Infringement procedure by the European Commission against Poland over the disciplinary regime for judges

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Publication Date 2019
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Summary:

Reports and information relating to the infringement procedure launched by the European Commission against Poland over its disciplinary regime for judges, which allows judges to be sujected to disciplinary investigations, procedures and sanctions on the basis of the content of their judicial decisions.

Further information:

The European Commission argues that the disciplinary regime introduced by the Polish government does not insulate judges from political control and thus judicial independence is violated. For that reason, the Commission addressed on 3 April 2019 a letter of formal notice to Poland's authorities. Following the analysis of the response to the letter, the Commission sent a reasoned opinion on 17 July as the response had not alleviated the legal concerns previously raised. As the country failed to address the concerns again following the opinion, the Commission decided to take Poland to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) on 10 October.

This process runs in parallel but separate to a CJEU case already ongoing relating to the same disciplinary regime introduced in Poland.

Related Links
News
Euronews, 04/04/2019: Poland EU moves to sanction Poland over law targeting judges https://www.euronews.com/2019/04/04/eu-moves-to-sanction-poland-over-law-targeting-judges
Bloomberg, 10/10/2019: Poland Faces European Union Lawsuit Over Judge Discipline Rules https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-10-10/poland-faces-european-union-lawsuit-over-judge-discipline-rules
Politico, 10/10/2019: EU launches another infringement case against Poland https://www.politico.eu/article/eu-launches-another-infringement-case-against-poland/
Reuters, 10/10/2019: EU sues Poland over new measures for disciplining judges https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN1WP1CY
The Guardian, 10/10/2019: EU challenges Poland over judicial independence https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/oct/10/eu-sues-poland-over-judicial-independence
EUObserver, 11/10/2019: Commission takes Poland to court on eve of election https://euobserver.com/political/146234
EurActiv, 10/10/2019: Commission refers Poland to top EU court over treatment of judiciary https://www.euractiv.com/section/justice-home-affairs/news/commission-refers-poland-to-top-eu-court-over-treatment-of-judiciary/

Official
European Commission: Press Release, 03/04/2019: Rule of Law: European Commission launches infringement procedure to protect judges in Poland from political control https://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-19-1957_en.htm
European Commission: Press Release, 17/07/2019: Rule of Law: European Commission takes new step to protect judges in Poland against political control https://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-19-4189_en.htm
European Commission: Press Release, 10/10/2019: Rule of Law: European Commission refers Poland to the Court of Justice to protect judges from political control https://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-19-6033_en.htm

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