) and a PhD in Public Law (2012). He has published numerous books and articles on constitutional and human rights law. His works focus in particular on the right of individual application, the enforcement of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights and the Turkish Constitutional Court, non-discrimination, freedom of religion and belief, freedom of expression, freedom of association and assembly. He is currently a member of the Berkeley Centre on Comparative Equality and Anti-Discrimination Law, European Network of Legal Experts in Gender Equality and Non-Discrimination, Council of Europe, Conference of INGOs, Expert Council on NGO Law and the Steering Committee of the Union of Turkish Bar Associations, Human Rights Centre.

About the topic:
For more than six decades, the Turkish Constitutional Court, one of the first constitutional courts established in Europe after the World War II, has had a significant impact on Turkey's legal and constitutional order. Since 2012, the Court, which previously limited its mandate mainly to constitutional review, has also been reviewing individual applications. The issue of non-implementation of the Court's rulings, which was previously a minor concern, has changed significantly since the introduction of the individual application procedure. It has now reached a level of concern that has significantly disrupted the Turkish constitutional system as a whole. After a historical overview of the issue, this presentation will focus on the current rulings of the Constitutional Court and their implications. Particular attention will be paid to the discussions on the binding nature of the judgments and the prevailing reluctance or resistance of the judiciary and other state organs to implement them.

About the Seminar Series:
The seminar series “Current Research on Turkish Law” regularly invites outstanding scholars and practitioners working on different topics of Turkish private law to present and discuss their findings. The seminar series particularly aims to create a platform where both international researchers interested in Turkish law and Turkish researchers working on comparative law can come together and exchange scholarly ideas. Participation is open to all interested students and researchers.

The virtual lecture will be held as a video conference via Zoom. Please register no later than Friday, 26 April 2024 using this LINK.

You will receive the login details on Friday afternoon. Please confirm upon registration that you agree to the use of Zoom and that you will not record the event. By attending the event you confirm that you have read and agreed to Zoom’s Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.