Evaluation of the Sanctions for not Attending the First Meeting in the Mediation Process within the Framework of the Decisions of the Turkish Constitutional Court

Abstract

Mandatory mediation as a prerequisite for litigation was introduced into the legal system with the enactment of Law No. 7036 on Labor Courts, which came into effect on January 1, 2018. According to this regulation, even if the parties are ultimately found justified in court, they will still be held responsible for litigation costs if they fail to participate in the mediation process. The regulation was challenged before the Constitutional Court on the grounds that it violated the right to seek justice. However, in its 2018 decision, the Court ruled that the regulation was not unconstitutional. In its decision dated March 14, 2024, the Court reviewed an objection from the Çorum Consumer Court and annulled the provision that imposed full costs and denied attorney’s fees to parties who failed to attend the mediation meeting, deeming it disproportionate in terms of the right to seek justice and the right to property.