In the report published on 20 March 2019 by the Stefan Batory Foundation in cooperation with the European Stability Initiative, the two organisations discuss the state of rule of law in Poland. The authors argue that the EU should use its most effective tool to defend the rule of law and lodge another complaint to the Court of Justice of the EU

The Justice Defence Committee (KOS) published a report entitled “A country that punishes. Pressure and repression of Polish judges and prosecutors”. The main objective of the report is to present how new disciplinary mechanisms in the judiciary and public prosecution service are being used as tools of political pressure and intimidation.

The Justice Defence Committee (KOS) presented a report on radical changes in the system of disciplinary responsibility of judges, which appeared together with the Supreme Court Act of December 2017. The report documents the repression that the government applies to prosecutors and judges.

This report, prepared by the Polish Bar Council and the National Bar of Attorneys-at-Law, provides a general overview of the rule of law situation in Poland in 2018. 1 It focuses on actions taken by the ruling Government resulting in: reduction of independence of the Supreme Court, paralysis of the National Council of the Judiciary, […]

56 per cent of respondents in Poland would like the European Commission to continue demanding that the Law and Justice party authorities observe the rule of law in Poland, while just 39 per cent would prefer it to “forgive the government”.

The measures adopted by the ruling majority, the Government and the President appear to intend to ensure that the executive and legislative branch can take control of the judiciary and as such they raise serious concerns about the separation and independence of courts in Poland.

The report contains Commission’s position for the hearing of Poland before the Council of the EU on 11 December 2018. Commission maintains that Poland does not comply with its recommendations concerning the rule of law. The recent amandment to the law on Supreme Court is seen as a positive development. But other problems remain

Batory Foundation Legal Expert Group concludes that nothwitstanding the positive direction of the Amendment Act on the Supreme Court, it is primarily an instrument to obtain desired effect in the negotiations with the EU.

The report “Nations in Transit” published yearly by Freedom House analyses key factors of democratic rule in the post-communist countries in Europe and Central Asia. In the 2018 edition, Poland recorded the largest category declines and the second-largest Democracy Score decline in the history of the Report

Unconstitutional selection panel, unconstitutional and unreliable selection procedure and lacking candidates taking part in the gross betrayal of the values underlying legal professions.