In the light of the decisions of the supreme court, the bank's legal responsibility

Check is the indispensable part of the business life, and is the oldest means of payment developed to overcome the difficulties of cash payment. The principal debtor in the payment of a check is the drawer of the check. However, in order to increase the confidence in the check and to strengthen the circulation, the respondent bank is also taken some legal responsibilities. Because it is unimaginable that the arbitrary and unlawful acts of the trust institutions like banks are not sanctioned. Drawee bank does not have the status of debtor owing to acceptance, endorsement and surety (aval) prohibitions. Therefore, the responsibility of the interlocutor cannot be determined according to the principles of exchange law. The only path for resolving the responsibility of the interlocutor is the application of the provisions of the code of obligations. Indeed, the damage arised by the interlocutor to the regulator is subject to the provisions of the check contract between them. As the Check contract is a synallagmatic contract which fully imposes debt for both parties, the disagreement shall be resolved by applying Article 12 ff of the code of obligations. As a result of the unlawful actions of the interlocutor bank, persons other than the holders or the check relation may be harmed. There is no contractual link between these persons and the interlocutor bank. Therefore, the loss given by the interlocutor to these persons cannot be demanded according to the provisions governing the contractual relationship. In this case, the loss due to the unlawful act of the interlocutor shall be compensated in accordance with the principles of the tort law. Some forms of unlawful acts are specially regulated in Turkish Commercial Code and Check Law. The interlocutor shall be liable under the limits set forth in the law in case of violation of the special provisions of these laws. In cases where the unlawful act is not specifically regulated, the responsibility of the interlocutor can be reached by implementing the general provisions of the code of obligations which regulate the tort. (The Code of Obligations, Art 49.)