The roots of this go back to October 2015, when the outgoing Civic Platform-led parliament elected five…
Politics · · Poland
The roots of this go back to October 2015, when the outgoing Civic Platform-led parliament elected five Constitutional Tribunal judges. The Tribunal subsequently ruled that three appointments were valid and two were not. After winning the election, PiS challenged all five appointments and elected replacement judges, including for three positions that had already been lawfully filled.
The dispute escalated when the PiS government refused to publish certain Tribunal rulings and introduced major legislative changes affecting the court. In December 2016, further controversy surrounded the appointment of Julia Przyłębska as Tribunal president, with constitutional lawyers questioning the legality of the procedure.
Over the following years, concerns about judicial independence, politically influenced appointments and the Tribunal's impartiality intensified. European institutions, including the European Commission and the Council of Europe, raised serious concerns about the rule of law in Poland.
When Donald Tusk's coalition took power in 2023, it attempted to reverse the changes and restore the Tribunal's independence. However, its proposed reforms were themselves challenged, and President Karol Nawrocki subsequently refused to sign the relevant legislation.
The latest confrontation concerns six judges elected by parliament in March 2026. Two took their oaths before the President, while four completed the oath procedure in parliament in his absence. The President and the Tribunal's leadership dispute the validity of the latter procedure, while the parliamentary majority considers the appointments completed.
In December 2025, the Court of Justice of the European Union also ruled that the Tribunal, in its then-current composition, did not meet the requirements of an independent tribunal established by law.
Source: @GeoInsider
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