Provisions of the Civil Procedure Code regarding appeals were amended in 2004 via the amendment Law no. 5236 published in the Official Gazette no. 25606. With these changes, the former single-degree Turkish appeal system now provides for two appeal stages. Albeit the "Regional Courts of Justice" – the first degree appeal courts - were established as per the Ministry of Justice decision in 2007; these courts have not started operating as their infrastructure has not been completed and their judges are yet to be appointed. Chief public prosecutors for Regional Courts of Justice have recently been appointed, leading to the expectation that these courts will start operating in 2012.
Similar to the former appeal process, the first-degree appeal courts review and examine decisions held by local courts; and suspend the finalization of local court decisions during the course of this review. The difference is that in the former appeal process (now the second-degree appeal process) local court decisions may only be subjected to a legal examination, meaning that the examination is based on whether the local court decisions are "correct" from a legal aspect but the facts and evidence leading to such decision are not evaluated. While the Supreme Court of Appeals deviates from this rule from time to time; its actual purpose is to provide a legal examination only. With the introduction of Regional Courts of Justice as first-degree appeal courts conducting a thorough review of the local court decisions including the evidence and facts, the Supreme Court of Appeals is intended to return to its actual purpose. As such, the Supreme Court's function as a high court that sets and combines precedents, and thus improves the application of laws will be highlighted. Regional Courts of Justice, however, would conduct an examination including the facts and evidence as well as the application of legal provisions to the case by the first degree local courts. Once the Regional Courts of Justice start operating, the "revision of decision" remedy under Turkish law will also be abolished.
While the grounds for appealing the local court decisions in first-degree appeal courts are not exhaustively set out under the Civil Procedure Code, the provisions generally provide that errors of the local court in its review of facts or evidence, and/or in its application of legal provisions are sufficient. These reasons must be clearly provided in the first-degree appeal petition; as reasons that are not provided in the petition will not be taken into consideration by Regional Courts of Justice (except in violations of "public order" that are per se considered by the courts). The first-degree appeal must be filed within two weeks following receipt of the reasoned decision of the local court.
If the Regional Court of Justice finds the application valid and justified, then it may either decide to (i) overrule the local court's decision and render a new decision itself (if the local court proceeding does not have to be repeated), or (ii) revoke the local court's decision and return the case file to the local court for a new proceeding and decision. Decisions rendered by Regional Courts of Justice may be appealed in the Supreme Court of Appeals in principle - except under the particular circumstances provided in the Civil Procedure Code.
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