Uncontested Divorce and Protocol

Uncontested Divorce Case

Under Article 166 of the Turkish Civil Code (Türk Medeni Kanunu, TMK), the uncontested divorce route is available only if the marriage has lasted at least one year and the spouses apply together or one spouse accepts the case filed by the other. The judge must hear the parties in person, be satisfied that their will to divorce has been expressed freely, and find the arrangement on the financial consequences of the divorce and on the children’s situation appropriate.

That one year of marriage has not yet passed does not prevent the parties from filing a contested case based on another statutory ground for divorce; however, the statutory condition for an uncontested divorce is then not met. The length of the marriage is assessed on the basis of the official date of marriage.

Matters to Be Regulated in an Uncontested Divorce Protocol

The protocol should not be prepared as a short text merely stating that the parties accept the divorce. To the extent required by the specific case, the following matters must be regulated clearly, consistently with one another and in an enforceable manner:

• Custody of the joint child
• Personal contact with the child: days, hours, holidays, religious holidays and, where necessary, travel abroad
• Child maintenance for the child and, where the conditions are met, poverty maintenance for the spouse
• The payment date and method of the maintenance and the arrangement for increases in later years
• The child’s education, health and extraordinary expenses
• Claims for pecuniary and non-pecuniary damages
• Use or delivery of the family residence, the joint residence and the household goods
• The arrangement on litigation costs and attorney’s fees
• Whether the matrimonial property regime, wedding jewelry (ziynet), dower (mehir), personal belongings, vehicles, bank accounts, company shares, debts and other claims are included in the scope of the protocol
• The date, method and conditions of the money or goods to be delivered as agreed

General and vague waiver wording regarding the matrimonial property regime, wedding jewelry or other receivables may later give rise to disputes. It must be shown clearly which claim is terminated, which is reserved and how the performance will be carried out. It should also be borne in mind that, where the judge proposes changes to the protocol, the uncontested divorce depends on the parties’ acceptance of those changes.

Stages of an Uncontested Divorce

Preparing the petition and the protocol, applying to the court with subject-matter and territorial jurisdiction, the hearing, the parties’ statement of their will before the judge, notification of the reasoned judgment, determining the status of legal remedies, the judgment becoming final and its entry in the civil registry are successive stages. Without knowing the court’s workload, the content of the file and the state of service of documents, a definite duration cannot be given.

Must the Division of Property Necessarily Be Concluded in the Protocol?

Concluding the liquidation of the matrimonial property regime in the same protocol is not in every case a mandatory condition of an uncontested divorce. Whether these rights are included in the protocol or kept separate must be agreed expressly. Vague general waiver wording may lead to loss of rights and new disputes in the future.