Levent Law Firm handles cargo damage, freight and charterparty disputes connected to Izmir, and seeks the arrest of a vessel when a maritime claim needs security. As your Izmir maritime lawyer, we read the bill of lading, charter terms, delivery record and payment trail, then bring the claim or defense before the authority that can decide it. A foreign cargo owner receiving damaged goods in Izmir and a shipowner disputing unpaid freight need different claims, even when both arise from the same voyage.
We identify who undertook the carriage, what happened to the cargo or payment, and which vessel or party is legally answerable. Our office then prepares the demand, arrest application, court claim or settlement around that voyage's records.
We conduct your maritime file under a power of attorney
With a power of attorney, we file the cargo or freight claim, ship arrest application, or court response in your name. We write to the carrier, charterer, port-related record holders, enforcement office and court, obtain documents that are missing from the file, and track notice, filing and hearing dates. Orders and the eventual judgment in the represented court matter are served on our office as counsel; we examine each service record and take the next action.
Articles 71, 73 and 76 of the Code of Civil Procedure establish litigation through an appointed lawyer, the ordinary scope of that authority and the filing of the power of attorney with the court. In a case followed by counsel, Article 18 of the Regulation on Service of Process makes the lawyer the recipient of court service. We check the instrument for any express authority required by Article 74 before agreeing to a settlement or an arbitration arrangement on your behalf.
We can also take over a shipment dispute already underway. We obtain the existing damage notice, survey, demand, arrest order or petition and reconcile it with the cargo and vessel records. Our office answers further document requests, receives the decision and follows the claim through the step that turns a ruling or security into payment or release.
We turn cargo loss or damage into a carrier claim
A maritime cargo claim starts with the condition of the goods at receipt and delivery, the contract of carriage and the period when the carrier controlled them. Article 1178 of the Turkish Commercial Code No. 6102 requires a prudent carrier's care in loading, stowage, carriage, custody and discharge and addresses loss, damage or late delivery while the goods are under its control. We compare the bill of lading, loading tally, discharge report, delivery receipt, photographs and survey findings to show where and how the loss occurred.
For an importer whose containers arrive damaged in Izmir, we identify the cargo interest entitled to claim and the carrier named in the transport documents. We arrange the legal notice and present the survey and value evidence against the documented condition at loading. If the carrier points to packaging, handling or an event during the voyage, we test that account against the same records and the statutory allocation of responsibility before framing the demand.
Article 1184 allows an examination of the cargo's condition and quantity by a court, competent authority or authorized expert before the consignee receives it. Article 1185 requires written notice of loss or damage to the carrier at delivery, or within three days of delivery when the damage is not apparent, and its evidentiary presumptions can be answered with contrary proof. We secure the examination record, send the notice required for the particular delivery and put the contemporaneous evidence before the court, including when the damage becomes apparent only after discharge.
Article 1188 gives a carrier-facing compensation claim for cargo loss, damage or delay a one-year court-filing period measured from delivery or the date delivery should have occurred. We calculate that period from the actual delivery record and file the claim within it. The petition identifies the goods, their recorded condition, the loss and the value sought.
We establish what the bill of lading proves and who can claim delivery
A bill of lading records the carriage contract, the carrier's receipt or loading of the goods and its duty to deliver against presentation of the document under Article 1228 of the Commercial Code. We examine the originals, endorsements, named consignee, cargo description and delivery instructions to establish who can demand the goods or bring the resulting claim. This is decisive when an Izmir shipment reaches the port but the buyer, seller and carrier give different accounts of entitlement.
We compare the bill of lading with the charterparty, booking confirmation and actual delivery record. Where the cargo was released to the wrong person or the document describes a quantity the discharge record disputes, we identify the party responsible and the remedy supported by the transport papers. We prepare the demand and court evidence around the specific cargo and voyage, while our Izmir contract law service addresses a separate sale or service agreement that needs its own claim.
The same documents can defend a carrier or owner against an overbroad demand. We examine the claimant's title to the goods, the condition recorded at delivery, survey findings and payments already made, then answer the claimed loss item by item.
We pursue unpaid freight and charterparty obligations
An unpaid freight claim depends on the carriage agreed, the party liable to pay and the voyage actually performed. Article 1138 of the Commercial Code distinguishes a voyage charter from carriage of identified goods, and Article 1200 identifies the charterer as the freight debtor. We read the fixture recap, charterparty, bill of lading, loading and discharge statements, freight invoice and bank entries to establish the amount and the party against whom it can be claimed.
