With the 12th Judicial Package entering into force as of July 31, 2026, a highly critical turning point that had been discussed for many years in our criminal procedure law was left behind. The old-style "simple objection" era officially came to an end for Deferred Pronouncement of Judgment (HAGB) decisions, which defendants often accepted to escape the threat of punishment but were left deprived of higher court supervision. Now, when an HAGB decision is rendered against you, you have the right to carry this decision to a higher court, the Regional Court of Justice (Istinaf), and to the Court of Cassation (Temyiz) when the statutory conditions are met. In this article, we put the rights introduced by the new legal regulation and their critical consequences for defendants under the spotlight.

In the old practice, the objection path pursued against HAGB decisions was virtually a mere formal procedure in practice. Assize courts reviewing the objections tended to approve decisions with a superficial perspective of "Are the HAGB conditions present or not?" without delving into the merits of the case. When I examine the rights violation decisions of the Constitutional Court and the new 12th Judicial Package regulations as a law student, I can clearly see that this superficial supervision severely damaged the right to a fair trial. With the new law that came into force on July 31, 2026, HAGB decisions are now subject to a full-fledged legal remedy review where the case can be examined on its merits and the accuracy of the evidence can be questioned, just like conviction judgments.

What Does the Appeal Path Provide to the Defendant? The Possibility of Acquittal Arises!

The greatest gain brought by the new system is that the defendant does not have to accept an unfair stain of conviction with the thought of "I am not going to prison anyway." In the old system, a person who received HAGB could not carry the file to a higher court due to the fear of "what if my objection is rejected and my sentence becomes final," even if they believed in their innocence. With the new regulation, the Regional Court of Justice (Istinaf) examines on the merits the questions of "Did the defendant really commit this crime?", "Was the evidence collected lawfully?", and "Was the nature of the crime determined correctly?". Thus, the opportunity to correct erroneous decisions, to directly receive an acquittal instead of HAGB, or to drop the sentence has emerged for the defendant.

"HAGB is no longer an unsupervised harbor sought to avoid punishment, but a transparent judicial decision whose procedure and merits can be reviewed by higher courts."

What Should Be Done Against the Decision? The Critical 2-Week Period

If an HAGB decision has been rendered against you and you believe this decision is unfair, you must apply to the legal remedy of appeal (istinaf) before the Regional Court of Justice with a petition to be submitted to the court that rendered the decision within 2 weeks from the pronouncement (reading to your face) or notification of the decision. The 7-day objection period in the old practice has been converted into a 2-week appeal period with the new regulation. In order not to suffer a loss of rights, to completely get rid of the stain of conviction, and to ensure that your file is examined on its merits by the Regional Court of Justice, it is of vital importance to carry out this process under the guidance of an expert criminal defense attorney.