Tell us about your career choice and journey. What was it that made you want to become a lawyer?

It’s a bit strange. People usually decide to be a lawyer by seeing or experiencing one in the family. For me there was no one. I was telling everyone around me when I was a child that I had decided to become a lawyer. I remember walking around in the kindergarten among kids and telling them that I was born to bring justice to the world. Weird! I wonder which cartoon or movie created this mindset.  It seems like I stuck to the plan though. 

After graduation I started my career with one of the most reputable law firms. I learned lots of things, but I think the most important outcome for me was being able to decide which area I didn’t want to practice.  

In my point of view the most important thing for a person is to be aware of what he/she doesn’t want in her life. I never created a path for my future based on what I want. Because as a human being we want everything.  

At the start of your career, you worked as a private practice lawyer for six years prior to moving in-house. What has been your experience as a woman working in both of these very different environments?

People might think that it should be almost the same, as you are ultimately a lawyer and you are practicing what you were educated for. 

It’s completely different. Two different worlds. In private practice what is expected from you is to make things right and work in accordance with laws and regulations. You are the lawyer who fixes the problems for the clients. You usually step in once the problem is already there. 

As an In-house you are naturally a part of the client. Well, even it’s not a client anymore: it is your family. You should be there during the building process; you draw the path with them, and you are not someone that fixes or solves the problems but the one who prevents those problems from occurring.  

The main difference between a private practice lawyer and an in-house is there the moment you step in. It wouldn’t be wrong to say that in-house lawyers are the reason for revenue loss for private practice lawyers. 

My experience of being a woman working in both environments could be defined more or less the same. I don’t think the environment is the key here. It’s all about culture. There is a famous saying which I really agree with – the geography you are born into is your destiny. I was born in Turkey but lived in different countries. I have experienced the way people act towards women in many countries. I think I am lucky. Things are easier for a woman living in Turkey than before and I hope that continues to improve every day. 

In your 17 years as an in-house lawyer, what barriers have you encountered during your career growth and as a leading female GC in the Turkish legal market?

Well, there are lots of them. I don’t even know where to start but I think I should talk about the one that has never changed in all those years.  

Even though I always mention this, the most important thing as a GC is being allies with the rest of the team, getting involved, understanding the needs and the nature of the business. People usually think that the only mission of the GC is to say NO! GC’s are there to make things difficult etc etc.. 

I have always tried to show that this was wrong, that I was there to make things work. People who worked with me and my team for a few years felt very comfortable about us getting involved in everything. But once there is a change in the management team, we go back to square one, and become the enemy again.  

What accomplishments are you most proud of?

I can say that the best thing I created during my career is my amazing team. I always feel very proud to see their improvement during all those years.  

As a regular inductee to The Legal 500’s GC Powerlist Turkey, you continue to receive deserved recognition as a leading in-house lawyer across the national and international stage. What has been the key to your success after all these years?  

Thank you for the question. Even being asked made me feel so proud and happy. I think the right answer is the trust I built during all those years. 

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

I always give the same example to this question as it makes it easy to visualize reality: consider your house, your family, and your parents. Who does the most challenging work at home? Who manages all of crises? Who has the immediate responsibility? 

Excluding some exceptions, the answer to these questions is most likely “The Mother”.

As you all can see it’s the woman who leads, who controls and to whom the control is given by the men. Home is the most important place for everybody’s life. It’s the core of our lives. So tell me why you give all the leadership and control to women at home and not at work? 

Do you see any challenges for women within the legal industry in Turkey? And what would they be?

I don’t think there are challenges specifically for women. Diversity became an important issue, and companies and law firms value it. The challenges are the same for everyone. In the early years of my career things were simpler, there were some basic requirements. In these days each day you should do something to improve yourself. 

How do you manage a work-life balance?

