What led you to become an attorney? 

I have always had an opinion, a judgement on topics like politics, social judgement, values, social awareness and history in social and family settings. However, I was always told to show some respect and listen without interfering as I was still young, and did not have enough knowledge and experience yet. That I will not be satisfied with this understanding; I realized that I wanted to be right in the middle of what I was kept out of as soon as I understood with the desire for a full expression, the need for defence, the search for a justification that I felt at that moment. With these judgments, I decided to move forward with an understanding of justice and law, a place where you can make a statement on a subject, where you are given the right to speak, and where every word you say has an effect and result. Hence, my goal was clear during primary school, without waiting for the selection period in high school and university; my diaries always ended with the Marmara Law’s logo.  

So Why Law? Law to be able to express thoughts freely, to be able to defend against injustices with a louder voice, to take an active role in order to establish the understanding of equality, rights, law and justice in the society, to be an authority applied for the defence of the rights of the individual, to ensure social peace, in order to enable people to live together in peace and in a common communication language. Although I thought that I could achieve all this desire to gain legal awareness with the judgeship, despite the high scores I got, me being eliminated from the interviews showed that I could not acquire legal awareness in a process involving different factors; attorneyship because it is a freer field where only success and merit are taken into account.  

 What are your experiences as a woman working in the legal sector? 

One of the things I have experienced as a female attorney in the legal sector is that women’s different perspectives and characteristics have led working life in a positive direction. In fact, although it has been suggested by many researches that men has the following: leadership motivation, authority, keeping up with change, being detail and result oriented; and that women also stand out in terms of personality, team spirit, keeping the team together, inclusive evaluations rather than detailed, caring about the process rather than the result. When all of these factors are evaluated together, both a good team spirit and result targets come forward. Miran Legal, where I am shaping and practicing my experiences, is progressing with this perspective, and by working with women in many business positions, it both creates social awareness and aims to make this staff move forward with a successful vision. In this way, the fact that the law firm you work with has a clear vision ensures that your future is clearly predictable, specifiable and regulable. Thus, while choosing a law firm where you will share your knowledge, experience, labour, time and career in the field of law as a female attorney; I am of the opinion that it is important for us to follow a planned and successful path as women, paying attention to whether it provides an assurance that you can see as soon as you enter the steps of your career.  

Factors increasing the status of women in the legal sector: 

I believe that the factor that increases the status of women in the legal sector is again women. Yes, it started with education for women to be actively involved in legal life on an equal basis. However, this was not enough. This was already a necessity. Attorney women, who have made a difference with success and determination and have reached the level where they will not leave a word to anyone, paved the way for women to have a place in the field of law again. That is how, as women, we have been able to exist in every field in work life. In the amphitheatre, courtroom, factory, office, construction site, academy, on stage. Thus, as long as women were successful, they paved the way for another woman to be successful. Another issue that paves the way for women to be actively involved in work life in our country is; catalysed access to information. As a matter of fact, we can now see and compare what a woman attorney anywhere in the world can do and what rights she has, even from Turkey. This comparison pushes the countries to an international comparison and raises awareness, making this issue a target to be reached. The status of women in the field of law has been increased with business circles aiming to adapt this awareness to working life, such as Miran Legal, and working conditions have been created on equal terms with men and opportunities. In fact, as can be seen in Miran Legal, formations have been made on women’s employment with a clear margin in the direction of positive discrimination for women. With the support of all these perspectives and the determination of strong women, the status of women in the legal sector has also become active. Although male attorneys are still most likely to be elected to or preside over the Supreme Judicial Organs, this perception will disappear in time from the perspective of the business circles I mentioned.  

How would you describe the culture at Miran Legal? 

It is a culture aiming to carry out the social responsibilities in the field of law, open to all diversity, from clients to whom legal services are provided to preferred office staff, without discrimination of ethnicity, race, language, religion, open and forward-thinking, maintaining sincerity in human relations despite growing in vision and mission; observant, extroverted, active, open to development and innovation at any time, can adapt innovations quickly, does not depend on people or people, is successful, has a young energy. 

What would you recommend to female students who want to get involved in the legal field based on your career and experience? 

• During the legal education, they should first have all the theoretical knowledge of the law in a way to create a certain legal logic rather than memorization of the literal. Because information, legislation is constantly changing and can be easily accessed by everyone. However, where you should look in the face of a dispute, which factors you should consider do not change and occur with a good legal education. As long as this logic exists, all that remains will be to apply the legislation to the dispute. 
• I recommend that they do not neglect to take Foreign Language Education in the intensity of their legal education. Because, with graduation, they would prefer to have completed the entire education process while they were students, as a rapid transition from theoretical life to practical life would be made. 
• Participating in many trainings, seminars, imputed litigation studies in the field of law. 
• To actively participate in social responsibility projects during their student years. 
• They should not limit themselves by determining their goals before completing their legal education, and they should start to determine them after they graduate and a certain legal logic and direction of desire is formed. 
• Most importantly, their knowledge, success and career processes in which they will work for; They will have to complete their career planning in law firms with a broad vision that can evaluate their career planning the best way. 

What would you be, if you were not an attorney?

If I wasn’t a lawyer, I would be a journalist-writer. Transferring the facts from my own eyes, interpreting, criticizing, defending, sharing my thoughts would still be subjects that would satisfy me occupationally. 

Which woman inspires you the most?  

I chose the law department and Istanbul University, inspired by the life of Süreyya Ağaoğlu. She had entered as the first female law student through the gates of Istanbul University. As the only woman who wants to study law apart from men; she convinced 3 more women and opened the law school. Then thousands of women were able to enter through that door. Every time I enter through the same door as one of those women; Remembering that Süreyya Ağaoğlu paved the way for entering through this door for the first time, I always thought that I should be determined and hardworking. 

How do you manage work – life balance?

Work-life balance can be achieved if the expectations from both of our statues are met in a balanced way. While a constant concentration in work life distracts you from your life, a situation in your life can also interrupt your work life. I am able to keep this balance in balance with the flexible working methods provided by Miran Legal in this regard. With many flexible opportunities such as weekend holidays, full annual leave holidays, working from home on certain days, giving motivational leaves, not making any work-related demands after the end of the working day, work and life are already separated. You can manage it in balance without having to be separated like a detached or caste system. 

What is the biggest achievement you are proud of in your career?  

The thing I valued most in my career was the moment when I managed to break away from a work environment where I had to support the ideologies and ideas of others, despite the steady progress of my career, and decided to start from scratch. Starting a career in which I would be free, although difficult, was a guiding development in my life. 

How do you see the new generation of female attorneys? 

When I compare it with my own era; I can say that I observe the new generation of women’s attorneys as having a high level of awareness, more assertive, brave, participatory, social and versatile in expressing their rights. Nevertheless, besides all these, I also see that literal, which has developed with the fact that the information is easily obtained, can replace the “research of the right information from the right places with the right perspective” and manifest as “not using the ability to research and enforce legal logic” in attorneys who have just started their new legal profession. 

Miran Legal’s Diversity Agenda

The most important diversity and inclusion role of Miran Legal is to provide a working environment where everyone, including the legal unit, administrative unit, field workers, feels valued and respected. It believes in the power of diversity that everyone will create in the workplace and in the business area, and cares about everyone’s contribution to the business and develops it by planning. It is a positive law firm with diversity and inclusivity, as it has created a productive workplace culture that is always open to collaboration and to evaluate new ideas. With this perspective, loyalty and productivity increase, progress can be made as a team, and diversity can be increased according to the interests of the team. 

Diversity and Inclusivity in Legal Sector 

Sadly, monopoly rather than diversity and inclusiveness in the legal sector is still more dominant. Although law firms that have implemented corporate principles such as Miran legal raise awareness on this issue, due to the fact that diversity and inclusion requires a long and difficult road, the results will show in the future rather than immediately, and there is a need for a prospective investment of labor and knowledge from capital investment at the beginning; The understanding that creates a working environment based on singular success is still high. Miran Legal on the other hand has proven that it is completely far from this singular understanding of success by advancing with an understanding that shares the support of everyone working with their success. 

 

Tell us about your career choice and journey. What inspired you to become a lawyer? 

Frankly, I did not have in my mind to study law until the day before I submitted the preference form regarding my faculty choices. Nevertheless, I had a good exam score and to benefit from it correctly, the night before I submitted the form, I decided to choose a faculty that would offer me more than one job opportunity after my graduation. But from the very beginning of my faculty days, I decided to be a lawyer instead of a judge or prosecutor since being a lawyer provides me an independent area to make my choices for the field of law that I want to work for. And I am happy that I have chosen a field of law where I work with great happiness for over ten years.  

What are your reflections on the diversity and inclusion culture in the legal profession in Turkey? 

