Expertise

De Facto Appropriation (Kamulaştırmasız El Atma)

Administrative interference with land without following expropriation procedure: factual and legal taking, and the pre- and post-1983 regimes.

Kamulaştırmasız el atma is the administration’s interference with private property without operating the procedure in Law No. 2942. In the case law of the Court of Cassation and the Constitutional Court, the interference is treated under two principal heads: factual taking (fiilî el atma) and legal taking (hukukî el atma). 9 October 1983 is a watershed for limitation and access to a remedy.

Factual taking arises where the administration physically occupies the land and allocates it to a road, park, facility or similar public service. Legal taking arises where a zoning plan, conservation decision or similar administrative act in substance extinguishes the owner’s power of disposition.

The office identifies the character and date of the taking and the nature of the property, and advances claims for compensation, mesne profits (ecrimisil) and registration in line with established authority.

Character of the taking

Historical regime

Classification

Factual Taking (Fiilî El Atma)

Physical occupation of the land by the administration, allocating it to a road, park, facility or similar public service and thereby extinguishing the owner’s possession in fact.

Factual taking is the administration’s physical seizure of land without an expropriation instrument. Typical forms include the opening of a road, the creation of a park or green area, the construction of a public building or facility, and the passage of water or energy lines. The Court of Cassation looks together at the permanence of the taking, public allocation and the owner’s loss of any practical power of disposition. Compensation is as a rule assessed at true value as at the date of taking; mesne profits (ecrimisil) follow the period of occupation.

Related subjects

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Expropriation Litigation

Protecting the owner’s rights and securing fair compensation throughout the public-interest decision, valuation, service and registration stages.

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Compensation Actions Arising from Expropriation

Recovering losses caused by public interference, including heads of damage beyond the expropriation price itself.