It’s a big challenge. It always has been for an obsessive and workaholic like me. I took some courses regarding management skills etc. In almost every course the most important thing mentioned was delegation. I realized that learning to delegate was also learning to trust. That is the key for being a good team.  

Thanks to my team, I now have a very good work-life balance.  

Which women have inspired you the most? 

Ursula K. Le Guin.

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

I think being nominated for The Legal 500’s GC Powerlist Turkey since 2019 and seeing my name on their prestigious website is one of my greatest achievements.  It’s not about being published, but to be recognized as a leading in-house lawyer across the national and international stage means many things. It means I did some good things, that they are noticed, and that they have value. 

What is the one piece of advice that you would give to a young woman at the start of her law career and has aspirations to become a leading lawyer one day?

As I mentioned above, Ursula K. Le Guin inspires me a lot. Once she said, “ All of us have to learn how to invent our lives, make them up, imagine them. We need to be taught these skills; we need guides to show us how. If we don’t, our lives get made up for us by other people”. 

So, my advice would be don’t be scared. You don’t have to be like one of the successful lawyers around you. Success can have different a meaning for each person. Be you and always speak loud if you believe in what you are doing. 

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

You know those types of people who are always ready to speak out of turn, be lawyer of someone without being asked. I was one of them since my childhood. I could never stand to unfairness. As I grew up, my perspective stayed the same and although there are not any lawyers in my family, it all went naturally. Today, I understand that this was the point I had to reach, and here I am.  

Prior to starting ECC Law in January 2021 you also worked as an attorney at two leading firms. What barriers have you encountered during your career growth and as a female lawyer in the Turkish legal market? 

In the business world, some professions sound more masculine. Being a lawyer may hint as such. Maybe this is the reason why lawyer who is a female is described as a “female lawyer”. I do not sympathize with such descriptions. I am against this discrimination from the bottom. Instinctual and natural capabilities of the women being organized, strategist, comprehensive, more welcoming to innovation and solidarity may be the difference of a lawyer who is female creates in her works. I strongly believe that the difference should be read over the business results and not discrimination.  

I was lucky to get to work with fantastic lawyers who were strong women and we achieved great successes together. Also, I had the chance to work with men who believed that a woman could change the world by using her skills that she had naturally and used this power by appointing women – including my-self – in their law firms in leadership roles. Unfortunately, not all men have the same perspective. Even though they may look very modern from the outside, deeply they sympathise with the historical background of the issue and do not have the courage to share their power. This is the main barrier that a lawyer who is female may encounter during her career and not only in Turkey but in all over the world. 

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

Diversity brings strength and inclusion matters.  

Gender, race, age, national origin, ethnicity, sexual orientation, physical ability, cultural identity diversity adds values not only to a social environment but also in a workplace or to business. Turkey and naturally Turkish legal profession have already diverse actors. 

At ECC, we value the human as beings, and we value their work not their diversities. We have employers, business partners and clients from a wide range of diverse gender, age, national origin, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and cultural identity. 

Do you believe it should be the law firms or their clients that are the main driving force of change? 

I believe both should keep the sides of the bargain for the change to be realized. The law firms should adapt their systems, their team in line with the technical innovations, new trends to assist their clients better legally. Businesswise, the clients are the main driving force of change since they should know their business the best. However, the law firms should also learn and adapt the changes in the relevant industry. Because law and the business minds are inevitably inseparable. A lawyer should always consider the sectoral factors and the commercial needs of its clients.  

ECC Law organizes projects to help young lawyers gain domestic and international experience and professional development with an emphasis on corporate and social responsibility. Can you give us an insight into this process and the successes achieved so far? 

At ECC, we give the most importance to the young practitioners and students to gain and develop their skills in practice alongside the theoretical knowledge. We aim for them to have the experience without being in crises, trial-and-error learning it in the hard way. 