The number of female students in law faculties was always equal to that of males. Still, the effectiveness of female lawyers in professional life was not the same, but in the last ten years, we have seen that the females’ efficacy and roles increased. We now see that many female lawyers became partner/managing lawyers and took a role in managing departments of law firms and it provides a different perspective to the management of law firms. Speaking about my experience, I did not face discrimination based on my gender, but it may be related to my law field, IP Law, which women lawyers always dominate. 

It is not only about the gender but also about social cultures.
Turkey is a mosaic where different cultures live together and the presence of lawyers from different cultures in the field of law will increase diversity and its positive impact. I believe that Turkey should improve in the variety in social cultures in the legal profession. 

How is NSN Law progressing with its diversity agenda? 

As a Partner, I am also responsible from Human Resource and I can throw out that we attach a lot of importance to diversity during our recruitment. We recruit people to our firm from different genders, social cultures and from different law faculties. We believe that appreciating and supporting the variety of your team members is essential to improve engagement and productivity and put different perspectives to the cases. We also think that making people work with team members from different cultures expands their vision, and when lots of companies/firms follow this road, it may impact the public’s approach.  

How do you define the culture at NSN Law? 

The most important thing at NSN’s work culture is to provide happy and peaceful work place to team members.  We think that when there is peace within the team, effective teamwork follows and this is reflected in all works. We think that collective success and knowledge are important, not individual achievements and knowledge, and therefore we create a structure where everyone transfers their experience and knowledge to each other. Sharing the experience and knowledge also improves the personal success. 

In your opinion, are women lawyers treated differently by clients and colleagues compared to their male counterparts? 

No, I never feel a different attitude from the Clients or colleagues because I am a female. There are so many successful and reputed women lawyers in Turkey, and I believe they have already changed the system and provided the younger lawyers a work opportunity in equal treatment. 

 How do you see the new generation of women lawyers? 

I meet with many lawyer candidates at career days of law faculties, interns and junior lawyers at job interviews every year, and I can easily say that the new generation of female lawyers has characters who have high awareness. They know what they want in their career. I am pleased and excited to have a place with them in our firm and other law organizations. 

 If you weren’t a lawyer, what would you be? 

I never think about it but I really enjoy spending time with children. Maybe, I would be a preschool teacher.  

Which women in your life have had the most influence on your career? 

In first place, my mother has had the most influence on my career. She is a housewife and a great mother to my sisters and me, but she always advised me to have a profession and stand on my own feet. Also, my mother-in-law inspired me a lot with her over 30 years of vast experience in work life and great success to create a big company from nothing. She always supported me in my career way and instilled in me self-confident. 

What motivates you? 

My biggest motivation in business life is the self-confidence and freedom given to me by standing on my own feet and being a role model for my daughter to follow the same path and become a strong woman standing on her own feet. 

Are there any pivotal moments that shaped your career as a lawyer? 

I believe that it is a bit of a fate how I came to this place in my career because I was accepted to the first law firm that I applied to without knowing their specialized field of law. The firm specialized in IP law and when I started to work in this field, I decided that I want to be an expert in this field and tread my path. 

How do you manage your current work / life balance?  

I cannot deny that women having a child have difficulties balancing work life and personal life. Nevertheless, I am lucky that I work at a law firm that attaches importance to the balance between work life and personal life. My family is always in the first place of my life, but my firm is also my second home. I make a plan for each day and arrange my time to spend quality time with my family and make my worklist complete in due time. To be honest, between family and work life, I do not have much time to spend for myself but having a success in my job and seeing my family happy is enough for my personal peace. 

 When you look back at your career and the knowledge you’ve gained, what advice would you give to female students who are about to enter the legal industry? 

I always suggest to students at career days to become an expert in specific fields of law rather than practicing all areas of law. I believe becoming an expert in specific fields of law brings prominence to the lawyers on their career road. Also, I always suggest they make summer internships during their education to experience different areas of law, which allow them to make their choice regarding their practice field faster at the beginning of their career. Lastly, I suggest they work in the law field where they work happily because I believe that happiness in work life affects our mood. 

Tell us about your career choice and journey. And what made you decide to get into Intellectual Property and Trademark law? 

Deriş is one of the oldest law firms in Turkey established in 1912 by my great grand-father and I am the 4th generation of the family. I was introduced to IP law at very young age and was fascinated by the world of trademarks, innovation and its close relation to the business world more than the law itself. I finished my law degree at the University of Geneva and joined the firm in 1994. It was great times for being an IP Lawyer in Turkey since Turkey had joined the Customs Union of EU in 1995 and harmonized all its IP Laws. Deriş being one of the very few firms back then specialized in IP, I had the opportunity to be part of these changes and witness the growth of the IP Profession in Turkey. I started my career in IP prosecution and worked in all the different fields of IP and then as a litigator in different sectors focusing in building defendable IP rights and enforcement strategies. In the last 5 years with the growth of the team and litigation practice, I am now more focused on management and responsible for HR and Global Benchmarks and Compliance. I can say that strategic management, HR and Career Development has been a new passion after Intellectual Property. 

What are your reflections on the diversity and inclusion culture in the legal profession in Turkey?   

When we talk about diversity and inclusion, the first topic that comes in mind is gender equality. My perception is that the gender equality in term of numbers is quite balanced in the legal profession in Turkey. In particular, when we look at intellectual property, it may be possible to see a distribution in favor of women. 

In this regard, I find it useful to share two official data. The distribution of lawyers by gender, published by the bar associations shows that the ratio is 55% male and 45% female. The gender distribution of the students admitted to the Istanbul University Faculty of Law, -Turkey’s oldest and most well-known Faculty of Law- in 2020 is 47.3% female and 53.7% male. 

We know that IP, especially trademarks, are quite dominated by women, and we have very bright women Trademark and Patent Lawyers. At Deriş, the rate of female lawyers and attorneys is 87.5% and 75% among partners. 

On the other hand, diversity without inclusion may not be sufficient in the workplace and there, I feel that this topic is less discussed in the legal profession.  This may be due to the fact that the legal profession in Turkey is more individual and there are limited institutional law firms addressing the diversity and inclusion topics and providing career opportunities and mentorship for young lawyers. 

How is Deris Attorney-at-Law Partnership progressing with its diversity agenda? 

DERIS; has been certified by GPTW as a Great Place to Work for the last three years in a row and has been ranked among the top employers in 2020 and 2021.  

Great Place to Work model focuses on maximizing the potential of all employees and building a trust culture.  

“Diversity and inclusion” is one of the topics in this process, which measures the human investment of institutions with employee perception. Diversity includes age, nationality, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, disability. In the measurement of perception towards diversity, 97% of the employees stated that Deriş culture respects and fosters diversity.  This result is due to the inherent culture of the company, and we did not need to take any special precautions. 

On the other hand, we have a career development and mentorship program focused on potential and strengths. This program is open to everyone within the company which feeds into the idea that everyone is included regardless of their age, number of years in the company, seniority, gender, not to mention nationality, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability. 

How do you define the culture at Deris Attorney-at-Law Partnership? 

Our culture is focused on creating value for our clients and on providing our team continued learning environment and development opportunities. We do this by embracing the differences and the technological innovation.  

On client perspective, we prioritize “understanding the client business”. We do not only focus on the legal problem but try to understand the client’s commercial activities and sector and to foresee how our advice and directions will be reflected in his work.  

It is a culture that focuses on excellence in business processes and technology in order to provide high quality service, and encourages systematic investment in human capital, not forgetting that value can only be created by employees. 

It is also an integral part of Deris’ mission to contribute to the IP Profession in Turkey to the best of its capabilities and to represent both its own company and the Turkish intellectual Property sector before official authorities and local and global organizations. 

How do you see the new generation of women lawyers? 

The new generation of women lawyers are effectively using the advantage of the unlimited access to information from the early years of their law studies. They have clearly understood the importance of determining or limiting their area of interest and widening and deepening the scope of their knowledge. They are exploring all the opportunities such as training/internship at national or international organizations, internships at law offices and using student organizations very effectively to build their network even before starting their career. During the interviews, it is very exciting to see that they start building their career path from the early years of Law School, explore all the opportunities and take very well-informed decisions. They have a voice, and they are not hesitant to use it against inequalities, social injustices and all the topics that are close to their hearts such as environment, diversity and they want to belong to organizations that shares their values. 

If you weren’t a lawyer, what would you be?

This is a very difficult question to answer as being in the IP world, which is very dynamic, colorful but also very challenging where constant learning is a must, I never thought of a better job to be in. On the other hand, lately coaching and mentoring has been my new passion. As all lawyers, the first 15 years of my career was dedicated to being a better IP Lawyer but with time, I have realized that although technical and professional knowledge and skills are important and necessary, they are not the only key components of the success in business life. Human skills, management and leadership are as important as the knowledge of law and there is a huge need for coaching and mentoring in this area.  

Which women have inspired you the most?      

