Due to holidays and illnesses, it is difficult to gather a full bench of 11 judges at the Constitutional Court; why not go back to the number of 9 judges, which applied during the PO-PSL government, then nobody would be bothered – said Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki on Saturday about the draft amendment of the law on the organization and procedure at the Constitutional Tribunal by PiS- delegates.
On Thursday, PiS MPs submitted to the Sejm a draft amendment to the law on reducing the full composition of the Constitutional Tribunal; it is about reducing the minimum number of judges of the General Assembly and the full composition of the Constitutional Tribunal to nine judges. The amended provisions apply to proceedings initiated and not completed before the date of entry into force of the amendment. For months now, a dispute has been raging in the Constitutional Tribunal over the term of office of President Julia Przyłębska, who recently prevented the Tribunal from meeting fully.
When Morawiecki was asked about the draft novella at Saturday’s press conference, he said, among other things, that up to and including 2016, the so-called full composition of the Constitutional Tribunal, which could judge, consisted of 9 people, which was then changed to a composition of 11 members. Morawiecki noted that during the time of the PO-PSL government, “no one was disturbed” by the nine-member Constitutional Tribunal.
I could function normally
– added.
Very often there are holidays, illnesses, now we also face a situation where it is difficult to get 11 people together. Why don’t you just change it in the most logical way back to the number that was in place for years during the reign of opposition PO and PSL?
said the prime minister.
Let TK function normally in peace, quiet, let them make a decision. Whatever decision the judges of the Constitutional Court take, we will adapt to it
said the prime minister.
On Friday, the draft amendment on the reduction of the full composition of the Constitutional Tribunal was submitted for first reading to the Sejm Committee on Justice and Human Rights. The committee’s chairman, Marek As, told PAP on Saturday that it would begin work on the project at the next session of the Sejm on May 24-26.
He noted that the committee is currently awaiting the opinion of the Sejm Research Bureau on the conformity of the bill with European law.
When asked about the expected length of the bill, he replied that “it’s not a long project,” so the whole thing wouldn’t take more than “one sitting.”
The Constitutional Tribunal has set the date of the hearing on the amendment of the Supreme Court law for May 30. The President’s request in this case, submitted under the preventive review procedure, is to be heard by the Full Court Tribunal, chaired by the President of the Constitutional Court. At present, an assembly of at least 11 judges of the Constitutional Court is required to conduct a full court hearing. Meanwhile, a dispute has been going on in the Constitutional Tribunal for months, making it impossible for the Tribunal to meet in full.
Dispute in TK
The dispute is related to the fact that according to some lawyers, including former and current judges of the Constitutional Court, Przyłębska’s term of office as President of the Constitutional Court expired after 6 years, i.e. on December 20, 2022, and at the same time she cannot reapply for this function. According to Przyłębska herself, as well as Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and some experts, her term of office will expire in December 2024 – with the end of Przyłębska’s term as judge of the Constitutional Tribunal.
In early January, six judges of the Constitutional Tribunal, including Vice President Mariusz Muszyński, sent a letter to Julia Przyłębska and the President demanding that she convene the General Assembly of Judges of the Constitutional Tribunal and select candidates from among them the President appoint a new president.
At the beginning of March, the press service of the Constitutional Tribunal reported that President Przyłębska had convened the General Assembly of Tribunal judges, which “passed by an absolute majority, in the presence of two-thirds of the Tribunal judges, a resolution stating that there was no reason to convene a meeting to select candidates for president of the tribunal.”
At the beginning of April, the Constitutional Tribunal received a letter from five judges of the Constitutional Tribunal in which they indicated their willingness to proceed with the president’s motion on the Supreme Court Act, but indicated in the letter that all actions of Przyłębska, attributed to the President of the Constitutional Tribunal, are ineffective and contrary to applicable law. Five judges also called for the convening of the General Assembly of the Constitutional Court and the election of a new president. Referring to this letter, Judge Jarosław Wyrembak of the Constitutional Tribunal stated that it is part of a series of actions that seriously threaten Poland’s raison d’être.
It is clear to me that – in accordance with the law in force in Poland – today the head of the Constitutional Court Prof. Julia Przyłębska
– said on Saturday morning in RMF FM MEP and PiS Vice President Joachim Brudziński.
In fact, listening to Mr Mariusz Muszyński and Mr Bogdan Święczkowski, their media activity is nothing but grist to the mill for those who strive to overthrow Law and Justice in Poland.
said Brudzinski.
READ ALSO: The Justice Committee of the Sejm will consider the draft amendment at the Constitutional Tribunal. We know the date. “Not More Than One Meeting”
mly/PAP
Source: wPolityce