It seems a defeat is about to begin: in the dispute with the EU over the independence and private life of judges, Poland lost the final defeat at the European Court of Justice (ECJ) on Monday.
The court in Luxembourg has announced that the 2019 Polish judicial reform is in breach of EU law. Specifically, it concerns a law from 2019, with which Poland, according to the EU Commission, impermissibly curtailed the independence of Polish judges. The European Court of Justice therefore upheld an appeal by the European Commission (C-204/21). In particular, the disciplinary tribunal for judges, which has since been abolished, has undermined judicial independence.
Penalties are likely to be reduced
It was not until April 2021 that the Luxembourg judges imposed a fine of one million euros per day on Poland. This was halved to half a million euros in April after Poland abolished the controversial disciplinary chamber for judges. The judgment that has now been handed down also affects future decisions about the penalty imposed. Just a month ago, the ECJ halved the fines imposed.
Poland’s dispute with the EU
The EU has been taking action against Poland for various judicial reforms since early 2016. She accuses the National Conservative government in Warsaw of limiting the independence of the judiciary and undermining the separation of powers. The ECJ has already issued several rulings on this.
For example, Luxembourg judges rejected as unlawful a 2017 law by which Poland had lowered the retirement age of judges in general, while at the same time giving the Minister of Justice the possibility to extend it again in individual cases. Later, the ECJ also called for an independent review of appeals against the transfer of judges.
Source: Krone
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