I am surrounded by many inspiring women, friends, family members, colleagues who inspire me in different ways. However, the most inspiring women in my life were my grand-mother and my mother. I feel very lucky to have grown in a family where women were in charge and had the same voice if not more. My grand-mother born in Istanbul in a Greek Family was a very strong women taking the responsibility of her 4 siblings at the age of 19 and my mother, is an exceptional woman, that has been in the work force since 1969 to this day. I was raised by a single mother who every morning went to her job at Deris but still managed to prioritize her family and children. Back then there were relatively a limited number of women in Turkey that were in the workforce let alone doing finance. Seeing her passion and resilience thought me not to complain and inspired me to strive for the best I could.  

What motivates you?  

I can group my motivation factors in two main categories:  

First, those about the team: 

• engagement and seeing progress in people that I had the opportunity to touch during the mentoring and coaching that I care about, 
• Seeing the results of investment in human potential, 

and 

Those about building the business and strategy: 

• to see the results of the short and long-term strategy we have determined reflect on the business. 
• seeing and demonstrating how increasing the strength of a law firm’s infrastructure impacts business results and is indispensable 
• and, of course, understanding the client’s business and seeing our contribution to their commercial sustainability and success. 

You have been Managing Partner of Deris Attorney-at-Law Partnership for twenty years. What have been your personal highlights during this time as a leading female lawyer in Turkey?  

I can summarize my takeaways from the period I served in Deris at different positions and as the managing partner: 

• A good knowledge of law is mandatory; however, it is very difficult to stand out and take your company forward without looking at the financial, client, process and human perspectives of the business. 
• Effective management, putting what the company needs first, then evaluating the options and making a decision is important. 
• Touching people, doing this without expecting anything in return; educate people. That’s the only way to be a leader. 

During the twenty years, I was lucky to lead many enforcement projects for well-known brands in various industries such as cosmetics, textiles, automotive, pharmaceutical, food, and personal care products as well as I was involved in various multijurisdictional patent and trademark litigation cases  as well as important licensing program such as the first SEP licensing program in Turkey.   

One of Deriş important strategy objective is “Compliance with Global Benchmarks and Standards.  In 2020, I was responsible for the ISO 27001 project for security management and we were certified with ISO 27001 with our information security management system and by this certification our firm has been one of the pioneer in the Turkish Legal industry to secure the client information and the data privacy.  

Deris also invests in human resources, and we have implemented effective performance management system and career planning system for the team. We organize very intensive trainings consistent with Firm’s strategy.  These trainings also cover personal development and career development trainings. We have decided to share our experiences with the younger generation and have organized during the pandemic a series of webinars for Law Students. Another program that I am very proud of is a 4 week Online Summer Intern Program for the education of university students in Intellectual Property Law that we have initiated in 2021 for the first time. 16 young candidates willing to be IP professionals received a fundamental course for Trademark, Patent and Design Prosecution as well as Copyrights and Unfair Competition Law and IP Litigation as well as personal and business skills.  

In your twenty-seven-year legal career so far what achievement are you most proud of?   

In this long period of time, beyond the professional achievements, the thing that I am most proud of is that we were able to create the corporate infrastructure of Deris and put it into practice with the Balanced Scorecard strategy. 

The wings of an aircraft; client and legal matters; If we consider the human, process and technology infrastructure as its body, I believe that we have created a light and agile body that will easily fly the plane to its intended destination. 

How do you manage your current work / life balance?   

Being in a profession you love with the people you love makes this very easy. Most of the time I do not feel like I am working but I feel more like I am in a journey with my friends/team which  is very motivating and fulfilling. That does not say I do not have a life and need some time off.  I believe the work/life balance is very related to our values, motivations, our needs, and choices. We have also different needs at different stages of our lives. Family is important so I have always tried to set my priorities accordingly. Having raised two kids, I always tried to be available for their needs, taking family vacations regularly, being present at the dinner table and they got used to being raised by a working mother, became more independent while always knowing that I will make myself available if they need me. We all experience that people complain that the pandemic has harmed the work/life balance and they are probably right, but I see it as an opportunity. Being able to work remotely from home or any other location has given me the freedom to build a better work/life balance, travel more, be with friends and family more while being able to be present at work. When we choose a profession and set our goals, we know more or less the requirements that comes with it. IP profession requires constant learning, hard work and is driven by the client’s needs and priorities.  

When you look back at your career and the knowledge you’ve gained, what advice would you give to female students who are about to enter the legal industry? 

My advice would be for all students who are about to enter the legal industry male or female as I believe that the opportunities are equal. A lawyer should obviously have a deep and updated knowledge of the law and preferably specialize in a specific field as early as possible. I strongly believe that all law students should have a general idea of their subjects of interest by the 3rd year and realize that excelling in that area would require a lifelong learning process. On the other hand, although having excellent professional skills is a must, there are different skill sets that are crucial to make a difference and stand out in the business life. Unfortunately these skill sets are highly disregarded or ignored by the academic programs. A good lawyer must have a business approach i.e having an understanding of the dynamics of the markets and understand its client business, good communication skills including internal communication within teams as well as with the client, invest in networking i.e. how to build a strong network and how contribute to the profession and/or community they are in. Human skills and leadership skills are important to lead the business and high potential teams. I strongly advise the young generation of lawyers to invest in these areas as early as possible and not to focus only in legal/technical skills.  

Tell us about your career choice and journey. What inspired you to become a lawyer?  

At first, I met a law professor through my aunt and was inspired by her while choosing this profession. Also, I was watching a TV series about the struggle of lawyers in their professional lives at that time. I was aware that the show had nothing to do with real life, but from what I observed, I thought that I was suitable for being a lawyer as I love challenging the difficulties and solving the problems. In the end, I decided to become the lawyer. It is possible to say that my career consists of three stages. After completing my undergraduate education, firstly, I started my career in one of the leading law firms in Turkey which is mainly famous with its practice in IP. Then I went to the United Kingdom to do a master’s degree in commercial law. Subsequently, I joined NSN to manage commercial/corporate legal affairs. 

What are your reflections on the diversity and inclusion culture in the legal profession in Turkey?  

Honestly, the legal sector is a male-dominated market in Turkey. Unfortunately, for this reason, the visibility of women in the profession is affected. However, this situation did not overshadow the success of women lawyers. Besides, if I have to convey my personal experience, the clients I have worked with so far consisted of global companies. Therefore, I did not base my professional life on the established culture in Turkey and did not work by being exposed to these male-dominated reflections. From the experiences I have gained throughout my working life, I have seen that being a lawyer is a delicate profession, it requires a lot of effort and meticulousness. I have seen that women lawyers can provide the necessary care and sensitivity in accordance with this profession and they are quite successful. Consequently, I think that women’s employment in the field of law is important and that women lawyers should be more visible. 

How is NSN Law progressing with its diversity agenda?  

It should be noted that NSN did not have a diversity agenda as our working traditions have already formed over time to prioritize diversity. To put it more accurately, we did not feel the need to create such an agenda. As a matter of fact, as NSN, we prioritize female colleagues in recruitment and attach importance to female employment. A very large part of our current working population consists of women. Besides, we are aware that in today’s world, employees with different identities are more successful when they do business by clearly reflecting their identities, and that employees feel safer in a workplace that respects these differences. For this reason, while working in NSN, we are aware of the values and principles adopted by universal law, and we always try to treat our employees equally and not discriminate among employees. 

How do you define the culture at NSN Law? 

As I mentioned before, NSN Law is an inclusive office that attaches great importance to gender equality and women’s visibility in the legal sector. We have a young and dynamic culture made up of mostly women lawyers. It is possible to say that we are proud of this culture that has formed over time. The established NSN culture has motivated our employees and has always led us to success. Our lawyers are very open to improvement in their fields and our office tries to create every opportunity to support this aspect of lawyers. We believe that great importance to diversity in NSN helps to create strong communication with the clients while understanding their needs as well as keeping the team member’s spirit focusing to the same aim. Also, the importance that NSN attaches to social responsibility also shows itself in its business practices. That’s why NSN regularly takes on pro-bono cases. Also, NSN is regularly organizing a fair to cover young students’ education expenses by donating the revenue of the fair to a well-respected NGO engaged in this area. In addition, the office regularly donates to animal shelters and ensures that the leftovers of the lunches taken in the office are separated and given to stray animals. 

In your opinion, are women lawyers treated differently by clients and colleagues compared to their male counterparts? 

Yes, unfortunately, there is such a problem in Turkey. In line with the male-dominated phenomena in society, there is a perception that women cannot prioritize their work due to their family, home, etc. responsibilities. Personally, I did not feel such a difference in the environments I worked in, and I was not exposed to discrimination based on gender. The reason for this was that I had a very modern and highly educated client portfolio until now. My colleagues and clients in the offices I work for have always treated me in accordance with world standards. However, it is a fact that the number of female lawyers exposed to this discrimination in the sector is quite high. Therefore, I think that this is basically related to the social norms, as well as the clients and the company policy. 

