Oral Hearings in Turkish Competition Law

Articles 46 and 47 of Law No. 4054 on the Protection of Competition (Law No. 4054), along with Communiqué No. 2010/2 on Hearings Held vis-à-vis the Competition Board (Communiqué No. 2010/2), govern the right and principles applicable to the oral hearing. The oral hearing is held after the written phase of the investigation is closed. It gives the investigated undertaking an opportunity to orally address its defences directly to the Turkish Competition Board (Board). The preamble of Communiqué No. 2010/2 notes that the oral hearing meeting seeks to allow the investigated undertaking to raise the essential points of their defences verbally and in person before the Board but also to allow the Board to ask questions to the investigated parties before reaching a final decision. However, oral hearings are not a mandatory step in the investigation process; they can be held upon the request of the investigated parties or ex officio by the Board if deemed necessary.

Pursuant to Article 46 of Law No. 4054, oral hearings are held within at least thirty and at most sixty days following the completion of the written phase of the investigation. The oral hearing meeting invitation should be conveyed to the parties at least thirty days prior to the date of the hearing. The Board sets the date, venue and time of the meeting, and the notice duration for complainants and third parties that want to attend the meeting, which are also announced on the Turkish Competition Authority’s (Authority) official website. In addition to the parties to the investigation, the complainant(s) can attend the oral hearing if they make a written request within the notice period determined by the Board. Third parties can also request attendance, provided that they present information and documents showing their interest in the subject matter of the oral hearing, within the timings announced by the Authority.

The Board will render its final decision within fifteen calendar days following the hearing, if an oral hearing is held. If no oral hearing is held, then the Board will issue its final decision within thirty calendar days following the completion of the investigation process.

For more information on oral hearings in Turkish competition law, please feel free to reach out to ELIG Gurkaynak at +90 212 327 1724 or through gonenc.gurkaynak@elig.com.