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Wednesday, November 13, 2024

Are Constitutional Tribunal judgments issued with the participation of doubles invalid? The Ombudsman does not share the government's opinion, and the laws were sent to the Constitutional Tribunal anyway

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Two acts, two attempts to reform the Constitutional Tribunal, seem to have been completely crossed out by the president. Definitely blocked. Andrzej Duda talks about the threat of political chaos and refers them to the Julia Przyłębska Tribunal. This means that their fate is practically sealed. The ruling coalition admits that changes must wait until a possible change in the Presidential Palace.

The Acts on the Constitutional Tribunal were – at least in principle – intended to depoliticize the Constitutional Tribunal, but now the judges of the same Constitutional Tribunal will decide whether they will come into force. Everything after the president's decision.

– These laws, which were presented to the President for signature, cannot be considered as any improvement in the situation in the Tribunal, because, above all, these solutions affect the legal situation of citizens – comments Małgorzata Paprocka, head of the Chancellery of the President. – Recognition that there is no group of judges, recognition that there have been no judgments that have already had a specific legal effect – he lists.

Wiącek: You can't create this kind of precedent

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What the President most dislikes about the Tribunal Act is the provision that assumes that judgments issued by the so-called double judges are invalid. The Ombudsman agrees with the president on this matter.

– You cannot create such precedents that a parliament with a certain political majority can state that a group of judgments of the Constitutional Tribunal are not in fact judgments. (…) In my opinion, this is unacceptable and such precedents must not be created – says prof. Marcin Wiącek, Commissioner for Human Rights..

This concerns almost a hundred judgments issued in panels with the participation of so-called double judges, i.e. appointed to positions already held. – To a large extent, they were judgments favorable to people with disabilities, to insured people, to taxpayers and to many different citizens – says Marcin Wiącek.

READ ALSO: The President referred the laws relating to the Constitutional Tribunal to the Constitutional Tribunal for review

Rarely do members of the United Right agree with the Ombudsman. – She's trying to circumvent the constitution. The act assumes that the Sejm, by act, repeals the judgments of the Constitutional Tribunal – comments Sebastian Kaleta, MP of Sovereign Poland.

– This is a good decision, the only alternative was a veto – says Law and Justice MP Krzysztof Szczucki. – This is actually an attack on one of the most important institutions in the country – echoes Sovereign Poland MP Michał Wójcik.

The ruling coalition responds. – These are judgments that are invalid due to the participation of people who should not sit in the Constitutional Tribunal – says Sławomir Ćwik, MP for Poland 2050.

What do the laws assume?

The laws finally adopted by the Sejm in mid-September were to introduce a new election of judges by a three-fifths majority of votes, which would mean that the election would have to be cross-party. Another provision stipulates that persons who have been members of a party, MP or senator during the last four years cannot be candidates for judges of the Constitutional Tribunal.

– In the last four years before the election, you cannot be a member of any party. These are very important provisions when it comes to the independence of those who later hold office – says Prof. Andrzej Zoll, former president of the Constitutional Tribunal.

The invalidity of judgments issued by the so-called doubles is stated in the Act – provisions introducing the Act on the Constitutional Tribunal. But the president sent both bills to the Tribunal, including the one introducing a new election of judges.

Work on the budget for next year is underway. Will the Sejm cut funding for the Constitutional Tribunal and the neo-National Council of the Judiciary?Katarzyna Kolenda-Zaleska/Fakty TVN

– Additionally, this act included transparency of asset declarations, so that Krystyna Pawłowicz would not hide them – as it has been for years – and the most important thing: cutting off politicians from the Constitutional Tribunal – notes Krzysztof Kwiatkowski, senator from the Civic Coalition.

The president referred all this to the Tribunal. Today, the Constitutional Tribunal is not recognized by a number of EU institutions. In March, the Sejm issued a resolution in which it stated that double judges are not judges and that the position of president of the Constitutional Tribunal is held by an unauthorized person.

Less than a year left of Andrzej Duda's term

– I believe that the president did not take advantage of the opportunity to finally solve – and the parliament gave him a hand in this matter – this dramatic crisis that has developed around the Constitutional Tribunal – comments the Speaker of the Sejm Szynom Hołownia.

SEE ALSO: The president is going to Ramstein. The Prime Minister has an urgent request to the ministers

This is yet another important bill that the president referred to the Constitutional Tribunal. Let us recall that there was a bill there that was supposed to depoliticize the National Council of the Judiciary. This time, the Constitutional Tribunal will decide for itself.

– The President directs where to direct the laws that are supposed to repair the situation in the Julia Przyłębska Tribunal? To the Tribunal. My hands are falling off – sums up Krzysztof Kwiatkowski.

– We will wait until the very end, until the end of the presidency, but I am in favor of us doing our own thing – we have a draft bill, let's vote it in the Sejm, let it pass through the Senate and go to the president, so that no one can accuse us of having done nothing. We did. The president blocked it, says Tomasz Trela, MP of the New Left.

There are almost 10 months left until the end of Andrzej Duda's term.

Main photo source: TVN24



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