How do you see the new generation of women lawyers?  

As far as I have observed, I see that the new generation is very ambitious, determined, and eager to learn. The reason for this is that there are too many law school graduates in Turkey recently and this situation increases the competition among young people. I see that they are working hard to improve themselves and have a place in the legal world, as the workload and income for each of them have decreased. I also have noticed that the gender gap among the new generation of lawyers has become even more ambiguous compared to the past. As a matter of fact, the visibility of women lawyers has increased considerably. As I have experienced in my commercial/corporate team, which consists of mostly young and female lawyers, the new generation of female lawyers work hard to be successful in their jobs and they can put their private lives on the second level compared to their career. Basically, they are quite successful in various fields of law. For this reason, I believe that the new generation of female lawyers will continue to achieve significant success and make a difference in the legal world. 

If you weren’t a lawyer, what would you be? 

I could answer that directly, I would be a doctor. But I am pleased with my current position and the job I have, it satisfies me enough.  

Which women in your life have had the most influence on your career?  

As I said before, it was my aunt who encouraged and inspired me to this profession. She influenced me not only in my career but also in my private life. She was like my role model, so I owe this where I stand now to her. She was ambitious, like me, and would get anything she wanted. If she was alive, I believe she would be proud of me. 

What motivates you?  

Actually, the only thing that motivates me is my team. I can say that it is my greatest luck to have a team of colleagues who are so ambitious and determined despite being very young, and who also understand my own ambitions. We are one of the fastest-growing department in NSN, so this is something very valuable and make me feel thrilled. That’s why my team is what makes me work so ambitiously at my age and makes me think about what we can do more, and which level we can go to every day. All of them have dreams for the future, they are all very young, my aim is to reduce their life anxiety and provide them to earn with professional satisfaction.  

Are there any pivotal moments that shaped your career as a lawyer? 

Having completed my master’s degree in UK, I returned to work as a lawyer in the law office where I did my legal internship before. But this time I did not want to work only in IP, instead, I wanted to work on other areas of law, too, especially commercial law related matters. The founding partner of the firm gave me this opportunity and after that a huge project came to the office and I was assigned to that project, including a large list of litigation files, various contract negotiation processes etc. The partner gave me this file and said that I had to go through this work by myself. Yet, I was a very young lawyer who previously worked only in IP. After I was able to successfully manage this project and got out of it, I realized that there is nothing that I cannot do. If I research enough in the legislation, doctrine and practice, everything can be worked out. Maybe I may have some difficulties in what I should do at first, I may have to work hard, but nothing is impossible. Briefly, I felt actually being a lawyer when I figured out how to learn something that I haven’t known and combine all my knowledge.  

How do you manage your current work / life balance? 

It is a tough question, to be honest, I am a bit of a failure at this. For example, like every child, my son has requests, he needs his mother no matter what, but unfortunately, I cannot say that I can organize this, most of the time I can see my son for an hour or two a day. In this respect, I think I missed my son’s first 7 years, but this is a bit due to the fact that I set up a new department from the beginning. However, it is also a fact that when children grow up, they start to question what their mother is doing, they even understand our feelings and sadness, and react to this. For example, one day, at a time when I could not see my son, Rada because of my loaded schedule, he saw that I was sad and asked me that isn’t my job the only thing that matters to me? That’s when I felt bad, but when he grows up a little, he questioned what is my job and started to understand what it does mean. He realized that his mother is caring a lot and working for his life as well. When you see this, it creates good feelings for you. So the child is proud of his mother and his pride makes you happy. Therefore, I cannot say that this situation is too bad, but in the next part of my life, I will try to overcome it thanks to my team.  

When you look back at your career and the knowledge you’ve gained, what advice would you give to female students who are about to enter the legal industry? 

At first, since there are negative factors such as the limited investment in our country and the fact that the works are not presented directly to them, they should learn a second foreign language or have the ability to express themselves at a very high level in the language they have. Secondly, they should not look at a case or a conflict that they encounter during their education or business life from a single legal field or a single framework. For example; they should approach a dispute both from a copyright and unfair competition standpoint, so that they have more than one mechanism at their disposal and with it, it gets easy for them to succeed. Apart from that, they should establish a very good balance between private life and work, they should not concentrate only on work and not miss their private life. Although they need to be prepared to the difficulties of doing business in Turkey, they also need to not to leave behind things that will support their own happiness. 

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Tell us about your career choice and journey. What inspired you to become a lawyer? 

My interest to study law probably arose in high school. In fact, there were no other lawyers in my family who could inspire me to follow this path. However, the goal of mine has always been to have positive impact on others’ live, so it was no coincidence that I ended up as a lawyer. When I think about it now, I see that it was a good choise and I feel very lucky.  

What are your reflections on the diversity and inclusion culture in the legal profession in Turkey?  

Although the senior management level in many law firms is still predominantly male, it would not be wrong to say that there has been an increase in the number of women senior or managing partners lately. Indeed, there is a significant positive development in attitudes towards women in the legal industry, and gender-related discrimination is generally unacceptable. Still, in my opinion, there is a lot that should be done in this area because there are still many challenges women had faced during their career, in particular when they got pregnant or when they returned from maternity leave. On the other hand, speaking from my experience, I never felt like I faced any discrimination based on my gender. 

How is NSN Law progressing with its diversity agenda?  

I think our office has already come a long way in terms of diversity. Our firm has a high number of female lawyers compared to the number of male lawyers, not only in the mid-level but also in the senior management level, e.g., 8 out of 10 partners are women. We are aware that diversity brings different views and leads to better outcomes, and we offer everyone equal opportunities. In this sense, I have been fortunate to spend most of my career at a firm that values diversity. 

How do you define the culture at NSN Law? 

Teamwork, a peaceful working environment, and commitment to quality would be the best words to define the culture at NSN. At NSN, people matter. We value our people and give them every tool and opportunity they need to succeed. We put our clients first and do what is necessary to provide high-quality legal representation on their behalf.  

In your opinion, are women lawyers treated differently by clients and colleagues compared to their male counterparts? 

Unfortunately, yes. My observation is that the most crucial barrier for female lawyers surrounds childcare. There is an assumption that women cannot pursue a successful carrier while raising a child, and this prevents (or cause a delay in) their promotion. Also, most workplaces do not provide flexibility to new mothers, and therefore women are forced to choose between having a job or children. However, as a new mom, I have been fortunate because I never faced such challenges at NSN. Likewise, having a highly educated client portfolio that also gives importance to diversity, I never encountered discrimination based on my gender from my clients. 

How do you see the new generation of women lawyers?  

The new generation of lawyers is ambitious and eager to learn. I believe we will see more women at the senior management level in law firms because diversity awareness has started to emerge in Turkey. Also, there are more platforms to voice the equality of opportunities for women compared to decades ago. 

 If you weren’t a lawyer, what would you be? 

I´m not sure, but I think after experiencing other career options, I would probably take some classes in gastronomy in the end, and I would open my restaurant. 

Which women in your life have had the most influence on your career?  

My mom has had the most influence on my career and who I am today. 

What motivates you? 

Success! I am passionate about achieving the best result for clients, and I feel great when I see their effects in daily life. Knowing that my hard work will help me gain tremendous professional success motivates me to do my best all the time.   

Are there any pivotal moments that shaped your career as a lawyer? 

I did not know what field of Law I wanted to work in after graduation because summer internship was not as common as they are now, and therefore we had no chance to experience different fields. I entered a law firm specializing in IP Law to learn the area and enjoyed handling IP matters. So, IP Law was not a conscious choice for me, but when thinking now, I couldn’t work in other fields. 

How do you manage your current work / life balance? 

I am a new mom, and to be honest, trying to juggle a full-time job with a baby was the most exhausting thing I ever experienced initially. The flexibility, however, provided me to strike a balance between work and personal life. Working with more efficient planning and scheduling was also very helpful to meet the requirements of both my job and motherhood. 

When you look back at your career and the knowledge you’ve gained, what advice would you give to female students who are about to enter the legal industry? 

Finding the legal field that you are passionate about and love to work in is the most important because it naturally brings success. Therefore, my first advice would always be to stay focused on finding out the legal field that best suits them. By taking a role as an intern in various offices, they can eliminate the things they don’t enjoy even if they do not find their area. I also advise them to learn a second foreign language, not to look at conflicts from a single framework. They should not ignore the small details because the secret to success mainly lies in details. 

 

Tell us about your career choice and journey. What inspired you to become a lawyer? 

