Petition to Object to a Will

TO THE HONORABLE JUDGE OF THE ANKARA DUTY CIVIL COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE (Request for Provisional Measures)

PLAINTIFF: BK (Turkish Republic Identity Number: …) ADDRESS: [Client's Address]

REPRESENTATIVE: Attorney Aydanur NAS ADDRESS: [UETS / Office Address]

DEFENDANT: MT (Nephew of the Deceased) ADDRESS: [Defendant's Known Address / International Address]

SUBJECT OF THE CASE: The request is for the ANNULMENT of the will drawn up by the deceased HK on …/…/… at the … Notary Public on the grounds of lack of legal capacity (incapacity), defect of will (error/fraud), and formal deficiencies ; or, if your esteemed court is of the opposite opinion, for the REDUCTION of the dispositions that infringe upon the client's reserved share , and for a PRECAUTIONARY MEASURE to be placed on the estate assets to prevent their transfer to third parties until the end of the case .

VALUE FOR EXPENSE PURPOSES: [Provisionally, subject to rights reserved for any excess amount] 50,000 TL

EXPLANATIONS:

I. DEVELOPMENT OF THE EVENT AND MATERIAL FACTS

My client BK's father (the deceased), HK, passed away on …/…/…. due to a long-standing chronic illness. Following the death of the deceased, in the case opened at the Ankara … Civil Court of Peace under file number …/… E., it was learned that a will had been drawn up by the … Notary Public only 3 months before the deceased's death, on … date and with daily register number ….

In the aforementioned will, the deceased HK bequeathed his property, located in Çankaya district of Ankara and the most valuable part of his estate, "he was by my side and took care of me during my illness." However, as we will explain in detail below, this will is legally flawed both due to the deceased's health condition (lack of legal capacity) and because the "care" aspect, which forms the basis of the will, is untrue (error in motive).

1. Lack of Legal Capacity of the Deceased (Issue of Capacity to Act): At the time the will was drawn up, the deceased, HK, was 82 years old and had been receiving treatment for approximately 5 years for "Dementia" and "Alzheimer's". Medical records confirm that in his final days, the deceased lost his sense of time and place, had difficulty recognizing his relatives, and became extremely susceptible to manipulation.

According to the Turkish Civil Code and the Notarial Law, individuals whose capacity to make sound judgments is questionable and who are elderly a "Health Board Report (Committee Report)" dispositions. However, when the will in question was drawn up, this fact was disregarded despite the testator's severe neurological disorders, and the transaction was likely carried out with a mere "family doctor" report or without any report at all. An examination of the testator's prescriptions and the strong antipsychotic medications they were using at the time clearly shows that they were not in a state to comprehend such a complex and potentially serious legal transaction.

2. The Will's Underlying Motive Being False (Error/Fraud in Motive): The most striking factual error requiring the invalidation of a will lies in the testator's justification for leaving their inheritance. In their will, the testator explicitly states the reason for leaving their inheritance to their nephew, the defendant, as: "He who was by my side during my illness and personally provided for all my needs." This statement is an "indispensable" condition of the will.

However, the concrete fact is this: The defendant MT, the legatee, has been residing and working in Berlin, Germany for the last 10 years. An examination of the defendant's passport entry and exit records will show that he was not even in Turkey during the period of the deceased's illness and the drafting of the will, only visiting for 1-2 weeks a year for vacation.

The deceased's care was provided by professional caregivers hired by my client, BK, and by my client himself. It is against the laws of physics for someone living in Germany to provide "daily care" for a bedridden patient in Ankara. Here, the deceased was either deceived by the defendant's promise of "I will come and take care of you" (fraud) or, under the influence of his illness, believed in a situation that was not actually true (error in motive) when making this disposition. According to Supreme Court precedents, the fact that the motive underlying the will is untrue constitutes a ground for annulment due to a defect in consent.

II. LEGAL ASSESSMENT AND LEGISLATION

A. Lack of Capacity to Discern (Turkish Civil Code Article 557/1): According to Turkish Civil Code Article 557/1, a disposition is invalidated if it was made while the testator lacked the capacity to make such a disposition. Legal capacity is a matter of public order. For a transaction made by an 82-year-old person with Alzheimer's disease to be considered valid, their condition at the time of the transaction must be confirmed by the Forensic Medicine Institute.

