Kazım Bey

Mehmed Kâzım Efendi was born in 1858-1859 in the İbradı district of Antalya as the son of the deputy judge Ahmed Hilmi Efendi. After attending the sıbyan school, he studied at Söke Rüşdiyesi; after coming to Istanbul, he continued madrasa lessons at Süleymaniye Mosque.

While working as a court clerk, Kâzım Efendi attended the Mekteb-i Hukuk-ı Şâhâne and graduated from it in 1886 with an excellent degree. Soon afterward he was appointed deputy director of the Mekteb-i Hukuk, and in 1891 became its director. He continued in this post for many years until his resignation in 1908, and a major part of his life was closely tied to the administration and teaching life of the law school.

At the Mekteb-i Hukuk, he taught civil procedure, enforcement law and commercial law, and also taught administrative law as an acting instructor. At the Darülfünun Law Madrasa, he taught practical legal exercises and became one of the teachers who represented the applied side of legal education.

Among Kâzım Efendi’s written legacy in law, his work Telhîs-i Hukuk-ı Mevzûa is especially notable. In this work he addressed a wide range of subjects, including legal science, legislation, the Şûrâ-yı Devlet, provincial and municipal administration, the organization of courts, the Mecelle, criminal law, civil and criminal procedure, land law and commercial law.

Mehmed Kâzım Efendi also served in judicial institutions such as the Court of Cassation, the commercial courts, and the appeal and first-instance courts of Dersaadet. In 1920 he served for a short period as Minister of Justice. The Ministry of Justice was the late Ottoman equivalent of today’s Ministry of Justice and administered the justice system from the centre.

According to the date on his gravestone, Mehmed Kâzım Efendi died on 19 July 1336, corresponding to 1920, and was buried in the Fatih Mosque Cemetery.