I have decided to be a lawyer when I was 12. Although my mother was also a lawyer, she did not support me on this idea stating that it would be hard education and career for me. I did not listen to her. I enjoyed every part of my journey, both during my education and after, when I started practicing law. There was a TV show with title “LA LAW” at the time and that was my first inspiration. Then, I started to watch some other TV shows and serials regarding law and enforcement, and all inspired me. The most inspiring parts of these media shows was where lawyers were making studies and discoveries about cases, like solving puzzles. This was fascinating. 

What are your reflections on the diversity and inclusion culture in the legal profession in Turkey? 

I personally never experienced any discrimination in my career as a woman lawyer and believe that this is probably the older generation of women, who opened the way for us and who fought with all kinds of discrimination at their times, without giving up. Therefore, we are practicing law in a more diverse environment. Sometimes, in some areas of law, I have just started to see in young females that they prefer to work in a more in- office / on desk type environment rather than practicing law in courts or for shipping law, on board vessels or shipyards. This is frustrating but I want to believe that this is also temporary.  

How is NSN Law progressing with its diversity agenda? 

In our firm, for instance, number of male lawyers and trainees is significantly lower than females. We do not have an agenda in this respect but this is how it naturally happened. Applicants were more female than male. We value qualifications, hard working nature of applicants rather than gender, however, when applicants to positions were more female than male, the diversity in our firm is working in favor of females, at present. 

How do you define the culture at NSN Law? 

The culture of NSN is aiming peaceful but professional working environment. In order to achieve peace, we are trying to listen our lawyers and administrative staff and hear if we are lacking in performance in any area at the office. We are trying to learn from such lack of performance, if any, any rectify same for progress.  

In your opinion, are women lawyers treated differently by clients and colleagues compared to their male counterparts? 

I do not believe so and I also did never come across to any such different treatment myself. This does not mean that I do not have fears as to whether this may change due to changing cultural climate of Turkey in general but I believe that, we should certainly keep the existing diversity in our profession and make it even better for the younger generation, as our older generation made for us. We owe this to our youngsters. 

How do you see the new generation of women lawyers? 

I cannot name anybody for my profession at this time.  

If you weren’t a lawyer, what would you be? 

I guess I would be an academician at law. Other than law, I guess I would be making something in media and entertainment, probably in talk show business. People say to me that I am fun person and making people laugh hence, maybe, if my ambition and desire was not law, I would be choosing show business. Maybe, my interest to media and entertainment law and successfully developing the firm in that practice area can also be explained by this fact. 

Which women in your life have had the most influence on your career? 

Women who had the most influence on my career is my mother, first. Her capabilities to balance work and a marriage with kids, showed me that everything was possible. I also had been influenced by Professors, Sevin Toluner, Rayegan Kender and Aysel Çelikel at University. Both powerful and very knowledgeable women at law. Their strength to shape the law and also the younger generation was remarkable. 

What motivates you? 

Studying on cases and finding legal grounds and evidence for a case, like solving a puzzle, motivates me. When I find a way out on a difficult case, with sample Court of Appeal judgments or academic articles, I am always feeling satisfied. Also, practicing law before the judge, at court, is a must thing to do for a lawyer. I believe that appearing in hearings at court is a perfect motivation. 

Are there any pivotal moments that shaped your career as a lawyer? 

I started my career as a shipping lawyer and when I was a trainee, I had to attend on board a vessel in order to repatriate a deceased crewmember. Ship was at anchorage where we had to go by a boat and climb on bord from Jacobs ladder, together with a doctor from forensics medicine department. He, at first, did not allow me to go on board with them, stating that I am too young to make such journey. I remember my crying to him and begging that I need to be with them. I could convince him at last and completed my duty. The satisfaction that I felt at that time, shaped my entire career which always reminded me of not giving up. 

How do you manage your current work / life balance?  

When I had my daughter as a baby and as a little kid, it was very tiring to keep my work and life in a balanced way. However, when I realized the fact that if I do not develop myself at my work and do not feel the satisfaction I feel when performing my job, I will not be happy and will not be able to spend valuable time with my child, I could make this balance work.  I believe  that creating such balance is being learned on  they way, with experience. 

When you look back at your career and the knowledge you’ve gained, what advice would you give to female students who are about to enter the legal industry? 

My suggestion to them would be that they chose the area that they wish to work in a careful way. They should practice what makes them happy and satisfied. When they are happy and satisfied, the rest will be all on track. Also, they should listen to themselves as to what they expect from life. They may feel ambition as to their career and they may not feel that ambition as much as others, and may desire a more balanced life, instead. There is nothing wrong or bad about choosing one way or another. The important task is to make a choice that will make them happy.   

What was it that made you want to become a lawyer? 

As a matter of fact, I have wanted to become a lawyer for almost as long as I can remember. I suppose I was influenced to a large degree by my older brother, who is ten years my senior and a highly-regarded lawyer in his own right. When I first started thinking seriously about my future, early in high school, he was strongly encouraging me to study law. 

At the time I was applying to university here in Turkey, you had to designate both the university you were interested in attending and your major before taking the university entrance exams. I was living with my family in Ankara then. Although of two minds, I chose Ankara’s prestigious Middle East Technical University and, because it had no law school, I selected Political Science and Public Administration as my major. I did well on the entrance exams and started my studies at Middle East Technical University in 1993. By my sophomore year, however, after having taken several law classes, I found the study of law was as interesting as I had always thought it would be and, indeed, inspiring.   

So I bit the bullet and re-took the university entrance exam and was thrilled when I was accepted by the top-tier Istanbul University Faculty of Law. I loved my new major. I graduated from law school in 1999 and never looked back. 

In your twenty-one years as a practicing lawyer, what barriers have you encountered during your career growth and as a female lawyer in the Turkish legal market? 

I started my career in the early 2000s as an inhouse lawyer at Akşam Media, then owned by Çukurova Group (one of Turkey’s largest conglomerates). Fortunately for me, the corporate culture and governance at Akşam were far above industry standards found in Turkey at the time and, just as importantly, Akşam had already embraced diversity as a core value. Even my first direct report manager was female, although upper executive roles were still mostly dominated by men.  

In this regard, I have been lucky throughout my career. My experiences at Akşam Media, Ciner Media (2005-2008), Turkuvaz Media (2008-2016), and now ASC Law, have taught me that employers who adopt objective key performance indicator (i.e., “KPI”) based performance review systems, and pre-defined promotion schemes, provide greatly increased career opportunities for women.  

I have been able to practice what I preach, so to speak, since I joined ASC Law’s Debt Collection Department in 2017. I was the only licensed attorney working in the Department at the time. Since then, we have expanded that number to nine, five of whom are women. We also have ten legal interns, seven of whom are women.  

And I am also proud to say approximately 60% of ASC Law’s licensed attorneys are women. It is not as if I, or the firm, have made a particularly deliberate effort to hire and promote women. It is just, in my opinion, the natural result of paying attention to KPIs.  

You’ve worked in both law firms and corporate legal departments. Do you find there are differing cultures between the two with respect to the roles that women have played and continue to play? 

The keywords here, I believe, are “good corporate governance”. Whether you are in a law firm or in a company, if the management has the vision, mindset and determination to become a truly “corporate”— in the best sense of that word – transparency, equality and diversity will follow. The more upper management and its leaders embrace values such as human dignity, equal pay and being a good corporate citizen, including having more women in the workforce, especially at the managerial levels, the better the workplace, in all ways, becomes.  

One observation I might add, however, is that it appears Turkish companies have been able to achieve this positive transformation much more quickly than Turkish law firms. My theory for this is the progress, or lack thereof, of many local law firms in this area are tied to, for better or worse, the vision of a founding partner or two, whereas companies, which are often subject to fierce cross-border competition, are keener to adopt international “best practices” and, indeed, must so as to remain competitive.  

Since joining ASC Law in 2017, what accomplishments at are you the proudest of at the firm? 

Debt enforcement is rather an “operational” focused practice area, when compared to other legal practice areas. Collection processes are set forth in great detail in the Turkish law and one must, for the most part, simply follow them, albeit carefully. That debt enforcement provides less room for legal innovation, and, on top of that, includes a high amount of repetitive work, creates the most challenging part of my practice, i.e., keeping our lawyers, supervisors, support staff, interns and other professionals happy with their work and, perhaps most importantly, motivated. To overcome this fundamental challenge, I have had to focus on operational excellence and productivity. What I am most proud of here at ASC Law is having brought a “human centric” approach to the management my Department.  

Clients rightfully expect to see good numbers, but this does not necessarily require one to build its business, organization and KPIs totally based on numbers. We, of course, are very careful about such matters when making our hiring decisions. But perhaps more important is appreciating a strong work-life balance, good relations amongst peers, accessibility of managers, working with the right, convenient, and easy-to-use tools, institutionalized feedback, showing our lawyers their efforts are appreciated, out-of-office events and encouraging our lawyers to take initiative. All of these considerations have come together, or are coming together, to create an excellent, and to a large degree now self-sustaining, overall working environment, which in turn has had an enormous impact on delivering, efficiently, fantastic results for our clients.  

