Dismissal of the Case File

 The case is deemed not to have been filed and the file is dismissed

In legal proceedings, the method used to resolve disputes is filing a lawsuit. Certain conditions must be met in the lawsuit filing process. These conditions are generally classified as procedural requirements and can be divided into general procedural requirements, requirements relating to the parties, and requirements relating to the subject matter of the lawsuit. In this context, ensuring proper party representation is one of the fundamental requirements for filing a lawsuit. Therefore, in civil lawsuits, there must be two parties: a plaintiff and a defendant.

The formation of parties must continue throughout the entire litigation process, starting from the filing of the lawsuit. If the parties fail to pursue the case, the court cannot render a decision on the merits. Therefore, it is necessary to pursue the case throughout its duration. Otherwise, consequences such as the case being dismissed or the lawsuit being deemed never filed may occur.

The consequences of the parties' failure to attend the hearing and the case being deemed not to have been filed are regulated in Article 150 of the Code of Civil Procedure. According to this regulation:

1. Failure of Parties to Attend the Hearing:
– If parties duly summoned fail to appear at the hearing, or if they appear but declare that they will not pursue the case, the court shall decide to dismiss the case.

– If one party appears at the hearing while the other does not, the proceedings may continue in the absence of the absent party, or the case may be dismissed, upon the request of the appearing party. A party without a valid excuse cannot object to the proceedings conducted in their absence.

– In cases where a hearing date needs to be set, the file will be closed if an application is not submitted within one month of the last processing date.

2. Reopening the File:

– If a case has been dismissed, it may be reopened within three months of the dismissal date upon application by one of the parties. The application for reopening, along with the hearing date, time, and location, will be served on the parties.

– If a renewal application is made more than one month after the date the case was dismissed, a fee must be paid, and this fee is paid by the party renewing the case. A case renewed by paying the fee is considered a continuation of the original case.

– The right to renew a lawsuit can be exercised a maximum of two times in written proceedings (Code of Civil Procedure, Article 150/6), and only once in simplified proceedings. If the case is dismissed again after the right to renew has been exercised, a further renewal can only be made once more. If the case is dismissed after the second renewal or after the exercise of the right to renew in simplified proceedings, the lawsuit is deemed not to have been filed.

3. Supreme Court Decisions:

– The 14th Civil Chamber of the Supreme Court of Appeals, in its decision dated September 18, 2019, stated that a case can be reopened twice, and if the case is dismissed again after the second reopening, the case will be considered as never having been filed. In accordance with this decision, a case can be dismissed twice; after the second reopening, the case will be considered as never having been filed.

Conclusion

A case is deemed not to have been filed three months after the file is removed from the docket. A request for renewal can be made twice in written proceedings and once in simplified proceedings. The right to renewal must be exercised within these limits. After these periods have expired, the case is deemed not to have been filed, and all consequences related to the previous case are nullified. In this case, a new case can be filed and processed by paying the court fees.