Constitutional Court Decision On Maintenance

The Constitutional Court held a decision regarding article 175 of the Turkish Civil Code entitled "Maintenance" which states that if one of the spouses is likely to fall into poverty by reason of the divorce, he/she may ask for maintenance from the other party "for an indefinite period", provided that the other party is financially able to do so and is more at fault than the other spouse.

Bursa Family Court of First Instance brought article 175 of the Turkish Civil Code before the Constitutional Court, alleging that the statement "for an indefinite period" in the article violates the rule of law principle set out in article 2 of Turkish Constitution, the equality before the law provided in article 10, and equality between the spouses within the family, as required by article 41.