Individually, I am so pleased to be able to have already achieved this by creating and organizing the Young ISTAC Future Arbitration Counsel Moot when I was in the board of Young ISTAC (Istanbul Arbitration Center) and chaired the “Future Arbitration Counsel” Moot Committee between 2015-2019. The moot reaches more than 500 Turkish students coming from all over Turkey and Northern Cyprus each year and allow young practitioners to gain experience since they also participate as arbitrators in the competition. The Moot is still annually organized and as ECC, we support it by participating as arbitrators. 

Also, I served as the ICC YAF representative for Turkey during my mandate between 2019-2021. I have organized 4 physical events and 13 webinars and reached more than 2.500 practitioners for them to develop their knowledge and experience in the field of international arbitration. These events were also noteworthy in the sense of networking for the young practitioners when the world was hit by the pandemic.  

At ECC, we build and develop both mentorship programs and internship programs for creating opportunities to gain experience for the students and young lawyers.  

I am so pleased that the word is spread and the young practitioners individually or in groups come to ECC to ask advice regarding their career or ask for a seminar to develop their knowledge and experience in particular fields of law. 

I am also being invited to several universities as guest speaker to give courses on dispute resolution, domestic and international arbitration, and maritime law to share practical experience in the fields. 

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

I’m thrilled to lounge. Because this is the goal of ECC as part of its corporate social responsibility. As to the ECC’s distinctive sign, we have shifted our focus from Istanbul and major cities of Turkey. We focus to each 7 regions of Turkey and disadvantageous students. Under the mentorship and internship program “7 regions 7 Arbitration Lawyers” we have built to welcome senior high school and law students who are female and who consider being an arbitration lawyer in our offices or by engaging them remotely to gain experience by working with us. Also, they will be mentored and be followed up in their path of building their career. 

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

Together with the courage of both sides. This distinction has an historical background, but I believe it can be overcome when considered on human scale. Women will be willingly appeal for the role and the men will show the courage to share its power. 

Do you see any challenges for women within the legal industry in Turkey? And what would they be? 

In addition to what has been said in the previous questions, the historical background, that the profession may sound masculine, and that men may not have the courage to share their power; some organizational and regulative steps may be taken to ease the lives of a lawyer who is female. Women are human, but they have many additional responsibilities as daughters, sisters, mothers, and wives. Organizing all their responsibilities may of course be challenging. 

There are already some steps taken by the Bars, such as placing lactation rooms for nursing mothers at the court houses. However, the system may be upgraded to a nursery room where older children could also use. Also, the law firms may be obliged to provide with the same conveniences in their offices. 

I should note that according to the data provided by the Union Bar Association, as of 21 December 2020, there are 143.330 lawyers registered to the bars overall in Turkey and 45,72 % of them are women. I trust that by acting in solidarity, many can be achieved to create a change. 

Which women have inspired you the most?  

All women who created a change. The system, the world, even who changed their inner circle. Big or not, every woman in the history or around me who led to a change inspired me gradually. 

Because the world is changing every day. Not just now with the pandemic. Change has been the inevitable since the beginning of time. And the ones who have the courage for the change are the ones who make a difference.  

I would like to share an example. You could not be interviewing me today if it was not for Attorney Süreyya Ağaoğlu.  

She is the first lawyer who was female in Turkey. She was registered to Ankara Bar in 1927 and became a lawyer in 1928. She knew French and English, and she initiated Istanbul Bar Association to be registered to International Bar Association in 1946. It should be noted that she was the only female board member of this union until 1960. She acted as an attorney at law during her entire life. I commemorate her with great respect and gratitude. 

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

ECC is the most exciting decision and achievement I am proud of in my career, which I have pursued with great enthusiasm and pleasure.  

Also, I am very proud of the moments where I grasp promptly on the new subjects. I was once appointed on a transactional matter that I did not have a clue or experience in the field before. It was challenging for me, and I was so proud of myself when I completed it successfully without any assistance. It made me even more proud when I got my second appointment immediately after the first one. 

