Historic Guarantee from the AYM to Civil Servants
Official titleDecision of the Constitutional Court Dated 29/1/2026 and Bearing Application Number 2022/47812
The Constitutional Court decided that the inability to make 'written warning' or 'caution' letters processed into the personal files of civil servants the subject of a lawsuit on the grounds that they are not enforceable in nature violated the right of access to a court.
Details of the Regulation
While serving as a lawyer within the Legal Consultancy of Dokuz Eylül University Rectorship, the applicant filed a lawsuit seeking the annulment of the warning letter served on them stating that disciplinary provisions would be applied. The Administrative Court and the appellate authority rejected the case without examining its merits on the grounds that the transaction in question did not carry a final and enforceable (executory) nature. In its evaluation, referring also to the jurisprudence of the Council of State, the Constitutional Court emphasized that such warnings are stored in the civil servant's personal file and may be taken into consideration adversely by the administration in future promotion, appointment, or disciplinary proceedings. Therefore, it was stated that these actions directly affect the applicant's legal status. As a result, it was unanimously decided that the administrative jurisdiction's decision to dismiss the case on procedural grounds without entering into its merits disproportionately restricted and violated the 'right of access to a court' guaranteed in Article 36 of the Constitution. The file was sent to the relevant Administrative Court for the purpose of eliminating the violation and conducting a retrial.
Questions You Might Have
- Can a lawsuit be filed against a simple 'be careful' warning given to a civil servant?
- Yes, if this warning is officially served and placed in the personnel's personal file and carries the risk of affecting their future career, it can now be made the subject of a lawsuit.
- Which fundamental constitutional right does the prevention of the right to file a lawsuit violate?
- It violates the 'Right of Access to a Court' under the Right to a Fair Trial regulated in Article 36 of the Constitution.
- Why did the AYM refer to Council of State decisions when rendering this decision?
- It made reference to criticize the administrative courts' disregard of this jurisprudence, stating that the Council of State previously had decisions indicating that warnings placed in a personal file could affect the legal status of a civil servant.
Key Terms
- İcrai İşlem
- An enforceable administrative act: a final and enforceable act of the administration that directly produces effects and results in the legal order through a unilateral declaration of intention, bringing about changes in the legal status of individuals.
- Mahkemeye Erişim Hakkı
- Right of access to a court: the right of individuals to apply to a judicial authority to seek their rights and to demand that the merits of the dispute be decided by this authority.
- Özlük Dosyası
- Personal file: the official file in which awards, penalties, step progressions, and all performance records received by public servants throughout their service lives are kept.
Where we posted this
Follow Turkish legal developments
REGAS analyzed all 32 items in the Official Gazette of 8 June 2026; we published only 3 of them here.
REGAS summarizes every change in the Turkish Official Gazette in plain language and notifies you.
The REGAS app is currently Turkish-only. If you would like English in the app, the best way to make it happen is to support the developer: get the app and just say so.
REGAS Commentary
This decision provides a historic legal guarantee for all public servants. Until today, administrations could pressure personnel by saying 'this is not an official disciplinary sanction, merely a warning letter', and courts were dismissing the lawsuits. With this decision of the AYM, the way to file an annulment action against any official caution and warning letter placed in a personal file has now been cleared to the full extent.