Human rights lawyer: ECtHR and UN complaints

• Every domestic decision, from first instance to the final one, with the dates they were served (tebliğ tarihleri).
• Your Constitutional Court application and its decision, if you made one.
• Evidence of the violation: detention records, medical reports, dismissal decrees, correspondence.
• Proof that you raised the Convention complaint in the domestic courts (your petitions and appeals).
• ID, and if a lawyer represents you, the Court's authority form signed by you and the lawyer.
• A numbered list of all documents in date order (Rule 47 § 3.2).

• Filing late: more than four months after the final decision, or relying on a fax.
• An incomplete form: any missing Rule 47 information or copy means the complaint is not examined.
• Not exhausting remedies: skipping the Constitutional Court or not raising the Convention point there.
• Missing the Constitutional Court's 30 days, which can also cause problems at the ECtHR.
• Filing the same matter with another international body: Article 35 § 2 (b) and Turkey's UN reservation block a second route.
• Expecting a retrial on the merits: the Court cannot quash national decisions or rehear the case.

• Complaints against the United States: the U.S. is not a party to the Convention or to the ICCPR First Optional Protocol.
• A general appeal from a Turkish court: the ECtHR does not act as a court of appeal.
• INTERPOL data: the CCF handles that; see extradition and INTERPOL.
• Protection from removal in the U.S.: see asylum and removal defense.

Who this is for

• People in the U.S. whose rights were violated by Turkey or another Council of Europe state, after the domestic courts ruled.
• People who want to take a complaint to a UN committee instead, such as the Human Rights Committee or the Committee against Torture.
• People facing an imminent risk of irreparable harm from a Convention state who may need an interim measure (Rule 39).
• Applicants who won a judgment and want to follow its execution or ask for a retrial in Turkey.

Key requirements

• Who and against whom: an individual or a company that was personally and directly affected can apply under Article 34, against a state bound by the Convention, for acts of its public authorities. The Court cannot hear complaints against private persons or companies.
• Where you live does not matter: you can apply from the U.S. The U.S. is not a party to the Convention, so the U.S. cannot be the respondent.
• Exhaustion: you must use the domestic remedies that could fix the problem and raise the Convention complaint in them. For Turkey this usually includes an individual application to the Constitutional Court (see Uzun v. Turkey, cited in the Court's Admissibility Guide).
• The Turkish Constitutional Court application must be made within 30 days of the last remedy, or of learning of the violation where no remedy exists. It can be lodged through Turkey's consulates abroad, and a court fee applies (Law 6216, Article 47).
• Four months: the ECtHR application must reach the Court within four months of the final domestic decision (Article 35 § 1). This applies to final decisions taken from 1 February 2022; earlier decisions had six months.
• Rule 47: use the Court's form, fill in every field, set out the facts, the violations and how you met the admissibility criteria, and attach copies of the decisions. Extra pages may not exceed 20. A form that misses any of this is not examined.
• The date that counts is the postmark of a complete form (Rule 47 § 6). A fax does not stop the four-month clock.
• Language and lawyer: you can write in English, French or an official language of a Convention state, including Turkish. You do not need a lawyer at first, but you will once the case is communicated to the government. From then on the representative should be an advocate authorised to practise in a Convention state and resident in one, unless the President of the Chamber approves someone else (Rule 36 § 4).
• UN route: Turkey ratified the ICCPR First Optional Protocol on 24 November 2006, the Convention against Torture on 2 August 1988 (with an Article 22 declaration) and the CEDAW Optional Protocol on 29 October 2002.
• Turkey's reservation means the UN Human Rights Committee will not consider a matter that has been or is being considered under another international procedure, such as the ECtHR. Choose the route before you file.
• After a judgment: a Chamber judgment becomes final three months after it is given unless a party asks for referral to the Grand Chamber (Articles 43 and 44). The Committee of Ministers supervises execution (Article 46).

What to check with an attorney

• The exact date of the final domestic decision and when you received it.
• Whether every domestic remedy, including the Constitutional Court, was used and the Convention complaint was raised there.
• Whether the ECtHR or a UN committee fits better, given Turkey's reservation on matters examined elsewhere.
• Whether the facts support an interim-measure request: an imminent risk of irreparable harm.

Fees and rules reviewed 16 Oct 2026. Sources below.

Official sources:

1. European Convention on Human Rights
2. ECtHR: Apply to the Court
3. ECtHR: Rules of Court (15 September 2025)
4. ECtHR: Questions and answers for applicants
5. ECtHR: Practical guide on admissibility criteria (28 February 2026)
6. ECtHR: Pending applications by State, 30 September 2026
7. Law No. 6216 on the Constitutional Court (mevzuat.gov.tr)
8. Code of Criminal Procedure No. 5271, Article 311 (mevzuat.gov.tr)
9. UN Treaty Collection: ICCPR First Optional Protocol, status
10. UN Treaty Collection: Convention against Torture, status
11. UN Treaty Collection: CEDAW Optional Protocol, status

What changed: added the Turkish Constitutional Court step, Rule 47, the UN route and Turkey's reservation, execution and retrial, and 2026 statistics.