Individual successes are important and marvellous, but also when I have made my team believe in me and that thanks to the team effort, raising the cup together was a magnificent moment.  

How do you manage your current work / life balance? 

I do not prioritize one to another. I do not think that they are separable especially when you are a lawyer. Your client can become part of your life, or your schoolmate can become your client.  

I have discovered that the work and life balance come naturally if I give enough time to myself. I am speaking of silent time only for my-self. Also, I try to plan my day before hand, but I always leave enough space for the unexpected work or family matters. This allows me to be flexible on the unexpected. 

I have diverse activities I enjoy performing such as sailing, snowboarding, reading, playing chess, dancing, and socializing with friends and family. Especially sports allow me to be more balanced and consistent in work and life. 

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? 

First, I advise them to act like a professional human without thinking about gender diversity. Second, to believe and to equip their selves with the sufficient knowledge to achieve what they seek for. If they want to work internationally, then I advise them to learn at least 3 foreign languages. Turkish is my native language and I know English and French at professional level. But I regret not to knowing at least one another foreign language at professional level. Also, I believe it is essential to find a particular field and be an expert in that field. Attending conferences/webinars, moot court competitions and summer interns at law firms may help them to determine that very field and start gaining professional experience. Lastly, I advise them not to skip life while busy with the studies and equip themselves with intellectual intelligence which will assist enriching their life as well as the work. I should also add to have the courage to face and fight any challenges that they may encounter.  

The target is not easy to be achieved, but to lift the barriers and create a change, we must willingly and consistently appeal for it. 

View interactive PDF version

Tell us about your career choice and journey. And what made you decide to get into corporate and commercial law? 

In my childhood, I was affected and impressed by my relatives running their own business and I found myself interested in businesses and companies. I went to law school with this business mindset, and therefore, corporate and commercial law became a passion for me. When I graduated from university, I oriented my career in this field and worked in corporate and commercial departments of leading law firms.  However, solely graduating from the university was not enough for me. I always aim to develop myself and create something new which was not discussed or addressed before in this field. Thereby, I pursued my LL.M. studies and currently continuing my Ph.D. studies in the same field. 

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

Over the recent years, people in every part of Turkey have made their voice louder on their differences and tried to take place in the society with their uniqueness and incomparableness. Thereby, many issues, that were deemed not to being discussed and sometimes deemed as a “taboo” prior, such as LGBTQ+, gender equality, and refugees have begun to be discussed. This way of living created a necessity for a more responsible business world.   

As law firms face this transaction in which maximum care regarding diversity, inclusion, and wellbeing are expected, legal culture in Turkey has inevitably changed in favor of equity and fairness. As I see, law firms adopt diversity and inclusion policies to create a positive workforce environment and to address clients from every walk of life. In this way, for instance, the rate of increase in the number of women lawyers began to be higher than that of men. However, this is a very basic step, and it is not needed to be mentioned at all. I think that there are still more needs to be met to represent all kinds of groups, especially in leadership positions. 

How is Gökçe Attorney Partnership progressing with its diversity agenda? 

At Gökçe, members of our team are recognized with their unique backgrounds, cultures, and perspectives. We are aware that our team’s creativity and passion is our greatest asset and hold the key for success. From day one, we had the goal of creating a culture of inclusion and ensuring equal treatment in the workplace where our team can bring their whole selves to work.  

We are committed to hiring, development, and advancement of diverse lawyers. For the recruitment, we always look for people who are open to interiorizing knowledge and creativity rather than their school types, religion, or ethnicity. If you also take a glance at the gender diversity at Gökçe, the number of women who hold major leadership positions in our firm has increased over the years signally. These are all due to our dream being to create a business space in which our team members feel belong and where they have the opportunity to improve their legal knowledge professionally. In this way, every member of our team contributes to our work in their unique way, and this helps the exchange of ideas to be strong and the outcome to be unique. 

How do you define the culture at Gökçe Attorney Partnership? 