It pleases me to no end when I come to the office to see many of our team members already hard at work, sometimes after having been here late into the previous evening. Our workplace is often punctuated with excited conversation, and laughter. Just as pleasing is seeing many of my team generously helping each other, and seeing all of them work together well regardless of their backgrounds and job descriptions. Perhaps my favourite moments are when one of my team comes to me with a good idea for streamlining some part of our processes, ideas which have resulted in cutting, in the medium to long run, many hundreds of hours from the time we need to spend on, what is now, our very heavy workload.  

Can you tell us about your current role as Partner in ASC Law’s enforcement department?  

I am a Partner of ASC Law’s Debt Enforcement Department, which includes, not insignificantly, an inhouse debt collection Call Centre employing approximately 100 non-lawyer professionals. Our Department represents a large portfolio of Turkish and international clients, made up of both creditors and debtors from many different sectors, including banks, telecom operators, internet service providers, utility services providers, and leasing and factoring entities.  

Lawyers in my team have particular experience in enforcement and bankruptcy. Our practice involves all aspects of debt collection, starting with pre-litigation collection efforts, first using our Call Centre and then, if unsuccessful there, working with the government’s Debt Collection Offices. If we have still not reached a reasonable accommodation with the debt holders, we initiate litigation in the local courts.  

Our work includes the use of all available debt enforcement tools, including, to name a few, garnishment, the seizure of bank accounts and personal property, and foreclosure proceedings against real property. We deal with all types of debts, whether arising out of commercial contracts, court judgments and arbitral awards, financings, guarantee arrangements and pledges. 

How would you define the culture at ASC Law? 

If I had to identify one characteristic of ASC Law distinguishing it from other local firms, it is that the firm has one of the most experienced and successful – and, I would add, enlightened – senior leadership teams in Turkey.  

More particularly, the firm’s Founding Partners, Mr. Murat Aksu, Mr. Zeki Çalışkan – my direct report – and Mr. Okan Beygo, have, together, practiced law for nearly 100 years. The Head of our Dispute Resolution Department, Mr. Doğan Coşgun, also a key member of the firm’s leadership, has practiced law for 25 years. Just as importantly, and perhaps more so, all four gentlemen previously had successful careers working inhouse at local and international banks, and/or other major Turkish companies, giving them early exposure to many internationally accepted “best practices” not yet widely used in Turkey.  

These “best practices” include several I would put under the rubric of “good corporate governance”, with those I hold dearest transparency, equality and diversity. Without the commitment to such values at the highest levels of ASC Law, I certainly would not have been able to accomplish what I have here, as I have been left largely free, and indeed encouraged, to focus on improving operational excellence and productivity through the use of my above mentioned “human centric” approach.  

What I have seen my past four years here at ASC Law is a shared business and solution-oriented mindset, in which the firm’s employees and clients come first. Whether internally with their colleagues, and externally with our clients, the firm’s lawyers have consistently built effective and engaged relationships which are laser focused on one primary goal, i.e., providing efficient, yet still first-rate, legal solutions for our clients.  

With clients valuing diversity in their external law firms, how do we get more women into leadership roles in law firms?  

By empowerment. Turkish society is rather patriarchal and it is not particularly common to see women in managerial roles in Turkey, especially when compared to other developing, and developed, countries. That is mostly because of the traditional mindset we Turks carry. But technological disruption has been, as is the case with so many older ways of thinking, radically changing this mind set, most importantly shifting the gender-related paradigms in what I consider to be the right direction. Law firms hoping to be a part of this change must promote talented people, regardless of their gender, with the courage and vision to drive this necessary change. I would like to think the overall momentum in this direction in Turkey and elsewhere cannot be reversed, as it makes sense, not only ethically, but also because it is, most simply put, good business.    

Which women have inspired you the most?  

You know, I have been asked this question a lot and I have never been able to settle on a good candidate or candidates. I suppose I have always looked for my inspiration from within, dealing for example with issues related to sexism in the workplace by considering the unique circumstances in which they have come up for me. I guess I am a bit of a pioneer here in Turkey; I just do not know too many other Turkish women who have followed the path I have to whom I might look to for inspiration.    

When you look back at your career and the knowledge you’ve gained, what advice would you give to female students who are about to enter the legal industry? 

I believe the most successful lawyers, whether female or male, are the ones who can consider any particular legal issue they are faced with from several different, and informed, perspectives. Today, legal questions are more complicated than ever, and to be able to render effective advice lawyers should also have a good understanding of the commercial, financial and technical aspects impacting any particular question of law. It is easy to say, or simply restate, what any given law explicitly provides. But that, I strongly believe, is never enough. Good lawyers must first consider the many ways a particular law has been, or may be, applied in the real world, while at the same time considering the legal risks these various applications may pose to their clients. Only then is it possible to formulate a legal strategy that is both realistic and best serves their clients’ interests. 

To be able to do all of that, not only female but all young lawyers who wish to have successful careers in commercial law must look beyond the narrow curriculum of their legal educations, and continually seek to deepen not only their knowledge of the law but also their understanding of other disciplines such as business administration, economy, finance and trade.  

As for female lawyers, my greatest advise would be to never give up – as I have seen too many of my colleagues do – to a debilitating pessimism in the face of the inevitable discrimination they will encounter. Over just my 20-plus-year career, relatively brief in the scheme of things, I have seen Turkey and, indeed, much of the world rapidly change for the better in so many ways. I believe these changes are fundamental and are not likely to be reversed. And the rate of this change in the coming years will only accelerate. In this brave, and I think exciting, new world, full of opportunities for all. Those who recognize and embrace these changes, with vision, courage and talent, will take the lead, regardless of their gender.   

Ms. Çağlar Köktürk Akoymak – Partner at ASC Law 

Ms. Çağlar Köktürk Akoymak joined ASC Law in May 2017 as a Partner in the firm’s Debt Collection Department. At that time, Çağlar was the only licensed attorney in her Department, along with other non-lawyer collection professionals. Under Çağlar’s leadership, ASC Law’ Debt Department has expanded to nine attorneys, with the number of legal interns and other professionals now well over 100.    

Çağlar began her career at Akşam Media (2002-2005), Ciner Media (2005-2008) and Turkuvaz Media (2008-2016), where she worked on a variety of litigation matters as well as providing general consultation on a variety of legal issues, including compliance. Before leaving Turkuvaz, Çağlar was its Legal Affairs Manager, responsible for all legal issues arising out of Turkuvaz’s printed and digital media businesses.  

From the fall 1993 through spring 1995, Çağlar studied Political Science and Public Administration at Ankara’s prestigious Middle East Technical University. Çağlar began studying law in the fall 1995 at the top-tier Istanbul University Faculty of Law, from which she obtain her law degree in 1999. Çağlar continued her formal education in 2003, when she obtained a Master’s in Business Law from Istanbul’s Bilgi University. 

Çağlar is married and has two children, ages of 8 and 13. 

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What was it that made you want to become a lawyer? 

Having an impact in the society we live in has always mattered to me, even when I was very young. As a woman with a sense of agency; being able to take my own decisions, contribute personally to changes in the society and my passion for reading have been the main sources of my interest for becoming a lawyer. Further more, it is one of the few professions allowing its practitioners to combine academic interest with the practicality of the business life and I find this very intriguing. I remember having a great feeling of improvement after having studied the first year of law school, as it was filled with extremely interesting topics such as philosophy of law, Roman law and many others that actually explain why we do things the way do them even to this day. The ability to use this daily in my profession gives me a sense of fulfillment and I realize that I became a lawyer for the right reasons for myself.  

Since you graduated, your career has been varied from being the head of the Turkish Desk at a leading law firm in Vienna, Austria to now managing your own practice in Turkey. What prompted these changes and what were your motivations? 

Pursuing an international career has been a main drive in most of what I did as a student and as a lawyer. As a polyglot, I also wanted to learn German, explore a different culture and study abroad, therefore I pursued my LL.M. degree at the University of Vienna. This was followed by my position as the head of Turkish Desk in a reputed law firm in Vienna as I also wanted to experience work culture in Austria. Studying in a foreign country and working in a foreign country are actually two completely diverse experiences and they both broadened my horizon tremendously. 

Throughout my years in Vienna, as I was representing mainly foreign investors in Turkey, I have seen the need for a specialized law firm for such clients. Therefore, we decided to establish Breitegger-Develioglu Law Firm with my partner Burçin Yıldırım Develioğlu. We wanted to create our own culture in the legal world, carve our own path. Of course, there were already law firms serving foreigg investors in the Turkish market but we had the vision of a boutique law firm with a closer connection to its clients; a law firm that would become the trusted partners of its clients by supporting them with sharp legal knowledge that is communicated and tailored according to their needs. We had made the decision to become partners while studying and working together beforehand. Once we saw that such a law firm was needed, we acted on it immediately and established our firm. 

