Material and Moral Compensation in Divorce Cases

In divorce cases, the issue of material and moral compensation is one of the main issues in almost every divorce case.

In this context, spouses may request material or moral compensation from each other, as well as alimony, in the presence of various conditions due to the events that caused the end of the marriage. Material and moral compensation requests in divorce cases are evaluated by the family court judge. Material and Moral Compensation in Divorce Cases
Regardless of material or moral compensation, in order for the family court judge to rule on compensation, the parties must definitely request it. The family court judge cannot rule on compensation on his/her own without a request. In this respect, although the plaintiff spouse has the right to request material or moral compensation, if he/she does not state this request in the petition, it is not possible to rule on material or moral compensation. If the plaintiff spouse requests material or moral compensation in the petition, the judge first examines whether the necessary conditions for a compensation award exist.
1-Material Compensation
Material compensation in divorce cases is regulated in Article 174/1 of the Turkish Civil Code. In order for a party to request material compensation, the following conditions must be met. If they do not meet these conditions, they cannot request material compensation in the divorce case.
The Spouse Requesting Material Compensation Must Have No Fault in the Divorce or Their Fault Must Be Less than the Fault of the Other Party.
The spouse requesting material compensation must not have committed an act that would cause divorce or, if they have committed an act, they must have acted less faultily than the other party. For example, the spouses’ bad behavior or insults towards each other are grounds for divorce, but if the other spouse commits adultery in response to this act, the request for material compensation cannot be accepted.
The Defendant Spouse from Whom Compensation Is Requested Must Be at Fault.
In order to request material compensation in a divorce case, the defendant spouse must definitely be at fault. If the fault of both parties is equal or both parties are at fault or if the defendant spouse cannot be held responsible, then the right to material compensation does not arise. For example, if the defendant spouse is mentally ill, the other spouse does not have the right to financial compensation, as he cannot be held responsible for this reason.

In the same direction, the decision of the 2nd Civil Chamber of the Supreme Court of Appeals, numbered 2006/10852 E. 2006/17842 K. can be given as an example. In this decision, the Supreme Court of Appeals ruled that the actions of the husband, who had a condition called ‘Cerebral Pulsy Sequelae (Mental Retardation)’ and was taken under guardianship, were not voluntary and therefore could not be considered faulty, and rejected the request for financial compensation in favor of the defendant woman.

The Plaintiff’s Existing or Expected Interest Must Have Been Damaged.
In order for financial compensation to be claimed in a divorce case, the plaintiff’s existing or expected interest must have been damaged. An example of this issue is being deprived of the benefit from a business that is operating in terms of the existing right, while inheritance rights can be shown as the expected benefit.

The judge determines the amount of compensation. The judge is not obliged to rule for the amount stated by the plaintiff in the petition or increased later by amendment. The judge may rule for less than the plaintiff’s request, but cannot rule for more than the request.

2- Non-pecuniary Damages
Non-pecuniary damages in divorce cases are regulated in Article 174/2 of the Turkish Civil Code. Accordingly, the following conditions must be met in order for non-pecuniary damages to be ruled in a divorce case.