Q&A on family law and undelivered title deeds

Here is one of the letters for today: "Berk: Briefly, I am a friend of the Today's Zaman family for a number of years. I am an American living in the US considering marrying a Turkish man in the US in the very, very near future. We plan to marry in the US under US law. My family law firm in the US has drafted a prenuptial agreement to cover assets both in the US and Turkey, but they cannot verify if the agreement is enforceable under Turkish law. I read your article on pre-nuptials, but I cannot tell how our agreement would fit into the Turkish asset regimes. My husband expects to inherit property from his family, and he wants full control whether we are married or divorced at the time. I personally have property in Turkey, which is not real estate, but creative work I have made. I want to control this creative work for the benefit of the people of Turkey and Islam -- a gift one day. Janim"

Dear Janim, Simple question: Why don't you consider making the same or a similar prenuptial agreement for your assets in Turkey in accordance with Turkish law? In my opinion, the best solution to securing the validity and enforceability of your prenuptial agreement is to make it before a Turkish notary under Turkish law. I will, in any case, study this question later on as if it were sent as a divorce case in which you have made the agreement only in the United States and are trying to prove the validity of the agreement and nothing can be made toward a new agreement.

The second question regards the problem of non-delivered title deeds:

"Dear Berk, You published a really interesting (although also very depressing) column about people who don't receive their title deeds. In the article, you say of this particular couple's promise-to-sell contract that "it does not fulfill the requirements of Turkish law as a promise-to-sell agreement through which you can make a claim allowing you to register the title without the intervention of the seller if he refuses to make the transfer." Is there a type of agreement where this IS possible -- i.e., where in the event that the deeds are not duly delivered by the seller, the buyer is able to register the deed anyway? If so, I think if you could explain how to arrange this type of agreement in your column, it would be of enormous benefit to the many, many people who are, and will be, affected by this horrible problem."

Dear Laura, I should admit that this is a very good question. I am sorry that the response may not make you happy. I will give the response on Wednesday, and I will also try to find a way for a foreign buyer to secure (at least some of) her/his rights when buying property in Turkey, even without having a proper promise-to-sell agreement.

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.