The assertion presented by the media, that the sole objective of the so-called ‘great reform of the justice system’ lies in a one-off replacement of judicial personnel with a view to replace the key judicial office holders by those subordinated to the Minister of Justice is an overlyoptimistic simplification of matters. The authors of the ‘reform of the justice system’ were far more ambitious.

In the last few months, the use of the new disciplinary procedures has become increasingly bald-faced. Increasingly, the authorities do not appear to be ashamed of their real motives, which are unabashedly political’ – writes prof. Piotr Mikuli at I-CONNECT.

Prosecutor Bogdan Święczkowski announces the doctrine of infallibility of the Ziobro-Święczkowski prosecutor’s office.

The rule of law reigns in Poland, but does not necessarily govern. And reigning without governing means powerlessness – writes Ewa Łętowska.

Through the Act of 8 December 2017 on the Supreme Court, drafted by the President of the Republic of Poland Andrzej Duda, the Law and Justice party has made radical changes in the system of judges’ disciplinary responsibility

Today, the European Commission has launched an infringement procedure by sending a Letter of Formal Notice to Poland regarding the new disciplinary regime for judges. The Polish government has 2 months to reply.

Competitive bids for providing assistance to victims of crime are being won by organisations with no experience, but with political connections with Zbigniew Ziobro and PiS. The losers are organisations that have been helping victims for years. Victims are also losing – they have no one to turn to for help.

In the annual report of the US Department of State on observance of human rights in, the American lawmakers state that during the year 2018 the Polish government continued to implement and introduce new measures related to the judiciary that drew strong criticism from some legal experts, NGOs, and international organizations. Some claim that the government’s measures limited the scope of judicial independence

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

Judge Alina Czubieniak did not agree for an intellectually disabled illiterate boy without a defence attorney to be held in custody. Minister Ziobro did not like her judgment, because the local press was roaring that the judge had released a ‘paedophile’. The minister wanted the judge to receive a disciplinary penalty and the new Disciplinary Chamber of the Supreme Court has just punished the judge for her verdict