I am not sure what’s going on in people’s minds when they ask a lawyer to give his legal opinion for free. In the case of doctor’s fees, I envy the system. You have to pay in advance even before entering the doctor’s office. It does not matter if the doctor says, “You are all well and as healthy as a horse”; the doctor can have nothing to do with the client apart from saying that he is well. The patient has already paid the fee. This is a fantastic system.In this reader’s email, the question is not based on the intent to obtain free legal services, but rather try to understand the contingency fee system under Turkish law.
“Dear Mr. Çektir,
I have just read your article on claiming back legal fees and found it most interesting. I have a question on fees, and wonder if you would be kind enough to clarify this please. In a civil court case where the court case value is, say, TL 10,000 and there are five defendants. I believe that the lawyer acting for the defendants can charge a maximum fee of 25 percent of the value of the case, so TL 2,500. My question is this: Is the maximum fee TL 2,500, or can he charge TL 2,500 times five (TL 12,500) due the fact that there are five defendants, even though there is only one case. I would be most grateful if you would be able to clarify this. Thank you.”
The general conditions regarding the legal profession and related legal fees are regulated by the Lawyers Law number 1136, in Turkey. According to Article 163 of the law, the fees to be paid to a lawyer shall be determined in the lawyer’s contract. The provision states: “The lawyer’s contract is executed by the parties, freely. The lawyer’s contract shall cover a specific legal service and an amount or a value. Unwritten contracts will be proven in accordance with general provisions.”
The ratio of the fee is determined in the continuing provision (Article 164). “The lawyer’s fee may be agreed as a certain percentage of the entity or money to be litigated or adjudicated, not to exceed 25 percent.”
In case of the presence of more than one client pertaining to one particular case, the Lawyers’ Law stipulates in Article 165 that “each client shall be jointly and severally liable for the payment of the lawyers’ fees in both parties in lawsuits.”
Along with determining the upper limit of attorneys’ fees, the Lawyers Law also sets forth the threshold for attorneys’ fees. Paragraph four of Article 164 states that “no attorney’s fee shall be agreed on below the minimum lawyers’ fee tariff.” The mentioned minimum attorney fee tariff is issued every year by the Turkish Bar Association, of which regional bars are members. In the event the lawyer and the client cannot agree on the fee, the provisions of the related year’s tariff are applied.
Besides the legal fees requested by the lawyer there is also another fee that is considered within the legal costs and expenses decreed by courts, upon the conclusion of the case. The Turkish Bar Association’s tariff, discussed above, is also applied by the courts while estimating such lawyers’ fees. According to Article 3 of the Minimum Lawyers’ Fee Tariff 2010, which is currently in force, legal fees to be imposed on the opposite party by the court shall not be less or three times more than the amounts stated in the tariff attached thereto.
NOTE: Berk Çektir is a licensed attorney at law and available to answer questions on the legal aspects of living in Turkey. Send enquiries to b.cektir@todayszaman.com The names of the readers are disclosed only upon written approval of the sender.DISCLAIMER: The information provided here is intended to give basic legal information. You should get legal assistance from a licensed attorney at law while conducting legal transactions and not just rely on the information in this column.
