02 August 2022
Everything must remain the same for everything can change
The European Arrest Warrant mechanism has been one of the fiercest manifestations of the rule of law crisis in Poland. Four years have passed since the EU Court of Justice instructed executing courts to carry out a two-step test, to decide on the execution of EAWs issued by a Member State affected by systemic deficiencies to the independence of its judicial system. Four years later, the Polish government has only dug itself deeper into its authoritarian trench. With its recent rulings, the Court has significantly broadened the criteria and factors on which the executing courts can rely, when assessing the risk of a breach of Article 47(2) CFR in the issuing State. Continue reading >>
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26 July 2022
Beyond Constitutional Doctrine?
In a recent post on Verfassungsblog, Michał Stambulski and Karol Muszyński make a number of wide-ranging statements and stinging criticisms of what they believe to be the shortcomings of “doctrinal constitutionalism”, “legal constitutionalism” and “doctrinal legal constitutionalism.” What the authors fail to do at any point, however, is define what they mean by these terms. Furthermore, their attack on doctrinal constitutionalism - which includes ad hominem attacks while ironically calling for a more serious engagement and less ‘emotional’ or ‘easy moral evaluation’ - fails to offer any alternative solutions to a rule of law crisis that the authors themselves readily acknowledge to be a problem. Aside from a plea to pay closer attention to economic, social and political context, it is by no means clear what they would put in place of the doctrinal/legal constitutionalism that they appear to be so passionately opposed to. Continue reading >>
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18 July 2022
Holidays with smog
The Polish energy policy is seeing further controversies. The Minister of Climate and the Environment, Anna Moskwa, allowed poor quality coal to be sold for 60 days. This means that, up to 28 August, households are able to buy bituminous coal with a higher content of sulphur and mercury, as well as harmful mining waste, e.g. mining sludge. This decision is already causing considerable controversy not only among climate activists, but also among voivodship (local) authorities that are implementing so-called anti-smog resolutions. Continue reading >>
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12 July 2022
Hungary, Poland and the “Community of Fate”
In February 2022, the ECJ delivered a ruling in cases brought by Hungary and Poland against the European Parliament and Council. Not only did the ruling uphold the regime of conditionality for the protection of the EU budget; it also entered into the domain of European constitutional identity. Instead of undermining the European commitment to the rule of law, Poland and Hungary may have inadvertently consolidated the place of rule of law in the heart of EU identity. Continue reading >>
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12 April 2022
Electronic Surveillance in a Time of Democratic Crisis
The Polish experience demonstrates how a determined populist government, using the tools available in a democracy, can in a relatively short space of time erode legal safeguards established to control state surveillance activity. The understandable secrecy surrounding the work of the security services must not create an opportunity for the abuse of powers. Surveillance without adequate control weakens democracy, leads to a distortion of its principles, and ultimately, as the ECtHR has warned, threatens its very existence. Continue reading >>
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04 March 2022
The Rule of Law in a Time of Emotions
The aggression against Ukraine is brazen, ruthless and shameless. Images of women and children at border crossings, shelters and subway stations filled with civilians evoke very strong emotions, almost crowding out everything else. And yet the ongoing aggression is defined by another adjective: "lawless". There is a link between lawlessness and violence, between brutality and disrespect for the law as such. This is why, even in times like these, we must continue talk about the Polish rule of law crisis if Poland wants to be a credible international actor. Continue reading >>
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16 February 2022
Mutual (Dis)trust
Last week, the General Court of the European Union, in its judgment T-791/19 Sped-Pro, recognized for the first time the impact that systematic rule of law deficiencies have on national competition authorities. The judgement is seminal, in that it openly questions the ability of national authorities impacted by rule of law backsliding to effectively enforce EU law. The judgement also goes to the heart of explaining the pivotal constitutional role played by competition law within the EU legal order. Continue reading >>
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10 December 2021
Restoring the Rule of Law Through Criminal Responsibility
To restore an independent judiciary and – in a broader perspective – the rule of law, it would suffice to remove the central perpetrators from the judiciary. To achieve this aim, we plead for the criminal responsibility of those judges who severely and intentionally disrespect EU values. Establishing their criminal responsibility in fair proceedings would then justify – in fact: require – their removal from office. Continue reading >>29 November 2021
Military Actions on Dubious Legal Bases
For months, thousands of migrants from Middle Eastern countries attempted to enter Poland threatened by Belarusian troops. As a reaction, Poland has deployed substantial forces to counter the immigration influx, using the Border Guards along with police and military personnel. Thousands of Polish soldiers have been operating on the border with Belarus. There is, however, no published legal basis for these police-like interventions undertaken by military personnel. The spokesman of the Polish Territorial Defence Forces (WOT) cited an old act of the President on 28th of November, which is not in force anymore as it got repealed in June 2020. Continue reading >>
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02 November 2021