Justice Minister and Prosecutor-General Waldemar Żurek said the proposals are meant to restore public confidence that cases are heard by independent, impartial judges whose appointments are beyond legal doubt.
One bill would change how the National Council of the Judiciary, a constitutional body that recommends judges for appointment, is chosen.
Under the proposal, the 15 judge members of the council would be elected in direct, secret ballots supervised by the National Electoral Commission, rather than being selected by parliament as they have been since 2018.
Voting rights would go to all judges, while candidates would need at least 10 years of service as a judge and at least five years’ experience in the court where they currently sit, Żurek said.
The second draft, described by the government as a "rule-of-law" bill, targets the legal fallout from judicial appointments made with the participation of the post-2018 National Council of the Judiciary, a structure that critics say was politicized by the previous government.
Żurek said rulings issued with the participation of the so-called “neo-judges” would remain valid, a provision designed to limit legal chaos and protect the finality of court decisions.
At the same time, the bill would require fresh competitions, before a "lawful" National Council of the Judiciary, for certain judges appointed or promoted through the post-2018 procedure.
The government divided such judges into three groups, including newer "junior" judges, judges promoted by the council, and those appointed to judicial office through the council.
New competitions would be required for the latter two groups, according to the proposal.
The draft also includes changes affecting the Supreme Court, including the planned abolition of the Chamber of Extraordinary Review and Public Affairs and the removal of the "extraordinary complaint," a legal mechanism that allowed certain final judgments to be challenged.
It would also change how judges are selected for the Supreme Court’s Professional Liability Chamber, with the stated aim of removing the executive branch’s influence over its composition.
Żurek argued that the broader rule-of-law dispute has caused financial costs for Poland, citing billions in withheld European Union funds, adverse judgments at the European Court of Human Rights, and compensation payments that he said have already exceeded PLN 5.5 million (EUR 1.3 million, USD 1.5 million).
He added that more than 1,000 Polish cases remain pending at the Strasbourg-based court.
Waldemar Żurek. Photo: PAP/Albert Zawada
The bills will now go to parliament.
Żurek acknowledged that President Karol Nawrocki has his own ideas on rule-of-law changes, a signal that the legislation could face political headwinds even if it passes the legislature.
New rules to make it easier for Poles to access land and mortgage registers
The Cabinet also approved a separate bill intended to make it easier for citizens to access land and mortgage registers and to modernize services linked to the National Court Register.
The justice ministry said official extracts from land and mortgage registers would have full legal effect in electronic form as well as on paper, and that users of the government’s mObywatel app would gain access to updates from the National Court Register’s newsletter service.
(rt/gs)
Source: IAR, PAP