According to the “Judicial Statistics 2025” report prepared by the Ministry of Justice, courts and prosecution offices in Istanbul concluded 954,074 cases over the course of 2025, reflecting the city’s continued high judicial workload driven by its large population.
The data, compiled by the General Directorate of Criminal Records and Statistics, shows that Istanbul’s judicial system remained heavily active across its main courthouses, including the Istanbul Courthouse in Çağlayan and the Anadolu Courthouse in Kartal, as well as district courthouses in Adalar, Bakırköy, Beykoz, Büyükçekmece, Çatalca, Gaziosmanpaşa, Küçükçekmece, Silivri and Şile, alongside regional appellate and administrative courts.
In criminal courts, a total of 696,384 cases were handled in 2025, including new filings, carried-over files and cases returned after appeal. Of these, 367,390 were concluded during the year, while 328,994 were transferred to 2026. During the same period, courts processed cases involving 733,746 defendants and 1,803,953 criminal charges.
Out of the resolved criminal cases, 167,722 resulted in convictions, 74,916 in acquittals, 80,295 in deferred judgments, and 53,362 in other rulings.
Civil courts handled 1,068,946 cases throughout the year. Of these, 586,684 were concluded, while 482,262 were carried over into 2026. Civil proceedings involved nearly 1.87 million defendants and more than 1.54 million plaintiffs. Outcomes included 269,127 approvals, 157,698 rejections, and 93,551 partially accepted decisions.
In administrative and tax courts, tens of thousands of cases were also processed, with Istanbul’s first-instance courts overall concluding 1,062,817 cases during the year.
At the appellate level, Istanbul Regional Courts of Appeal examined 650,666 files, concluding 304,282 cases while carrying 346,384 forward. Criminal chambers resolved 142,542 cases, while civil chambers decided 161,740 cases.
Regional administrative courts concluded 80,809 of 91,148 cases, with rulings including rejections, approvals, partial approvals and other decisions.
Meanwhile, Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Offices handled 2,627,252 investigation files in 2025. Of these, 965,309 were concluded, while 1,661,943 were carried over into 2026. Across these investigations, authorities processed 3,112,305 suspects in connection with more than 5.2 million charges.
Prosecutorial outcomes included 571,768 decisions of no prosecution, 239,215 indictments, and other rulings such as lack of jurisdiction, mergers and procedural decisions.
