The Constitutional Court (AYM) annulled the provision in the Turkish Civil Code that prevents women from using only the surname before marriage, finding it unequal. Thus, the legal way for women to use their surname before marriage as a single surnam
"Justice without power is powerless, power without justice is cruel.”
The Constitutional Court (AYM) annulled the provision in the Turkish Civil Code that prevents women from using only the surname before marriage, finding it unequal. Thus, the legal way for women to use their surname before marriage as a single surname after marriage was opened.
The said decision was published in the Official Gazette on 28.04.2023 and will enter into force 9 months later. With the decision, women will no longer have to file a lawsuit to be able to use only their celibacy surname after marriage.
The content of the decision is as follows:
The 8th Family Court of Istanbul stated, "A woman takes her husband's surname upon marriage; however, she can also use her previous surname before her husband's surname with a written application to the marriage officer or the civil registry office. A woman who used two surnames before can benefit from this right for only one surname." He applied to the Constitutional Court for the annulment of the regulation.
The 8th Family Court of Istanbul demanded the annulment decision on the grounds that "While it is possible for a man to use his birth surname throughout his life, denying the same right to women is incompatible with the principle of equality".
Evaluating the application, the Supreme Court annulled the provision in Article 187 of the Civil Code. In the decision, it was stated that according to the Constitution, men and women have equal rights, and the family is "based on equality between spouses".
The clause of the law to be annulled;
III. woman's surname
Item 187- A woman takes her husband's surname by getting married; however, she can also use her previous surname in front of her husband's surname with a written application to the marriage officer or later to the civil registry office. A woman who used two surnames before can benefit from this right for only one surname.
In the decision, it was stated that although the man can use his surname alone after marriage, since the rule stipulates that the woman can use the surname before marriage only after marriage, but in front of her husband's surname, different treatment is made on the basis of gender between spouses who are in a comparable situation. It was also stated that there is a public interest in preventing confusion in the population records and determining the lineage in a healthy way, but finding the identity numbers of individuals and population services are provided by using information technologies.
In the decision, it was reminded that women can use their surname before marriage by applying to the judiciary, "The principle of equality is that women can benefit from equal rights with men without resorting to judicial remedy. Decisions of the ECtHR, Constitutional Court and Court of Cassation have provided a limited opportunity for women to use their pre-marriage surname alone after marriage. Despite all the developments. Due to the rule whose existence was preserved and continued to be applied by the administrative authorities, it was not possible for the woman to use her previous surname alone without having to bear any burden. It has been concluded that the difference in treatment stipulated by the rule between men and women in the context of using the surname before marriage alone after marriage violates the principle of equality because it is not based on an objective and reasonable basis.
With this decision, women will no longer have to file a lawsuit to use their single surname only after marriage.
AV MAVİYE KAYA