You have been at Breitegger – Develioglu Law Firm as its founding partner since 2014. What have been your personal highlights of how the firm has developed both locally and internationally? 

It was a great journey for me to see that I could reflect my international experience into our firm. In a very short period of time, we started to deal with very exciting international, as well as local, deals and cases. On another point, not only we represented our clients in major international arbitration cases, we also did it in different forms. It was definitely a highlight for me to perform a fully virtual arbitration hearing with international arbitrators, witnesses and colleagues during the pandemic. Being able to lead a major investment project in Turkey that will enable Turkey to produce a high technology product was also a personal highlight for me. Becoming trusted attorneys of several foreign chambers of commerce shows me that we are following the path we aimed for. This year was also important for us as we have been named as a leading firm for Commercial, Corporate and M&A in Turkey by Legal 500 and it was great to see that our efforts are being recognized.  

Your areas of expertise include intellectual property law, corporate law and dispute resolution. Can you tell me a bit more about your decision to take on these practice areas when you started out as a lawyer? And what is the size and scope of your current role amongst these areas at Breitegger – Develioglu Law Firm? 

As I mentioned, I find it fascinating that law allows you to translate academic research into practical business life. Being a corporate and commercial lawyer never gets boring as you get to meet so many interesting business people, so many impressive companies and you are not limited to one sector. I always take interest in what our clients are actually doing businesswise in order to be able to structure their deals; law is only efficient if it is carefully tailored according to the very special needs of a business. Dispute resolution, especially arbitration, allows me to examine and overcome conflicts that arise out of those same business relations. Without knowing the potential challenges that might come up in the future, you cannot be a good corporate lawyer. These two goes hand in hand. Therefore, I believe our experience in corporate law and M&A strengthens dispute resolution practices and vice versa. Dispute resolution entails also corporate law as we do a lot of international arbitration for corporate and commercial disputes as well as intellectual property. As for intellectual property, I believe that innovation finds its source in creative people and creative people should get the support they need to move us forward. Standing by them, witnessing new inventions gives me a personal satisfaction. On a more personal note, I also enjoy our intellectual property practice as I am an art lover. I take great pleasure discussing their art with my clients. Luckily I can spend most of my time in those 3 areas that I am quite passionate about.  

How would you define the culture at Breitegger – Develioglu Law Firm? 

Seeking professional and academic excellence while maintaining very good relations with our clients and within our firm is what defines our firm. We give utmost importance to perfection in our legal services as well as our communication and mutual understanding with our clients. We do stand by  them and we do care about their businesses. Our approach is to be involved in our clients’ deals and cases on partner level and to make sure that they know that we handle their cases personally and diligently. Our clients know that they can reach us, that we will be there for them and that they can trust us.  

We see ourselves also as cultural ambassadors as we “speak” many cultural languages in our firm. To excel in the international area, you must know your legal system well, but you must also lead your clients culturally in your country as well. I believe that we manage this successfully in our firm.  

Our culture in the firm also entails that we support each other as a team to the fullest and make sure that we do our best for our employees to fulfill their potential.

In addition to the recruitment drive your firm has with diverse lawyers, does Breitegger – Develioglu Law Firm get involved in other diversity-related activities? 

As Breitegger-Develioglu Law Firm, we make sure to put women in positions of power in our law firm. We also mentor our employees to a level that would enable them to be able to lead their own firms in the future. Personally mentoring young women is very empowering and we are doing this extensively on partner level. Knowledge is more valuable when it is shared, we do our best to share our experiences with the younger generation. We keep on mentoring our former employees on their new ventures as well. Scholarships are also offered to students from our part.  

With clients valuing diversity in their external law firms, how do we get more women into leadership roles in law firms? 

Law firms have the power to create change on a societal level and therefore carry the responsibility of being pioneers for improvement. Decision makers would have to question themselves while hiring and leading their employees and become aware how their decisions are being influenced by the society. I also believe that more integrative and flexible maternity leave models should be introduced for women to be able to move forward with their career while maintaining a family.  

Can you talk about any positive trends or changes in the diversity landscape you are seeing emerge within the Turkish legal market?  

Seeing many more women partners and law firms owned by women as well as high level legal managers within corporations has been a positive change within Turkish legal market. Having more women partners has also become a source of pride for law firms, which I find very positive.  

Can you name a woman who’s inspired you the most during your career? 

Christine Lagarde has always been a source of inspiration for me as she has the stamina that comes with excelling in what you are doing. On top, she has managed an international career as a foreigner in U.S.A. and is giving encouraging messages for working women. My mother lead me in my way and set a great example for me as an engineer, she also did have to fight the odds to be a working mother within Turkish society back then. I am so glad and thankful to her that she did that. Lastly my partner Burçin Yıldırım Develioglu inspires me on a daily basis with her wit, intellectual capacity and her skills as a lawyer, I feel proud to be partners with her.  

How do you motivate yourself and stay motivated? 

First of all, I feel responsible as a woman partner to carve and maintain a path for the next generation. I know that the challenges I face will become experiences that next generation lawyers will be able to learn from. Second of all, mental motivation is incredibly important to me. As reading is my passion, I do read a lot of psychology books and do prepare myself mentally and emotionally on a regular basis. Our profession comes with many challenges, which actually become your stepping stones to where you want to go if you know how to handle hardships.  

What has been your greatest achievement, in a professional and personal capacity?  

It gives me a great satisfaction to have started this journey as two young women and against all odds, being able to grow our firm and bring it to an international standing point in a much shorter time than we had anticipated. Being listed as a leading Corporate, Commercial and M&A firm on Legal 500 has been definitely a great achievement for us, as we also received a lot of excellent testimonials from our clients. As a law firm owner, I see achievements in a more holistic way. Of course having won major cases and having led major international deals are also an essential part of our achievements, but we are mainly very satisfied with our client relationships and to see proven that what we wanted to offer was actually needed very much in the market. Furthermore, the trust culture we developed within the law firm especially with our employees is another great achievement for me personally.  

Our firm is actually a professional and personal achievement for us as we managed to navigate our business through challenging times and situations while maintaining our close friendship. On a more personal note, it gives me great satisfaction that children of our clients decided to study law and become lawyers after having seen our firm and how we work.  

When you look back at your career and the knowledge you’ve gained, what advice would you give to young female students who are about to embark on a law career in Turkey? 

Being a lawyer comes in many shapes and there are a variety of options when it comes to how to practice law. I would suggest to younger lawyers that they should seek in their first years to find the best path that matches their personality and their skill sets. Being a lawyer is hard and to perform it well, you need to be professionally and mentally ready. Not giving up and not taking no for an answer when they have a vision that they truly believe in is also crucial for young women as they will face many obstacles on their career paths. Women question themselves on an extensive basis, we should all trust ourselves and move forward in our careers. Seeking mentors is also extremely helpful and I encourage young women lawyers to reach out to us and other female lawyers, where they need support.  

Tell us about your career choice and your journey. 

In fact, I was not dreaming to be a lawyer when I was in high school and before that. I wanted to engage in law as a social science and expected to be an academician instead. Although I was advised by some of my lecturers to continue at the university, I found the idea of practicing the science of law on-site more attractive and decided to become a lawyer. I love my profession and believe that I made the right decision. 

You worked as an in-house lawyer at leading company Aksigorta before joining Yavuz & Uyanik  in 2015. What has been your experience as a woman working in both private practice and in-house environments? 

I can say that in-house counselling and practicing in a private law office are quite different from each other.  When you work as an in-house counsel, you may feel more like a company employee than a lawyer. Some may find this field more comfortable to work in. But at the end of two years, I decided to work at a private law office. In 2015, I became part of the Yavuz & Uyanik family to work in the same field, namely, insurance law. Before I was a lawyer at one single company, but now I represent 10 insurance companies, which makes my work more interesting. 

What are your reflections on the culture of diversity and inclusion in the legal profession in Turkey? 

Although there are different perceptions and repercussions, tolerance for diversity and dissimilarity is part of Turkish culture. You can easily see that this is also reflected in legislation and the legal system. Turkey changed its Civil Law just three years after it announced the Republic in 1923. We should not forget that Switzerland, from which we derive our Civil Law, legitimatized women’s suffrage in 1960, whereas Turkey recognized this right 26 years earlier, in 1934. 

How is Yavuz & Uyanik progressing with its diversity agenda? 

I would not be exaggerating if I say that in this regard, the Yavuz & Uyanik family is the best luck that an employee can have. I work in an office going beyond the legal requirements, which set out practicing without ignoring that these various people are “human” first before being employees. I think that, otherwise, it would not be possible for a law office, which was founded by two shareholders and was working with only five employees, to become a “Great Place to Work”-certified law firm, which is recognized as one of the “Best Workplaces of the Great Places to Work,” and now has 130 employees. 

