Prof. Dr. İpek Sevda Söğüt advises on medical and health law, with a focus on issues arising from the interaction between healthcare systems, pharmaceutical regulation and biomedicine. Her work draws on more than two decades of experience combining academic research with legal practice.

Her practice is centred on medical law, bioethics and pharmaceutical law. She advises on matters where legal frameworks meet clinical realities and technological developments, particularly in relation to physician liability, patient rights and the handling of sensitive health data.

She is regularly involved in regulatory and compliance-related matters as well as disputes concerning medical malpractice, hospital liability and reimbursement mechanisms  regulatory and compliance-related matters in the healthcare sector. In these settings, she provides expert opinions, combining analytical precision with practical insight.

Her work also extends to areas where the legal framework continues to evolve, including informed consent in specialised medical interventions, genetic data, vaccination policies and emerging biomedical technologies. Public health governance and access to medicines form a consistent part of her work.

She graduated from Istanbul University, Faculty of Law, and completed her postgraduate studies (LL.M. and PhD) at Marmara University. She also holds a degree in philosophy, which informs her work at the intersection of law, medicine and ethics.

Prof. Söğüt is a full professor at Piri Reis University Faculty of Law, within the Department of Private Law, serves as Head of the Health Law Center of the Istanbul Bar Association and is frequently appointed as an expert in proceedings involving healthcare providers, pharmaceutical matters and complex medical disputes.

At the international level, she has been appointed as National Reporter for Türkiye by the International Academy of Comparative Law. She is currently preparing the 2026 national report on equitable access to medicines as a component of the right to health.

This work examines the legal framework governing access to medicines across the pharmaceutical lifecycle, including constitutional guarantees, transparency requirements, pricing and reimbursement mechanisms, accountability structures and international cooperation. It also considers how public interest concerns are balanced with the commercial realities of the pharmaceutical sector.

She has published extensively in medical law and bioethics, with a particular focus on vaccination, data protection in healthcare, stem cell research and patient autonomy, as well as broader questions relating to access to healthcare and medicines.

Representative Work

• Advising on legal aspects of access to medicines, including reimbursement frameworks, pricing approaches and the balance between public interest and commercial considerations
• Advising on legal and ethical issues related to biomedical developments, including stem cell research, genetic data and reproductive technologies
• Acting as legal expert in pharmaceutical matters, including reimbursement of treatment and drug costs, regulatory compliance and product-related liability
• Advising on medical malpractice and physician liability, including the legal characterisation of the patient-physician relationship and the scope of professional responsibility in complex medical interventions
• Providing expert opinions in disputes involving private hospitals, including administrative sanctions, reimbursement claims and contractual issues arising from hospital admission agreements
• Advising on disputes arising from physician professional liability insurance, including coverage issues and the assessment of malpractice-related damages
• Providing guidance on the protection of personal health data, particularly sensitive and genetic data
• Advising on informed consent in specialised or high-risk medical procedures
• Contributing to legal discussions on pandemic-related measures, including vaccination frameworks and public health governance
• Advising on patient rights and healthcare providers’ obligations, including issues relating to medical records, confidentiality and reporting duties
• Providing expert assessments in disputes involving healthcare professionals’ rights and obligations under Turkish healthcare legislation
• Contributing to comparative legal work on end-of-life decisions and access to medicines

Education

LL.B., Istanbul University, Faculty of Law, 2000
LL.M. in Private Law, Marmara University, 2007
Ph.D. in Private Law, Marmara University, 2012
B.A. in Philosophy, Istanbul University, 2021
B.A. in Sociology, Istanbul University (ongoing)

Practice Areas

Medical Law and Healthcare Regulation
Pharmaceutical and Vaccine Law
Biolaw and Bioethics
Physician Liability and Medical Malpractice
Physician Professional Liability Insurance
Patient Rights and Informed Consent
Protection of Personal Health Data
Public Health Law and Pandemic Regulations
Access to Medicines and Right to Health

Associations

Istanbul Bar Association-Head of Health Law Center
Turkish Bioethics Association
Medical Law Association
Society for Medical Ethics, Law and HistoryDoctorclub-Member of the Legal Advisory Board