Mediation in Disputes Arising from Construction Contracts in Return for Land Shares
August 3, 2024
Lawyer Fee in the Case Condition Mediatio n Process Has Changed as of 03.09.2022. Significant changes must be taken into consideration.
The mediation process is much shorter, much less stressful and much less demanding for lawyers compared to a lawsuit. For this reason, the attorney fee received during the mediation process is definitely more satisfactory than the fee received from a lawsuit.
During the mediation process, the attorney fee is determined according to the Turkish Bar Association Attorney Minimum Fee Tariff (Tariff), unless a higher fee is agreed upon by the parties.
A special regulation has been introduced in Article 16 of the Tariff regarding attorney fees during the mediation process.
If there is no other agreement between the lawyer and his client, the lower limit of the fee to be received by the lawyer acting as attorney during the mediation process is determined by the Lawyer Minimum Fee Tariffs and comes into force by being published in the Official Gazette.
According to the Lawyer Minimum Fee Tariff published in the Official Gazette No. 31942 dated 03.09.2022 and entered into force on the same day, the lowest fees to be paid to the lawyer during the mediation process are as follows:
A- If no agreement is reached in mediation, a fixed fee of 2,400.00 TL is paid to the lawyer. However, this fee cannot exceed the actual receivable.
This fee paid is deducted from the attorney fee that the party will pay to its lawyer if the party files a lawsuit with the same lawyer. We believe that this regulation is contrary to Article 18 of the Constitution, which we mentioned above, and should be abolished.
B- If an agreement is reached in mediation
a-Attorney’s fee during the mediation process in matters involving money or that can be evaluated in money
It is determined as one-fourth more than the fee calculated according to the third part of the tariff.
The rates in Part 3 of the tariff are as follows:
- 16 percent for the first 100,000 TL
- 15 percent for the next 100,000 TL
- 14 percent for the next 300,000 TL
- 11 percent for the next 500,000 TL
- 8 percent for the next 700,000 TL
- 5 percent for the next 900,000 TL
- 3 percent for the subsequent 1,100,000 TL
- 2 percent for the next 1,300,000 TL
- 1 percent for above 5,000,000 TL
Let’s explain this issue with an example:
Creditor A Ltd.Şti. The debtor sold goods to B A.Ş. and initiated enforcement proceedings for 1,000,000 TL because he could not receive his receivables arising from the invoice. The debtor objected to the debt and enforcement proceedings were stopped. The creditor must apply for mediation before filing a lawsuit to cancel the objection arising from the commercial sale. Mediation process A Ltd.Şti. He worked with his lawyer and at the end of the process, the parties agreed to pay 1,000,000 TL. In this case, A Ltd.Şti. to his lawyer because of this matter,
- 16 percent = 16,000 TL for the first 100,000 TL
- 15 percent for next 100,000 TL = 15,000 TL
- 14 percent for next 300,000 TL = 42,000 TL
- 11 percent for the next 500,000 TL = 55,000 TL for a total of 128,000 TL
One quarter more will pay 160,000 TL.
This fee has a lower and upper limit. For mediation activities up to an amount of 15,000 TL, the attorney’s fee is determined as one quarter more than the fixed fee (2,400 TL); that is, 3,000 TL. However, this fee cannot exceed the actual receivable.
As can be seen, for the first time, with this tariff, the lawyer is given the right to receive ¼ more fee in addition to the fee he would normally receive at the end of the case, if an agreement is reached during the mediation process. It is clear that this regulation will provide additional motivation for lawyers to ensure that the mediation process ends with an agreement.
b- In works that do not involve money or cannot be evaluated in money
If the mediation process results in an agreement, it is determined as one quarter more than the fixed fee stipulated for the lawyer in the second part of the second part of the Tariff, according to the court where the case is heard. These fees are as follows:
- 5,500 TL for cases to be heard in the civil courts of peace (1/4 more is 6,875 TL)
- 9,200 TL for cases to be heard in the courts of first instance (1/4 more is 11,500 TL)
- 4,600 TL for cases to be heard in consumer courts (1/4 more is 5,750 TL)
- 15,000 TL for cases to be heard in intellectual and industrial property rights courts (1/4 more is 18,750 TL)
