A dozen or so judges from Kraków issued a statement that they would not adjudicate with neo-judges. For that, the court president, a nominee of Minister Ziobro quickly reported them to the disciplinary commissioner. But more judges from Warsaw and Rzeszów are contesting the legality of the neo-judges.

Disciplinary commissioner Piotr Schab suspended judge Piotr Gąciarek for a month for a declaration made a few days earlier in which Gąciarek refused to adjudicate in a bench with a judge promoted by the new, political National Council of the Judiciary. Gąciarek is the second judge recently suspended for refusing to adjudicate with a neo-judge in the performance of the July judgment of the CJEU and the ECtHR.

The Minister of Justice suspended Judge Adam Synakiewicz from Częstochowa for a month for challenging the status of neo-judges and implementing the judgments of the CJEU and ECtHR. Zbigniew Ziobro breached the CJEU judgment in this way, for which he may be criminally liable in the future

Judges from across Poland call on the government and the president of the Supreme Court to implement the CJEU rulings. The appeal was signed by a record number of Polish judges, including over 400 judges from Krakow. More signatures are still being collected. Supreme Court judges are also signing the appeal.

Prosecutor General Zbigniew Ziobro is resorting to an extraordinary complaint to punish Judge Waldemar Żurek, one of the symbols of the defense of independent courts in Poland. He appealed to the Supreme Court against a judgement which was favourable for Żurek regarding his property settlements with his ex-wife.   Judge Waldemar Żurek from the Regional […]

The president of the court in Gorzów Wielkopolski ordered the removal of an important judgment regarding the omission of Julia Przyłębska’s Constitutional Tribunal ruling from the database of judgments. The judgment will return to the database after the full data of Mariusz Muszyński from the Constitutional Tribunal is deleted and his identity is concealed under the initials “M.M.”. The public prosecutor is joining the case.

President Andrzej Duda has issued a regulation silencing the old judges of the Supreme Court and restricting their initiative.  In exchange, it strengthens the position of President Manowska and the new judges. It also sanctions the principle of non-disclosure of cases in the Supreme Court. 

The new NCJ, which is supposed to defend the independence of the courts, has itself attacked the court in Bydgoszcz for reinstating Judge Paweł Juszczyszyn. It has also attacked the judge’s lawyer, who is demanding that the First President of the Supreme Court enforce the ruling in Juszczyszyn’s case.

Independent Judge Piotr Gąciarek from Warsaw has been removed from adjudicating in important criminal cases. He will be assigned to a quieter division in the court. This is a demotion for him and a punishment for his bold speech in court in defence of the free courts. Ziobro’s disciplinary commissioner is also taking an interest in Gąciarek

This is a precedent-setting and sensational judgment. For the first time, a Polish court has directly challenged a decision of the illegal Disciplinary Chamber. The judgment of the court in Olsztyn is immediately enforceable, which means that Pawel Juszczyszyn can return to work in court.