National Council of the Judiciary

The National Council of the Judiciary (Polish: Krajowa Rada Sądownictwa) is a public body in Poland responsible for nominating judges and reviewing ethical complaints against sitting jurists.

National Council of the Judiciary
Krajowa Rada Sądownictwa
KRS
Agency overview
Formed1989 (1989)
JurisdictionPoland
HeadquartersWarsaw
Websitewww.krs.pl/pl/

Establishment and composition

The National Council of the Judiciary has 25 members: a representative of the President of Poland, the Minister of Justice, six members of parliament elected by it to serve four-year terms, the First President of the Supreme Court of Poland, the First President of the Supreme Administrative Court of Poland, and 15 judges elected by the "self-governments" to four-year terms.[1][lower-alpha 1]

The council was established in Articles 186 and 187 of the Constitution of Poland.[2] As of 2017 Dariusz Zawistowski was chairman of the National Council of the Judiciary.[3]

Authority

The National Council of the Judiciary is responsible for nominating judges to fill judicial vacancies; formal appointment is then made by the President of Poland.[4]

Criticism and reform

In 2017 the Council of Europe criticized the inclusion of only six women members on the 25-member National Council of the Judiciary, and also the fact that the 15 self-elected judges served "joint" terms, meaning all 15 are replaced en masse every four years.[2] According to the Council of Europe, this threatened the National Council of the Judiciary's continuity.[2] Representatives of the governing Law and Justice Party also criticized the council for nominating judges it claimed privileged their personal political ideologies to protect former officials of communist-era Poland.[4]

2017 restructuring proposal

Under a 2017 draft law aimed at reforming the National Council of the Judiciary, the 15 judges nominated by the self-governments would, instead, be elected by the Sejm.[5] On July 22, the upper chamber of parliament approved the bill by a vote of 55–23 with two abstentions.[6][7] It was advanced to President Andrzej Duda for promulgation, though Duda ultimately vetoed the measure.[8][9]

In November 2017 the measures were taken up again, earning "easy" passage the following month in parliament.[10][11] On December 20, the European Union moved to impose "unprecedented disciplinary measures against Poland" over a series of other laws enacted which it claimed allowed the government to "interfere significantly" with the judiciary.[12] The decision of the European Commission to call for implementation of Article 7 of the Treaty of the European Union marked the first time the process for stripping an EU member state of its voting rights had been initiated in the history of the European Union.[13] In "defiance" of the EU move, Duda immediately signed into law the legislation restructuring the National Council of the Judiciary.[14]

Reaction

An opinion poll found that 63-percent of Poles thought "the judiciary needs to make some serious changes".[15] However, a separate poll by the TVN network in the summer of 2017 found that 55-percent of respondents said President Andrzej Duda should veto the then-proposed changes with 29-percent wanting him to sign them.[16] Pawel Kukiz, leader of Kukiz'15 – parliament's third-largest party – said he believed "the Polish judiciary requires 'thorough reforms and profound personnel changes'" and would not oppose the legislation, though also expressed doubt that it could deliver meaningful reform.[17]

The legislation was criticized by some who noted that all 15 currently serving judges on the National Council of the Judiciary would be removed and replaced using the new procedure, effectively giving the governing party the ability to select those members.[5] Domestic criticism of the legislation came from leading politicians of the opposition Civic Platform.[7] Donald Tusk and Andrzej Rzepliński also both called on the Polish government to scrap the proposed changes, as did Amnesty International and the Council of Europe.[2][5][18] Several protests in Poland against the legislation drew crowds of "tens of thousands" with one demonstration attended by former president Lech Wałęsa.[16] In the US, the Trump Administration stated that the legislation would "undermine judicial independence and weaken the rule of law in Poland".[19]

The legislation was supported by several leading Polish political figures including prime minister Beata Szydło, former All-Polish Youth president Adam Andruszkiewicz, Law and Justice Party leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski, Zdzisław Krasnodębski MEP, and others.[7] Some members of Kukiz'15 joined the governing Law and Justice Party in backing the proposal.[7] International support for Poland's position came from Hungary with prime minister Viktor Orbán stating that "the inquisition offensive against Poland can never succeed because Hungary will use all legal options in the European Union to show solidarity with the Poles".[16]

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See also

Notes
  1. The "self-governments" refer to two judges associations: the general assembly of regional court judges and the general assembly of court of appeal judges.

References
  1. "National Council of the Judiciary". Sejm of the Republic of Poland. Sejm. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
  2. FINAL OPINION ON DRAFT AMEND MENTS TO THE ACT ON THE NATIONAL COUNCIL OF THE JUDICIARY AND CERTAIN OTHER ACTS OF POLAND. Council of Europe. 2017. pp. 6, 18, 22.
  3. "Composition of the Council". National Council of the Judiciary. Government of Poland. Archived from the original on October 3, 2019. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
  4. "Polish government moves to take control of top court". Politico. July 13, 2017. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
  5. "Clash over judges raises fears for Poland rule of law". Financial Times. June 7, 2017. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
  6. "Poland's senators approve contentious court overhaul". ABC News. July 21, 2017. Archived from the original on July 22, 2017. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
  7. Zbytniewska, Karolina (July 20, 2017). "Poland: Fierce reactions to Article 7 threat". Euractiv. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
  8. Shotter, James (July 22, 2017). "Poland Senate passes contested judiciary bill". Financial Times. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
  9. "Poland's President Duda vetoes judicial reforms after protests". BBC News. July 24, 2017. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
  10. "Contested Polish legal changes await president's nod". Radio Poland. December 16, 2017. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
  11. Nalepa, Monika (November 28, 2017). "Poland's in crisis again. Here's what you should know about the far right's latest power-grab". Washington Post. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
  12. "Poland judiciary reforms: EU takes disciplinary measures". BBC News. December 20, 2017. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
  13. Kozlowska, Hanna (December 20, 2017). "The EU has triggered the "nuclear option" against Poland". Quartz. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
  14. "Polish president signs judicial overhaul bills into law". Reuters. December 20, 2017. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
  15. Chorvath, Karolina (July 20, 2017). "Poland steps away from democracy and EU in latest judiciary reforms". Public Radio International. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
  16. "Poland's former president Lech Wałęsa joins protest against judicial overhaul". The Guardian. July 22, 2017. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
  17. "Polish courts need reform but must not be politicized: opposition group". The News. July 17, 2017. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
  18. "Poland: New law undermines the independence of the judiciary". amnesty.org. Amnesty International. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
  19. Murphy, Paul (July 21, 2017). "US warns Poland over judiciary bill as protests grow". CNN. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
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