{"id":797,"date":"2025-08-11T13:24:36","date_gmt":"2025-08-11T10:24:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tureliceylan.com\/en\/?p=797"},"modified":"2025-08-11T13:25:14","modified_gmt":"2025-08-11T10:25:14","slug":"state-municipal-liability-after-earthquake","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tureliceylan.com\/en\/state-municipal-liability-after-earthquake\/","title":{"rendered":"State and Municipal Liability After an Earthquake: Legal Framework and Compensation Rights"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>The liability of the state and municipalities after an earthquake is of critical importance, especially for citizens who have lost their lives or suffered property damage due to&nbsp;<strong>collapsed or severely damaged buildings<\/strong>.<br>In Turkish law, this liability is generally based on the principle of&nbsp;<strong>service fault (hizmet kusuru)<\/strong>.<br>This article examines the legal responsibility of public authorities after earthquakes, the process of filing a compensation claim, and the rights of victims in light of Council of State and Court of Cassation precedents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>1. Legal Basis<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>a) Constitutional Basis<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Article 125 of the Turkish Constitution<\/strong>: The administration is liable to compensate for damages arising from its acts and actions.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>This provision directly establishes the state\u2019s liability after an earthquake.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>b) Administrative Law Framework<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After an earthquake, the state and municipalities have duties such as&nbsp;<strong>preparing zoning plans<\/strong>,&nbsp;<strong>issuing building permits<\/strong>, and&nbsp;<strong>ensuring building inspections<\/strong>.<br>Failure to perform these duties or performing them inadequately constitutes a&nbsp;<strong>service fault<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>c) Relevant Legislation<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Zoning Law No. 3194<\/strong>: Provisions on building permits, inspection, and structural safety.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Law No. 4708 on Building Inspection<\/strong>: Duties of building inspection companies and the supervisory role of the administration.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Administrative Jurisdiction Procedure Law No. 2577 (AJPL)<\/strong>: Procedures for filing full remedy (compensation) actions in administrative courts.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>2. Service Fault and Strict Liability<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>a) Service Fault<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A service fault occurs when a public service is not performed at all, is performed late, or is performed poorly.<br>For example, a municipality\u2019s failure to inspect building safety or demolish dangerous buildings before an earthquake is a typical service fault.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>b) Strict Liability<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In some cases, the administration\u2019s liability is engaged without proving fault, based on the principles of&nbsp;<strong>strict liability<\/strong>&nbsp;or&nbsp;<strong>social risk<\/strong>.<br>For instance, large-scale loss of life and property after an earthquake may lead to compensation based on the social risk principle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>3. Case Law of the Council of State and Court of Cassation<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Council of State 6th Chamber<\/strong>: Held that when a building with a construction permit collapses in an earthquake, failure to ensure compliance with technical requirements at the permit stage constitutes a service fault.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Court of Cassation General Assembly<\/strong>: Determined that insufficient building inspections before an earthquake can create joint liability for both the municipality and the state.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>4. Compensation Claim Process<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>a) Application<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Earthquake victims must first submit a written application to the relevant authority (municipality, ministry, etc.) requesting compensation for their losses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>b) Administrative Litigation<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If the administration rejects the application or does not respond, a&nbsp;<strong>full remedy action<\/strong>&nbsp;can be filed under&nbsp;<strong>AJPL Articles 12 and 13<\/strong>.<br>The competent court is the&nbsp;<strong>administrative court<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>c) Types of Compensation<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Pecuniary damages<\/strong>: Losses to property such as homes, workplaces, vehicles.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Non-pecuniary damages<\/strong>: Awarded to relatives in cases of death or serious injury.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>5. Statute of Limitations<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Under AJPL Article 13, claims must be filed within&nbsp;<strong>1 year<\/strong>&nbsp;from the date the damage is learned and in any case within&nbsp;<strong>5 years<\/strong>&nbsp;from the date of the incident.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>6. Tips to Avoid Loss of Rights<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Document damages and losses (photos, reports, expert opinions).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Submit an official claim to the administration before filing a lawsuit.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Do not miss limitation periods.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Work with a lawyer experienced in administrative law.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>The liability of the state and municipalities after an earthquake is assessed within the framework of&nbsp;<strong>service fault<\/strong>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<strong>strict liability<\/strong>&nbsp;principles.<br>Victims may claim their losses through&nbsp;<strong>full remedy actions<\/strong>&nbsp;in administrative courts when public authorities fail to fulfill their inspection duties.<br>Effective legal strategy and evidence management are essential for a successful outcome.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The liability of the state and municipalities after an earthquake is of critical importance, especially for citizens who have lost their lives or suffered property damage<span class=\"excerpt-hellip\"> [\u2026]<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":798,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[148,155,152,153,154,150,149,145,146,144,147,151],"class_list":["post-797","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-genel","tag-administrative-compensation-claim","tag-administrative-law-earthquake","tag-building-inspection-liability","tag-council-of-state-earthquake-rulings","tag-court-of-cassation-earthquake-rulings","tag-earthquake-compensation-lawsuit","tag-full-remedy-action","tag-municipal-liability-after-earthquake","tag-service-fault","tag-state-liability-after-earthquake","tag-strict-liability","tag-zoning-law-earthquake"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.1.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>State and Municipal Liability After an Earthquake: Legal Framework and Compensation Rights - T\u00fcreli &amp; 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