17 people – legal authorities – have sent a letter to Prime Minister Donald Tusk regarding the referendum, i.e. the signing and approval of the decision of President Andrzej Duda, according to which Judge Krzysztof Wesołowski was appointed chairman of the meeting of the Civil Chamber of the Supreme Court. According to the lawyers, what the Prime Minister did contributed to “slowing down the progress towards the rule of law” and raises “deep concern”.
RMF FM reporter Krzysztof Zasada reports that a letter from legal authorities to Prime Minister Donald Tusk concerns kintra-signatures under the president’s decision in the case appointment of the so-called new judge as president of the assembly of judges of the Civil Chamber of the Supreme Federal Court.
The Prime Minister’s act – as written -“caused deep concern.”
“Previous rulings by the Court of Justice of the European Union and the European Court of Human Rights – which Poland has committed to implementing – have already determined that the participation in the work of the Supreme Court of judges appointed with the participation of the incorrectly constituted National Council of the Judiciary deprives these activities of the characteristics of an independent court composed of independent judges,” the authors of the letter wrote.
They recalled that “soon the Labor and Social Security Chamber of the STF will face the same problem as the Civil Chamber of the STF”.
“We hope that this time we can avoid mistakes that will distance us from the restoration of the rule of law.” – wrote, among others, Wojciech Hermeliński – judge in st.sp. Constitutional Court, prof. Monika Płatek from the Faculty of Law and Administration of the University of Warsaw, prof. Włodzimierz Wróbel from the Faculty of Law and Administration of the Jagiellonian University, prof. Ewa Łętowska – former ombudsman, judge of the court. the Constitutional Court or Maciej Nowicki – President of the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights.
By decision of President Andrzej Duda, Judge Krzysztof Wesołowski was appointed chairman of the assembly of judges of the Civil Chamber, which is to select candidates for the position of chairman of this chamber. In accordance with the regulations, the decision was countersigned by Prime Minister Donald Tusk. Judge Wesołowski was appointed to the Civil Chamber of the Supreme Court in March 2022 – to the Supreme Court was selected in a procedure before the National Council of the Judiciary, changed during the PiS government.
Information on the acceptance by the head of government of the appointment of Judge Wesołowski – selected in proceedings before the National Council of the Judiciary following changes introduced by the PiS government since 2018 – generated several comments from lawyers.
An explanation is needed in a case that has outraged primarily the community of independent lawyers, all those who have been involved in the struggle to restore the basic sense of the rule of law in Poland. I won’t beat around the bush, I want to say it very clearly, there was a mistake. – said Prime Minister Donald Tusk during Wednesday’s press conference.
