Poland has been reprimanded again for stripping down the rule of law. On Monday, the European Court of Justice ruled that a 2019 reform of the judiciary “violates Union law”. The ruling partly confirms an earlier judgment of the Court in which Poland was imposed a penalty, which has now risen to 556 million euros.
With the challenged reform, the Polish government made it impossible for judges to test each other’s judgments for impartiality, under penalty of disciplinary measures. Judges were also required to disclose information about membership of associations and foundations. The government also set up a disciplinary chamber that could remove critical judges from office, deprive them of salary or prosecute criminally.
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The reforms could immediately count on harsh criticism from the European Commission, which is very concerned about the independence of the judiciary in Poland. She challenged the measures with a case at the European Court. In 2021, the Court already ruled in an interim judgment that the disciplinary chamber should be discontinued, on pain of a penalty of one million euros per day.
Binding Obligations
With this Monday’s ruling, the Court reaffirms that judgment and finds that the other reforms also go against EU law. “The value of the rule of law is an essential element of the Union’s identity as a common legal order and is concretely expressed in principles that entail legally binding obligations for the Member States,” the EU’s highest court said on Monday. There is no appeal against the decision.
With the case closed, Poland will finally be fined just over half a billion euros – an amount that will be deducted from EU funds to which Warsaw is entitled.
The ruling instructs Poland to fully reverse the challenged reforms
The ruling also instructs Poland to fully reverse the contested reforms. Earlier, Warsaw already made concessions by changing the disciplinary chamber, but that was not enough for Brussels. If Poland is allowed to reverse the reforms and further dismantle the disciplinary chamber, the European Commission can again go to the Court to impose a new penalty.
“Today is an important day for the restoration of the independent judiciary in Poland,” said European Commissioner Didier Reynders (Justice) in a response. “We now expect Poland to fully comply with the ruling.”
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Special Committee
The ruling comes at a spicy time, now that Poland is being sharply criticized by both Brussels and the US government for yet another measure that puts pressure on the rule of law. The Polish parliament recently voted to set up a special committee to strictly monitor Polish politicians for Russian influence and then ban them from office. The proposal comes in the run-up to parliamentary elections in Poland later this year.
After fierce criticism, Polish President Andrzej Duda announced last Friday that he would adjust the powers of the new commission. It does not allay the fear of political processes. An estimated half a million people took to the streets in Poland on Sunday to demonstrate against the government.