Melis Yokay
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Melis is a registered lawyer in the İstanbul Bar Association and Turkish Bar Association since 2016. She is advising foreign and turkish clients on various civil cases such as divorce, custody, child abduction from Hague Convention.
Relevant experiences and positions
Melis has attended International Family Lawyers Academy’s (IAFL) introduction and young lawyers conferences of the same academy. She also contributed to Thomson Reuters’ The Family Law Global Guide along with the partner of the law firm.
Some personal questions
Why is it interesting for you as a lawyer to work on these cases?
These kind of cases always brings a hard work, evaluation and search of both international and national practices to impose to the case and brings the team-work to work and support the case.
Which child abduction case will you never forget?
Turkey does not recognize the same sex-marriages or relationships and we represented a mother in one of the child abduction case against the other mother. This case had no similar example in Turkish litigation and we took this case to the Constitutional Court, as the prior leveled courts ordered for the refusal of the return of the child back to the habitual residence.
What can people do to support the children during these proceedings?
Any family member, the one who abducted the child or the one requested for the return of the child should remember that the child must not be a party of such process and must not fire the child against the other parent and must consider the best interest of the child, rather than their interest of doing such action.
What is your advice to parents dealing with international child abduction?
The Convention states the 6 weeks of duration to complete the return application however this might be longer than expected and the parent who requests the return of the child should not lose the hope and be patient as s/he is doing this only for the sake of the child and the child’s well-being.