Laytime and demurrage disputes turn on when loading or discharge time began, which interruptions the contract and law recognize and what the vessel actually did. We compare the notice of readiness, statement of facts, port logs and correspondence with the agreed time provisions, then make or defend the charge from that chronology. For a foreign shipowner calling at Izmir, this connects a disputed invoice to the vessel's documented stay and the contract's own allocation of time.
Article 1201 gives the carrier a retention right over cargo for claims arising from the freight contract, within the provision's limits. We examine possession of the goods, the voyage from which the receivable arose and the amount secured before invoking that right or answering a carrier's demand for release. Article 1202 supplies a route to delivery when the disputed amount is deposited as directed by the court; we seek the order that protects the payment position and lets the cargo move.
A charterparty can also produce a claim about the vessel's agreed use, hire, loading obligations or early end of a voyage. We identify the operative clause and the event said to breach it, send a focused demand and conduct the resulting court or agreed dispute process. We keep the maritime obligation distinct from the general unpaid trade debt covered by our commercial law work in Izmir.
We seek ship arrest to secure a qualifying maritime claim
Ship arrest gives a maritime creditor a court-ordered means of securing a claim against a vessel connected to the liable party. Articles 1352 and 1353 of the Commercial Code classify claims arising from vessel use, carriage contracts and cargo loss or damage as maritime claims and provide for precautionary arrest. We identify the claim category, the debtor, the vessel and the evidence of the amount before asking the competent court for security.
For a vessel in Izmir, the arrest court is determined by the ship's flag and location under Articles 1354 and 1355. Article 1369 adds conditions connecting the debtor to the ship to be arrested, so we check ownership, charter and registry records rather than relying on the vessel's presence alone. We prepare the application with the bill of lading or charterparty, invoices, survey and vessel information and ask for the measure the documented claim supports.
Article 1356 allows a competent Turkish court to order ship arrest for a foreign cargo interest or charterparty creditor even when a foreign court or arbitral tribunal will decide the merits, or foreign law governs the underlying claim. Under Article 1362 we present evidence that the debt is a maritime claim and of its monetary value. We coordinate the arrest request with the agreed merits forum and follow the court order through the enforcement office, preserving security while the substantive claim proceeds.
We answer an arrest and obtain release against appropriate security
A shipowner facing an arrest application needs the vessel, debtor and underlying claim examined together. We obtain the arrest order and supporting papers, test whether the claim falls within Article 1352 and whether Article 1369 connects the vessel to the liable person, and bring the supported objection before the court. We present the charter, ownership, payment and delivery evidence that answers the creditor's account.
Article 1371 lets the owner or debtor seek removal of the arrest by providing security sufficient for the maritime claim, interest and costs within the vessel-value limit stated there. We prepare the security proposal, apply for the release order and follow the notices to the enforcement and port authorities. Where the parties can agree on the form and amount of security under Article 1372, we document that arrangement and pursue release while the underlying dispute continues.
We present the maritime case and carry its decision into effect
Maritime litigation needs a record that connects the legal claim to a particular vessel, voyage and cargo. We organize the charter terms, bills of lading, vessel identity, port and delivery records, surveys, notices and account entries for the commercial court. We request the evidence or expert examination the dispute calls for, answer the other party's submissions and present the amount or defense supported by the file.
Articles 4 and 5 of the Commercial Code place disputes arising under that Code within the commercial-action and commercial-court framework. We establish the competent court from the parties, vessel and claim, file the petition or defense under the power of attorney and follow the reasoned judgment. Where security has been obtained, we address its continuing role alongside the final claim and the collection work the decision permits.
We also prepare precise settlement terms for a cargo payment, freight balance or vessel release when the parties agree. The document identifies the voyage, the amount, the security and the action each party must take, so the agreement can be implemented in the court or enforcement file. Our office receives the resulting notices and completes the legal follow-through.
Put the vessel and voyage record before us
Send Levent Law Firm the bill of lading or charterparty, the vessel name, cargo and delivery records, survey, freight account and any demand or arrest paper already received. We will identify the liable party, the claim or defense, and the court action needed in Izmir, then handle the notices, filings and decision under your power of attorney. Read about Attorney Alparslan LEVENT and see the work we handle in Izmir while we examine the voyage record.
Contact us about your Izmir maritime claim and place the shipment or vessel documents in our hands. We will bring the cargo, freight or charterparty claim, seek security where the law permits it, and pursue the decision that gives your position practical effect.