Collective ideas: Our firm’s culture is rooted in the free expression of different opinions. We always had an open-door policy where we encourage our team members to be themselves, to advance in their own way, and to enhance themselves.  

From day one, we had an appetite for development and innovation. Thus, our client base has become shaped towards innovative and technology companies with open-minded vision. I think, their openness to innovation and differences are the best examples that reflect our firm culture. Besides, to take a concrete and permanent place in the innovation sector, we have to be away from any kind of bias and embrace all the backgrounds, cultures, and perspectives. 

As Gökçe, we also value social responsibility. We encourage our members to be more effective in every part of society. In recent years, we had several aid efforts towards rural schools, set up social responsibility committees. 

You are currently taking a PhD at Istanbul University and working on a thesis entitled “Corporate Social Responsibility of Joint Stock Companies”. In your view, how has CSR evolved in Turkey and how should all companies approach to being more socially responsible? 

Corporate Social Responsibility is one of the most controversial topics. In my thesis, I analyze CSR in detail, particularly in the sense of company law. I think that the CSR agenda in both Turkey and in the world should be handled on a more serious level and should be removed from the umbrella of charity and positioned as a legal mandate rather than a voluntary initiative. By doing so, companies may become truly socially responsible in a meaningful way, apart from charity campaigns and PR activities.  

The development of CSR in Turkey is still at an early stage. Companies are trying to lay down certain principles, especially under the leadership of multinational companies, but I think it is still insufficient. Likewise, academic of its legal aspects are almost non-existent. 

How do you see the new generation of women lawyers? 

Based on my observations, the new generation of women lawyers have broken down the barriers and become more prominent. They vault to leadership positions since they have the ambition. They are also self-confident and not shying away from taking tough decisions. The reason behind all of these can be explained by the recently increased awareness level of women’s rights in Turkey. As Gökçe, we just desire to rocket the opportunities that women should have in a law firm. 

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

I would stay in the social science field and probably get into politics. I would use this as an opportunity to raise awareness on the environment, animal rights, and human rights.  

Which women have inspired you the most?  

In different parts of my life, I have had inspired by various strong women, however, of course, my mother is the real motivation and courage. And, nowadays, I follow and am inspired by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. I think by her support to different groups of people, she is paving the way for new generations. I appreciate her attitude in politics.  

What motivates you? 

I’m really driven by outcomes that create added value for society. Because, in this way, I feel like I have an earned place in society. In my belief, this is one of the ways of contributing something new and permanent. 

I also get motived by the idea of raising new generations of lawyers and hopefully being a role model to them. That’s why, in our firm, healthy communication dominates our relationships rather than hierarchic order as well.

What have been your personal highlights during your time as a female lawyer in Turkey?  

I had witnessed my women colleagues face a different kind of difficulties. But I was fortunate enough not to been exposed to any discrimination or difficulty due to being a female lawyer, apart from the problems experienced by lawyers in general. 

How do you manage your current work / life balance?  

I think I’m one of the lucky ones who love what they do for a living. When you love and have passion for your job, the time you spent in your job becomes valuable. Also, we have good chemistry here at Gökçe, so working doesn’t feel like a chore. If you have a workplace that does not restrain your desires, you cannot differentiate your business life from your private life because you only have one life that you enjoy. That’s why I can also make time for my hobbies such as sports, literature. I think with proper planning, maintaining a successful balance between work and life is possible. 

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 want to stress that we aim to provide equal grounds for both women and men. That’s why I wouldn’t have any different advice than the one I would give to male lawyers. The first piece of advice that I can give is not to prevent themselves by creating barriers against their ambitions and intentions. So that, they could have the imagination to draw their dreams in a framework and fill it with their accomplishments. Moreover, the most essential thing, they have to recognize to be sensible towards social and moral issues in every stage of their professional life. Also, to respect the ethical rules and adopt the objectives of being a lawyer.