A new era of specialised courts for challenges against Turkish regulatory authorities’ decisions

A significant reform has been introduced regarding the judicial review of decisions issued by regulatory authorities in Türkiye. Pursuant to the decision of the First Chamber of the Council of Judges and Prosecutors dated 20 April 2026, technical and complex administrative disputes arising from the decisions of major regulatory authorities will henceforth be heard by designated specialised administrative courts in Ankara. The reform aims to enhance the efficiency of judicial proceedings, strengthen judicial specialisation, and contribute to greater consistency in case law.

Under the new allocation of jurisdiction, disputes arising from the decisions of the Capital Markets Board, the Turkish Competition Authority, and the Public Oversight, Accounting and Auditing Standards Authority will be adjudicated by the 10th, 13th, and 25th Administrative Courts of Ankara. Disputes arising from the decisions of the Personal Data Protection Board, the Radio and Television Supreme Council, the Information and Communication Technologies Authority, the Energy Market Regulatory Authority, and the Nuclear Regulatory Authority will be heard by the 12th, 14th, and 15th Administrative Courts of Ankara.

The new system entered into force on 1 June 2026 and applies only prospectively. Cases pending as of that date will continue to be heard by the courts currently seized of the matter, and no transfer of files will take place under the new allocation of jurisdiction.

The reform is particularly significant for challenges against decisions issued by authorities operating in highly regulated and technically complex sectors, including data protection, competition, telecommunications, media, and energy. By promoting judicial specialisation, the new framework is expected to increase predictability over time and enhance the quality of judicial review of regulatory decisions involving complex technical assessments.

This reform may also be viewed as part of a broader transformation in the judicial review of decisions issued by regulatory authorities in Türkiye. Indeed, with the enactment of Law No. 7499, the judicial remedy against administrative fines imposed under the Personal Data Protection Law No. 6698 was previously amended, replacing the review mechanism before criminal peace judgeships with judicial review before administrative courts. The latest reform takes this transformation one step further by establishing a specialization-based allocation of jurisdiction within the administrative judiciary.

The concentration of disputes before designated specialised courts is expected to contribute over time to the development of a more consistent and predictable body of case law. For companies operating in regulated sectors, this is likely to provide greater clarity regarding judicial trends in the review of regulatory authority decisions and enable more accurate assessments of potential litigation outcomes. It is therefore important for companies to closely monitor the approaches adopted by these courts, particularly in relation to administrative fines, the principle of proportionality, and the limits of regulatory authorities’ discretionary powers. Companies may also benefit from reassessing their compliance programmes, internal investigation procedures, and dispute resolution strategies in light of this increasingly specialised judicial review framework.