Dependence element in merchant assistants

The persons whose services are benefited from by the merchant in his activities are considered as the assistant of the merchant as a whole. Merchant assistants, which are included in the scope of commercial law, are persons who have the ability to represent the merchant or who have an intermediation function even if they do not have the authority to represent the merchant. In this context, commercial representatives, commercial agents, marketers, brokers, commission broker and agents constitute one of the areas of examination of commercial law under the title of merchant assistants. These persons, who are called merchant assistants, are categorised under the title of merchant assistants according to their similar and different aspects in line with their features. One of the distinctions is the element of dependency. The classification based on the dependency element focuses on whether the merchant assistant is dependent on the merchant or not. As a result of the classification, commercial representative, commercial agent and marketer are considered as dependent merchant assistants, while broker, commission broker and agent are considered as independent merchant assistants. Dependency or independency is a term that is related to the internal relationship between the parties and is not defined in the Turkish legal legislation. The notion of dependency is a subject that is analysed especially as part of labor contracts. On the other hand, the element of dependency is also used in distinguishing the labor contract as a contracts for works from other contracts for works. In this context, in order to understand the element of dependency, it is necessary to examine the labor contract and the mandate contract, which have an significant role in creating the internal relationship in merchant assistants, and determine the connection between these types of contracts with merchant assistants. Indeed, an examination in this direction serves to comprehend the element of dependency in merchant assistants. Dependence or independence may appear differently in each relationship. Furthermore, as different working models emerge over time, the notion of dependency is changing. These and related problems do not allow for a constant and unchanging definition of the element of dependency. As a result of these difficulties due to the term, various criteria have been advanced for the determination of the element of dependency. Since these criteria allow the determination of the element of dependence, they are helpful in determining whether the merchant assistants are dependent or independent to the merchant. On the other hand, the criteria which have been developed to determine the element of dependency contribute to the categorisation of merchant assistants on the basis of the element of dependency, understanding and interpretation of the rights and duties between the merchant assistants and the merchant. Keywords: Merchant, Merchant Assistants, Element of Dependency, Element of Independecy, Criteria