Çağla Usta Avanaş has joined the firm from one of the largest and oldest law firms based in Turkey, as a senior associate in March 2024. Çağla was previously an associate of our firm for four years before leaving the firm to pursue her master’s degree in 2021. She completed the Magister Juris programme of the University of Oxford with a distinction degree as a Chevening scholar in 2022. After spending a year at another major law firm, she returned to our offices as the senior associate of the insurance team and immediately started acting for the major reinsurance companies of London, Switzerland and Germany.

Ezgi Alpaslan, a junior associate, and Melisa Kocaoğlu, a trainee associate, have also joined the firm in October 2023. Ezgi is a dedicated member of the litigation team, focusing on both transport and insurance law, and has already established herself as a team member in major disputes. Meanwhile, Melisa will qualify as a lawyer in Autumn 2024 and will join the firm formally once she receives her license. She will be a member of the transport and insurance team, similar to Ezgi.

Finally, as of March 2024, İpek Kaleli and Pınar Demiralp have been promoted to mid-level associates. Their two years of junior associates provided more than enough time to show their abilities and they have arisen in ranks to establish themselves as more senior members of the team and it will be less than several years before they qualify as senior members of the transport and insurance team. İpek focuses on shipping law and especially casualties and both support Çağla in the major insurance matters of the team.

As such, partner Feyzi Erçin’s transport and insurance team comprises of one senior associate, two mid-levels associates, and two junior associates for the 2024-2025 year.