AI in Law: Istanbul 14th Commercial Court Ruling
AI Law & Court Precedent
A landmark ruling by Istanbul's 14th Commercial Court has drawn attention across the Turkish legal and technology sectors. The court positioned artificial intelligence as a technical support tool rather than an autonomous decision-maker — establishing an important precedent for AI liability in Turkish law.
Background: The Case
The case arose from a commercial dispute in which one party argued that an AI system's output had been relied upon in making a consequential business decision. The question before the court was whether, and to what extent, the AI system's role affected the allocation of legal liability between the parties.
The Court's Key Findings
The Istanbul 14th Commercial Court ruled that AI systems, as currently deployed, function as technical support tools. The court emphasized that human oversight and decision-making authority cannot be delegated to AI — and that where a party relies on AI output without exercising independent judgment, the liability for any resulting harm rests with the human decision-maker, not with the AI system itself.
The court further noted that AI systems lack the legal capacity to be parties to contractual relationships or to bear legal liability. This aligns with the emerging international consensus — mirrored in the EU AI Act — that AI is a tool, not a legal person.
Legal Implications for Businesses
This ruling carries important implications for any business using AI in decision-making:
Human-in-the-loop requirements: Decisions with significant legal or commercial consequences must involve meaningful human review of AI outputs — not rubber-stamping.
Documentation: Companies should document their AI governance processes, including how AI recommendations are reviewed and overridden, to demonstrate compliance.
Liability allocation: AI service agreements should clearly address liability for AI-generated outputs, including indemnification provisions and liability caps.
EU AI Act Context
The court's reasoning aligns with the EU AI Act's approach to "high-risk" AI systems, which require conformity assessments, human oversight mechanisms and robust documentation. As Turkey aligns its regulatory framework with EU standards, this ruling may represent an early judicial preview of Turkey's developing AI governance principles.
NextEra Legal's AI Law Practice
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