A court in England, France or the United States that needs a witness heard or a document produced in Türkiye sends a letter of request under the 1970 Hague Evidence Convention. Here Türkiye applies a stricter language rule than in service. A defendant may agree to accept untranslated papers; a Turkish court executing a letter of request has no such choice, because Türkiye has removed the English and French fallback that the Convention otherwise provides.
The Convention’s default
Article 4(1) says a letter of request shall be in the language of the authority requested to execute it, or be accompanied by a translation into that language. Article 4(2) then makes an exception: a Contracting State shall accept a letter in English or French, or a translation into one of those languages, unless it has made the reservation authorised by Article 33. A letter drafted in English on the strength of Article 4(2) is therefore acceptable in every State that has not made that reservation. For Türkiye that basis does not exist.
Türkiye’s reservation
The Convention entered into force for Türkiye on 12 October 2004, after ratification on 13 August 2004. Under Article 33, Türkiye reserved the right not to apply Article 4(2) on its territory and stated that letters of request to be executed under Chapter I shall be in Turkish or be accompanied by a Turkish translation, in compliance with Article 4(1) and 4(5). The Ministry of Justice circular on civil letters of request records the same point: Türkiye has specified that requests addressed to it must be drawn up in Turkish (Circular 63/2, para. 8).
Who certifies the translation
Article 4(5) requires any translation accompanying a letter to be certified as correct, either by a diplomatic officer or consular agent, or by a sworn translator, or by any other person so authorised in either State. The words “in either State” matter: certification may come from the State of origin or from Türkiye. The older 1954 Convention is narrower, as the section on non-parties below shows. Which certifier suits a particular court is a practical choice for the lawyer preparing the request.
No pre-trial discovery
Türkiye also declared under Article 23 that it will not execute letters of request issued for the purpose of obtaining pre-trial discovery of documents as known in common law countries. The Ministry of Justice is designated as the authority that grants the permission provided for in Articles 16 and 17. A translation cannot change the nature of a request: a broad document request stays a broad document request in Turkish, and how it is framed is the drafting lawyer’s decision.
States outside the 1970 Convention
Belgium and Canada are not parties to the 1970 Convention. Belgium and Türkiye are both parties to the 1954 Hague Convention on civil procedure, and under its Article 10 a letter of request is drawn up in the language of the requested authority or a language agreed between the two States, or accompanied by a translation certified by a diplomatic or consular agent of the requesting State or by a sworn translator of the requested State. Read literally, a Belgian court writing to Türkiye in French or Dutch attaches a Turkish translation certified by a Belgian diplomatic or consular agent or by a sworn translator of Türkiye.
What gets translated
The Turkish translation covers the letter of request itself, the questions to be put to a witness and any documents the witness is asked to identify. Acte Tercüme translates letters of request and their annexes from English and French into Turkish. It does not draft the request or decide what evidence to seek.