Civil and Criminal Liability of Physicians in Türkiye: Key Principles and Recent Changes

Harm to a patient following medical treatment may give rise to several types of liability for the physician at the same time: civil liability leading to an obligation to pay compensation, criminal liability involving criminal sanctions, and disciplinary liability under professional rules. This article outlines the key principles of physicians' civil and criminal liability under Turkish law.

I. Civil liability

Contractual liability

Under Court of Cassation (Yargıtay) practice, the relationship between physician and patient at a private practice or private hospital is, as a rule, a contract of mandate governed by Articles 502 et seq. of the Turkish Code of Obligations No. 6098. As agent, the physician does not guarantee recovery but must act carefully and diligently in accordance with medical science. In Court of Cassation practice, it is accepted that a physician, as agent, may be held liable even for the slightest fault. Breach of the duty of care at any stage — diagnosis, treatment, surgery, post-operative follow-up, referral or informing the patient — may give rise to liability.

Aesthetic procedures are different: the Court of Cassation mostly characterises these relationships as contracts for work (eser sözleşmesi) and holds that the physician is obliged to achieve the promised result. This topic is covered in a separate article.

Tortious liability

Where there is no contract between physician and patient (for example emergency treatment of an unconscious patient), liability may be assessed under the tort provisions of Article 49 of the Turkish Code of Obligations. Under Article 72, tort claims are time-barred two years after the injured party learns of the damage and the person liable, and in any event ten years after the act; if the act constitutes a crime subject to a longer criminal limitation period, that period applies.

Liability of hospital operators and the administration

The operator of a private hospital may be held liable together with the physician for damage arising from the selection and supervision of its physicians and staff and from organisational failures. For public hospitals, under Article 129(5) of the Constitution, a full-remedy action is brought before the administrative courts against the administration rather than the physician, who is a public official; where the conditions are met, the administration may seek recourse from the staff member at fault.

Recoverable damages

In practice, pecuniary damages such as treatment costs, losses from loss or reduction of working capacity, carer costs, and in case of death loss of financial support and funeral costs may be claimed, as well as non-pecuniary damages. Compulsory professional liability insurance for medical malpractice may also play a role in payment.

II. Criminal liability

Negligence and conscious negligence

Criminal cases arising from medical treatment mostly concern negligent offences. Under Article 22 of the Turkish Criminal Code No. 5237, negligence means performing an act in breach of the duty of attention and care without foreseeing the result described in the definition of the offence. Where the person foresaw the result but did not want it, there is conscious negligence, and the penalty is increased by one third to one half. Where several persons are negligent (for example a surgical team), each is liable for their own fault and each penalty is determined separately according to fault.

In its decision E. 2015/2588, K. 2016/5208, the 12th Criminal Chamber of the Court of Cassation accepted that the conditions of conscious negligence were met where a drug was approved for administration despite the patient's allergy being recorded in the file and an armband indicating it, causing life-threatening injury.

Negligent homicide

Under Article 85 of the Turkish Criminal Code, a person who negligently causes the death of another is punished with imprisonment of two to six years. If the act causes the death of more than one person, or death together with injury, the penalty is two to fifteen years' imprisonment.

Negligent injury and the amendment by Law No. 7571

The basic penalty for negligent injury under Article 89 was increased by Law No. 7571 of 24 December 2025. Under the current provision, a person who negligently causes physical pain to another or impairs their health or perception is punished with four months to two years' imprisonment or a judicial fine; if more than one person is injured, the penalty is nine months to five years' imprisonment. The penalty is increased by one half in cases such as permanent weakening of an organ's function, bone fracture or a life-threatening condition, and doubled for severe outcomes such as loss of an organ's function or an incurable illness.

Complaint requirement

Investigation and prosecution of negligent injury generally require a complaint. However, except for simple injury under the first paragraph, no complaint is required where the offence is committed with conscious negligence. For offences requiring a complaint, the complaint must generally be made within six months of learning of the act and the offender. Negligent homicide does not require a complaint.

Importance of expert reports

In criminal investigations, whether the physician was at fault is usually determined by reports from the specialised boards of the Forensic Medicine Institute or from universities. These reports may be decisive both for decisions not to prosecute and for convictions or acquittals. Any contradictions between reports must be resolved.

III. Relationship between civil and criminal liability

Civil and criminal liability are independent. Under Article 74 of the Turkish Code of Obligations, when deciding whether the person causing harm was at fault, the civil judge is not bound by the rules of criminal law on liability or by an acquittal by the criminal court. An acquittal therefore does not automatically remove liability for compensation, although facts established by the criminal court are significant for the civil judge.

IV. Disciplinary and administrative liability

Physicians are also subject to disciplinary liability before their professional body and employer. Administrative investigations may be conducted against physicians who are public officials. These proceedings also run independently of civil and criminal proceedings.

Conclusion

A physician's liability is subject to different legal regimes depending on the type of institution where the incident occurred, the nature of the physician–patient relationship and the nature of the harm. For patients and healthcare professionals alike, correctly identifying time limits and procedural rules is a precondition for proceedings to run smoothly.

This article is for general information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.