How do you define the culture at Yavuz & Uyanik? 

I think my answer to the previous question sums up the culture of Yavuz & Uyanik. The principle of this firm has always been “people first.” Employees can always find someone to answer their questions and resolve their issues, and are fully supported. We have an organization that is flexible in terms of work shifts and working conditions, and is well-suited to the needs of its people. Especially during the pandemic, we deeply felt the effects of this culture. We received, and are still receiving, full material and moral support. 

How do you view the new generation of female lawyers? 

To give a more general answer, we see that “Generation Z” is gradually beginning to play its role. This generation is far more advanced than we were in terms of quick thinking and analyzing abilities. Also, they use technology much better than we do. As for their negative traits, they want to get results and feedback too quickly. Sometimes, law fails to respond to their needs as quickly as they want. Nevertheless, the legal profession is quite popular, especially among women. I believe the women of this generation will bring smart innovations to the profession, such as benefiting from artificial intelligence, as long as they learn to be patient. 

If you weren’t a lawyer, what would you be? 

I might have studied law and become an academician.  

Which women have inspired you the most?  

My mother, although I think most women would probably give the same answer. She was an outstanding judge, and, more importantly, a legal expert. I have always had great respect for her fairness and honesty. She always maintained this attitude in her private life as well. I think this is a very honourable stance. 

What motivates you? 

Much research has shown that success is the main source of motivation for people, rather than material considerations. It is the same for me. To achieve is what motivates me the most. I believe that if we can achieve change and improvement, we can accomplish sustainability. 

In your career so far, what achievement are you most proud of? 

I take the most pride in being among the founding lawyers of the Yavuz & Uyanik law firm’s insurance department. Our department, which we founded with three people, is now in the Legal 500, with 45 lawyers, 15 trainee solicitors, and 10 paralegals. This is the most important thing, and a point of honour, that I have accomplished.  

How do you manage your current work/life balance?  

I have a son who is three and a half years old. Because he is too young to take care of himself, I sometimes have difficulties with my busy schedule. However, my family has always supported and helped me, which allows me to focus on my work. I can’t thank my family enough for that, especially my husband. 

When you look back at your career and the knowledge you’ve gained, what advice would you give to female students who are about to enter the legal profession? 

I believe there is nothing that a woman can’t achieve if she receives the education she wants and engages in the work she loves. I think women should be more active in the business sphere. We should not forget that there is more to life than our roles as wives and mothers. A woman can have a good career and be a perfect mother at the same time. The place of a woman with a degree in law is in business, and this is true for women with other degrees as well. I hope they never forget that. 

Tell us about your career choice and journey. What inspired you to become an attorney? 

If you ask people about me, even the ones who don’t know me closely would tell you how much I like expressing my ideas publicly, how passionately and strongly I defend them and how insisting I am to protect the ones and the ideas that I support and believe in. The ones who know me better would also tell you that I feel and act even more passionate when it comes to defend the others’ rights and benefits. So, I guess it is not surprising for a person with such qualifications to become an attorney or maybe a politician. I am more than thankful that the life gave me the opportunity to become the first one!  

If you weren’t an attorney, what would you be? 

To be completely honest I never gave a second thought to my decision to be an attorney at law. I was brought up in a household where the main lesson taught was to “always work hard” and have a “decent job” which would give you a decent life and make your family proud. I worked hard to fulfill the expectations and I chose to be a lawyer to fulfill my own ambitions in life. Ever since I started my career, I never once looked back or wished I was something else.   

You’ve worked in the field of IP since 2003. What made you decide on this practice area? 

During my time at university, most of us didn’t really knew of or had the luxury to research and pick an area of law to specialize in since there weren’t many resources and possibilities for law school students. Yet, during my last grade in law school, I was lucky to hear about Legal 500 which gave me the chance to learn more about the areas where I could practice and also the leading law firms specialized in such areas. After applying to a number of firms in Legal 500’s rankings and sitting through interviews, I was admitted to a top tier firm specialized in IP law and that’s how my career in IP has started.   

To be more concrete, I really enjoy the fact that working in IP law provides me with chances to see solid outcomes of my work in daily life. As IP practitioners, we have the privilege of being involved in the creation, invention and decision making processes of the right holders who are shaping the future of the world and this makes me realize that we are not just arguing or fighting, as thought by majority of people, but we are an essential part of the real game.   

What challenges with diversity have you faced in your career as an attorney? 

I have worked in environments where we, female attorneys, would occasionally find ourselves in situations where we may hesitate to voice our opinions or present ideas, or we would be forced to feel as if we should hold back our perspective on certain matters. This is the main reason which motivated me to take the step to start my own firm: to have the possibility of working in an ambiance where nobody feels under even a tiny pressure to follow the same old path which was chosen by dominant male figures long time ago. There are different and even better ways to do our profession and we are way too smart, talented and passionate to shut down our minds and follow the directions determined without questioning.   

After so many years in the profession, I am proud to lead our team at Kenaroglu where nobody feels privileged or excluded based on their gender, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation or any other reason that define who they are.    

 In Turkey there seems to be a core approach towards diversity and female attorneys starting as early as their entry into law school. In your opinion, how much progression has been made in the country on the issue of diversity and inclusion? And do you feel women attorneys are still treated differently by clients and colleagues compared to their male counterparts? 

Sadly, there is not enough progression made in terms of diversity and inclusion within the legal industry. It is obvious that there are many more female lawyers at firms and companies, however how much of a say they get in their immediate work environment or in our association/society in practice is still a question that needs to be addressed. 

We, the female attorneys working in the field of IP, can consider ourselves luckier, since IP is one of the rare areas in law where women have good chances to reach high level managing positions. Yet, we are way too far from feeling equal with our male colleagues in any terms. Until the point where differences mean nothing, we should keep talking, discussing and work for diversity and inclusion at every possibility.   

What motivates you to advocate diversity and how would you advocate for diversity and inclusion with colleagues and peers who do not understand its importance? 

Being a female attorney and beginning my career at a patriarchal society has definitely played a role, and one of the ways to advocate inclusion is to accept it as the standard. At our firm, we do not have to advocate for diversity and inclusion because we have inclusion by nature. We do not focus on our differences when building our team but more so on how we can all work together in harmony with the personality qualities we have towards a mutual goal. In principle, we prefer not to know about ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation or any other personal information of our team members unless they feel prefer to share such information with others. On the other hand, I have to say that we support female attorneys more and take every chance to encourage them to reach their best potential, as we believe that we need to support the ones who are not offered equal conditions by society.  

How is Kenaroğlu Avukatlık Bürosu progressing with its diversity agenda? 

Our principle at Kenaroglu is that everyone is equal and there are no barriers or privileges arising from religion, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation or personal beliefs. We in principle are against the idea of asking our applicants or team members about these topics, unless they personally choose to share their preferences publicly. We are one team and every one of us knows and feels there are no barriers or privileges discriminating us from one another at Kenaroglu.  

 Are there any pivotal moments that shaped your career as an attorney? 

Taking the step to start my own practice could mark one of the major pivotal moments of my career as an attorney, because it also represented a step taken against breaking the rules. Practicing in an environment where female attorneys are not taken as seriously as male attorneys, it was a constant struggle to be heard, make decisions and take charge. Therefore making the decision to strip away from a patriarchal work environment may be considered as a bold move, and it has definitely given me the initiative to manage my own team, cases and clients in a manner that suits my principles and morals. 

How do you manage your current work / life balance?  

If I am going to be brutally honest, I struggle to understand this question because I believe that balancing work and life is something that we all, as working people, try to establish in the natural flow of daily life. I have always aspired to work hard, which I still maintain in my work life after 18 years and prioritized spending time with my family and friends. For me, being the big fish or earning big numbers have never been the main target, they should be what is yielded on the way to our actual target: which is to do what makes you happy and fulfills your soul.  

When you look back at your career and the knowledge you’ve gained, what advice would you give to female students who are about to enter the legal industry?  

I would give this advice to all students who are just about to begin their career in the legal practice; be careful in choosing what you are going to do because it is going to take most of your time in the rest of your life. Make the best of your time in law school, make internships at different law firms and companies, explore the areas which you might be interested in and get to know yourself as much as possible. Try to witness and even be a part of real practice to have an idea where you can shine brighter in the profession. The more you understand who you are and what skills you have, the more chance you have in shaping your future and making the right decisions for you in your career. Something which fits perfectly on another might not be the best possibility for you. Everyone is unique and precious and there is a field and platform where everyone can shine in the brightest way. The most important thing is not to follow the main road just because it is followed by the majority. I am very lucky that after 18 years in this field, I am still able to wake up and feel excited to start a new working day. I love what I do and more importantly I love doing it with my team and I love working for my clients. Yet, we should never forget that our profession is an important part of our life, but our life is not about our profession only.