8th Judicial Package approved by the TBMM Justice Commission! What will change in the judiciary with the new regulation?

According to the Draft Law on Amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code and Certain Laws and the Decree Law No. 659, known in the public eye as the "8th Judicial Package" and approved by the TBMM Justice Commission, in cases where investigations and prosecutions within the scope of criminal law, as well as proceedings within the scope of private and administrative law, are not concluded within a reasonable time, individuals who have had their individual applications to the Constitutional Court declared inadmissible on the grounds that legal remedies were not exhausted, or whose cases were dismissed on the grounds that there was no justification for continuing the examination, are now granted the opportunity to have their files examined by the Compensation Commission upon application within a specified period.

Applications that were dismissed by the Constitutional Court or applications made directly to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) as of October 10, 2023, which were declared inadmissible on the grounds that domestic legal remedies had not been exhausted, will be examined by the Commission upon application within 3 months from the date of notification.

On the other hand, considering the Commission's workload, the Minister of Justice may appoint members to form additional panels within the Commission. These members will not be included in the total number of Commission members. In this case, the number of additional panels to be formed shall not exceed 5. This provision will be applied for a period of 3 years from the date the regulation enters into force. The Minister of Justice may extend this period for another 2 years.

CONDITIONS FOR PROCESSING SPECIAL CATEGORY PERSONAL DATA

With the regulation, the conditions for processing special category personal data are being reorganized, taking into account current needs and the European Union General Data Protection Regulation.

While the provision stating that the processing of special category personal data is prohibited is maintained in the proposal, the circumstances under which special category personal data may be processed are also listed.

The processing of such data will be possible in cases such as: the explicit consent of the data subject; it being clearly stipulated by law; it being necessary for the protection of the life or physical integrity of the person or another person who is unable to express their consent or whose consent is not legally valid; it being related to personal data made public by the data subject and in accordance with the intent to make it public; it being necessary for the establishment, exercise, or protection of a right; it being necessary for the protection of public health, preventive medicine, medical diagnosis, treatment and care services, and the planning, management, and financing of health services by persons under a duty of confidentiality or authorized institutions; or it being necessary for the fulfillment of legal obligations in the fields of employment, occupational health and safety, social security, social services, and social assistance.

TRANSFER OF PERSONAL DATA ABROAD

The proposal also reorganizes the procedure for transferring personal data abroad.

Personal data may be transferred abroad by data controllers and data processors if one of the conditions for processing personal data or special category personal data exists, and if there is an adequacy decision regarding the country, international organization, or sectors within the country to which the transfer will be made.

The adequacy decision will be issued by the Personal Data Protection Board. The Board will seek the opinions of relevant institutions and organizations if necessary. The adequacy decision will be evaluated at least every 4 years. The Board may change, suspend, or revoke the adequacy decision prospectively as a result of the evaluation or in other cases it deems necessary.

The regulation also includes the factors to be considered when issuing an adequacy decision. These factors are listed as: "the reciprocity status regarding personal data transfer between the country, sectors within the country, or international organizations to which personal data will be transferred and Turkey," "the relevant legislation and practice of the country to which personal data will be transferred and the rules to which the international organization to which personal data will be transferred is subject," "the existence of an independent and effective data protection authority in the country to which personal data will be transferred or to which the international organization is subject, and the availability of administrative and judicial remedies," "the status of the country or international organization to which personal data will be transferred as a party to international conventions or a member of international organizations related to the protection of personal data," "the status of the country or international organization to which personal data will be transferred as a member of global or regional organizations of which Turkey is a member," and "international conventions to which Turkey is a party."

In the absence of an adequacy decision, personal data may be transferred abroad if one of the conditions for processing personal data or special category personal data exists, if the data subject has the opportunity to exercise their rights and apply for effective legal remedies in the country where the transfer will be made, and if one of the safeguards specified in the regulation is provided by the parties.

The standard contract will be notified to the Personal Data Protection Authority by the data controller or data processor within 5 business days of its signing. Administrative fines ranging from 50 thousand Turkish liras to 1 million Turkish liras will be imposed on those who fail to fulfill the notification obligation.

Considering the nature of the administrative sanction decisions issued by the Board, the opportunity to file a lawsuit against these decisions in administrative courts is granted. As of June 1, 2024, files previously opened and currently pending before criminal judgeships of peace will be finalized by these judgeships.

With the proposal, the effective date of the changes is set as June 1, 2024, to allow the Personal Data Protection Board to prepare the envisaged general regulatory procedures.

INCREASE IN THE LOWER AND UPPER LIMITS OF JUDICIAL FINES

With the proposal, the application periods for legal remedies are determined in weeks or months, and it is accepted that these periods will begin with the notification of the decision. Harmonization regulations are being made in some articles of the Enforcement and Bankruptcy Law, the Execution Judgeship Law, the Criminal Procedure Code, the Misdemeanors Law, the Child Protection Law, the Code of Civil Procedure, and the Law on the Protection of Consumers.

With the regulation, the amount of the judicial fine corresponding to one day is increased, and accordingly, the monetary limits in the provisions for set-off, preliminary payment, and application for the appellate remedy are changed.

Accordingly, the lower limit of judicial fines is set at 2 thousand 500 Turkish liras, and the upper limit at 500 thousand Turkish liras. In determining the prison sentence in case of non-payment of a judicial fine converted from a heavy fine, 500 Turkish liras will be taken as the basis for one day.

The finality limit for decisions rendered by criminal judgeships of peace upon application against administrative fines is increased from 3 thousand Turkish liras to 15 thousand Turkish liras.

STANDARDIZATION OF PERIODS

In order to ensure the rapid and effective compensation of the destruction caused by the February 6 earthquakes, areas that can be industrial zones are determined by the Ministry of Industry and Technology by taking the opinions of relevant institutions according to the status of the area, considering criteria such as distance to the fault line, suitability of the ground, and proximity to residential centers, while the reconstruction or strengthening of industrial workplaces that were destroyed or damaged beyond use due to the earthquakes by their owners is carried out by the Ministry of Industry and Technology through debt financing. Up to the entirety of the infrastructure and superstructure construction of industrial sites that are in the investment program or subsequently included in the program, including architectural and engineering services, is supported by the Ministry of Industry and Technology with loans until the project is completed.

In this context, the duration of support and practices aimed at strengthening industrial infrastructure in the earthquake zone will be extended for one more year.

The amount of the holiday bonus for retirees will be increased. Accordingly, the holiday bonus, which was paid as 2 thousand liras during the Ramadan and Eid al-Adha holidays, provided that the person receives income or a pension in the month of the holiday, will be increased to 3 thousand liras.

The regulation also includes changes regarding the standardization of application periods for legal remedies and the commencement of these periods from the date of notification. A transitional provision is introduced to avoid hesitation in practice, and it is accepted that the changes made in the relevant laws will be valid for decisions rendered on or after June 1, 2024. Thus, it is aimed to prevent loss of rights and to eliminate hesitations that may arise in practice.

With a motion by AKP deputies, the article regarding the distribution of attorney fees was removed from the proposal.

Making statements after the approval of the proposal, Commission Chairman and AKP Istanbul Deputy Cüneyt Yüksel thanked the commission members, the deputies who were the first signatories of the proposal, and the bureaucrats of the Ministry of Justice.

Stating that the commission discussions of the draft law lasted 17 hours and 20 minutes, Yüksel said, "The commission discussions of the draft law were carried out efficiently and successfully. I hope that all the work we do from now on will be carried out in the same way. This draft law will be discussed in the General Assembly next week."