Workshop on the Divorce Case-Flow Management Guidelines was organised in Ankara on 27-28 April 2022 within the scope of the EU-CoE Joint Project on “Increasing the Effectiveness of the Family Courts: Better Protection of the Rights of Family Members”.
The Guidelines aiming at increasing the effectiveness in divorce procedures, overcoming the implications of the fault principle, and decreasing the traumatisation of the parties and children, were discussed by the stakeholders.
Among the stakeholders participating in the meeting were family court judges, chief clerks and experts from Ankara and Izmir Family Courts, selected as pilot courthouses within the Project, and representatives from Ankara Regional Court of Justice, 2nd Civil Chamber of the Court of Cassation, Council of Judges and Prosecutors, Ministry of Justice General Directorate of Legislation and General Directorate of Legal Affairs and Women’s Rights Commission of the Union of Turkish Bar Associations.
The first draft of the “Guidelines on Divorce Case-Flow Management for Family Courts”, which was opened to discussion of the stakeholders in the meeting, was prepared by the team of consultants, Attorney Nadia Rusinova (LL.M.) from the Hague University of Applied Sciences, Assoc. Prof. Cansu Kaya Kızılırmak and Assoc. Prof. Nil Karabağ Bulut, based on the “Recommendations Report” which was previously prepared by the same team. The Guidelines, which will be finalised by reflecting the stakeholder views, target to be a guiding document for the family court judges, auxiliary court staff and experts with the purposes of rendering effectiveness to the divorce procedures taking into account of its particular drawbacks, and decreasing traumatisation of the parties in line with child-friendly justice approaches.
The “Improving the Effectiveness of Family Courts: Better Protection of the Rights of Family Members” Project is co-funded by the European Union and the Council of Europe and implemented by the Council of Europe and Justice Academy of Turkey. The Project aims to ensure rule of law and fundamental rights in Turkey as fully in line with international and European standards and to improve the effectiveness of family courts in protecting the rights of women, children, and other family members.
