Turkey aligns its judicial system with that of Spain

As part of the “Improving the capacity of civilian execution offices in Turkey” project funded by the European Union and managed by FIIAPP, specialists from the Turkish Ministry of Justice visited Madrid, Cuenca, Granada and Córdoba for study purposes. During their stay, they learned about the Spanish judicial system and Spain’s enforcement offices.  

In Madrid, they visited the Ministry of Justice of Spain where they were welcomed by Antonio Viejo Llorente, secretary general of the Administration of Justice, who talked of the importance of this twinning project and the excellent collaboration between Spain and Turkey. He remarked that both countries have opted for a public enforcement system, a system whereby justice is considered an essential public service for citizens, which must meet their needs, particularly in terms of implementation. 

They also visited the judicial building in Cuenca, the Palacio de Justicia de Cuenca. During the visit, the guests from Turkey learned about the main characteristics of the enforcement system in Spain under the new judicial office model, with particular emphasis on the operation of the so-called coercive court services (SCEJ).  

While in Granada, representatives of the Andalusian High Court of Justice explained the judicial structure of Andalusia, and the role of judges, prosecutors and judicial advisors in Spain’s court system. 

Finally, they visited the Ciudad de Justicia de Córdoba, the city’s court complex, where they saw the asset investigation system at work, and the process for electronic freezing of bank accounts. The Turkish visitors also visited Cordoba’s Centralised Service of Process and Attachments Office. 

The Turkish delegation has been led by the Director General of the Department of Execution and Insolvency of the Ministry of Justice of Turkey and responsible for the project, Alim Polat, accompanied by the Spanish responsible for the Javier Casado Project.