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, reduction of independence of judges of ordinary courts (mainly in relation to disciplinary proceedings), resulting in several protests within the judiciary, the amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code and last but not least the persistent decline of the Constitutional Court. This report refers to the European Commission Reasoned Proposal prepared in accordance with article 7(1) of the Treaty on European Union regarding the rule of law in Poland and supplements it by relevant events of 2018.

Full report in PDF format.