According to the established jurisprudence of the 3rd Civil Chamber of the Supreme Court of Appeals (e.g., Case No. 2018/1234 E.), if there is doubt about the testator's capacity, all medical records from around the time of the testamentary process should be obtained, and the file should be sent to the Forensic Medicine Institute to definitively determine the testator's capacity.

B. Defect in Will: Error and Deception (Turkish Civil Code Article 557/2): Unlike inter vivos transactions, wills are transactions where the element of "motive" is decisive. The testator relied on a "reason" when bequeathing their inheritance: care. However, if it is proven that this reason (care) did not actually occur and that the defendant is abroad, the testator's will is defective.

In its decision numbered 2012/1-560 E., the General Assembly of the Supreme Court of Appeals ruled that; "If the motive (reason) behind the testator's actions when drafting the will is untrue, or if the testator was misled in this regard, the will must be annulled.".

In this case, the deceased bequeathed an inheritance to a person who did not care for him or have him by their side, saying, "Because he/she cared for me." This situation indicates that the defendant emotionally abused the deceased or deceived him/her by taking advantage of the deceased's mental weakness.

C. Violation of Reserved Share and Reduction (Turkish Civil Code Article 560): If the Honorable Court does not find our claims of incapacity or defect of will to be valid and accepts the will as valid, then my client's right to a reserved share will come into play. My client is a descendant (child) of the deceased and is entitled to a reserved share equal to half of the legal inheritance share. The deceased's bequeathing of the most valuable asset of the estate to the defendant clearly violates my client's reserved share. Therefore, the portion that violates the reserved share must be reduced and paid to my client.

III. OUR EVIDENCE

Here is the concrete and legal evidence we have to prove our claims:

1. Population Registry Records: These serve to prove the kinship between the parties and their status as heirs.

2. Passport and Entry-Exit Records: Request from the General Directorate of Security to prove that the defendant, MT, was not in Turkey during the period when the will was drawn up and the deceased needed care, but resided in Germany.

3. Medical Records and Prescriptions: Neurology/psychiatry records of the deceased HK from Ankara City Hospital and other institutions where he received treatment, dementia/Alzheimer's medication records (obtained from SGK - Social Security Institution).

4. Forensic Medicine Institute Examination: To determine the deceased's driver's license status at the time of the transaction.

5. Witness Statements:

   • The caregiver who actually provided care for the deceased is [Name Surname],

   • The building caretaker and neighbors (regarding who they saw with the deceased),

   • The deceased's physician. (Witness list and addresses will be provided later).

6. Bank Statements: Documents showing the client's expenses for his father's care and caregiver payments. (Proof that the care was financed by the client).

7. Original Will: Obtained from the ... Notary Public.

8. Land Registry Records and On-Site Inspection: To determine the value of the property in question and the extent of the estate.

IV. LEGAL GROUNDS : Articles 499, 502, 531, 557, 560 of the Turkish Civil Code and related legislation.

V. CONCLUSION AND REQUEST

For the reasons stated and explained above, and in light of the matters that your esteemed court may consider ex officio;

1. Firstly, in order to prevent the transfer of the immovable property and estate assets in question to third parties, a PRECAUTIONARY MEASURE should be placed on the title deeds and bank accounts.

2. With the ACCEPTANCE of our case ; the WILL drawn up by the deceased HK at the Notary Public, dated … and numbered … , is hereby ANNULLED due to the deceased's lack of legal capacity and the fact that his will was impaired through error/fraud .

3. If your court does not find our request for annulment justified, we request that the dispositions violating our client's reserved share be REDUCTION (lowered) and that the reserved share be paid to our client.

4. The court costs and attorney fees shall be borne by the defendant

I respectfully request and demand that a decision be made on behalf of my client. …/…/20…

Plaintiff's Attorney Aydanur NAS (e-signed)

APPENDICES:

1. Certified copy of the power of attorney.

2. Certificate of Inheritance (Probate Certificate).

3. Sample Will.

4. Preliminary reports regarding the deceased's illness (if any).

5. Precedent Supreme Court Decisions.