Constitutional Court reforms in Poland and the December 13 coalition

Marshal of the Sejm Szymon Hołownia expressed the hope that it would be possible to persuade President Andrzej Duda to support reforms to the Constitutional Court, including proposed changes to the Constitution of the Republic of Poland. He also noted that political realism suggests this may not happen.

Yesterday, the Minister of Justice Adam Bodnar and representatives from all parties in the ruling coalition presented a package outlining a comprehensive reform of the Constitutional Tribunal, consisting of four components: a constitutional amendment, a law on the Constitutional Tribunal, a law detailing the implementation provisions, and parliamentary resolutions from the Sejm.

Hołownia: the aim is constitutional change

In a discussion with journalists about the current state of the Constitutional Tribunal, Hołownia said that the Three-Point December coalition would seek to tidy up the situation.

He stressed the importance of doing everything possible to prevent all four projects from being rejected.

He pointed out that the ruling coalition is pursuing constitutional changes, and that this process could take many months. The Marshal of the Sejm expressed hope that it might be possible to convince the president to approve the changes.

Political realism leads to the possibility of another path, he added.

Hołownia underscored the perceived necessity of changes to the Constitutional Court. He remarked that the institution’s current state affects the validity of rulings, noting that the court should reflect contemporary governance.

READ MORE: ‘December 13 Coalition’ unveils a plan to reform the Constitutional Tribunal. Bodnar: We present the assumptions of legal acts regarding comprehensive reforms

Four projects from the December 13 coalition

The Sejm motion for a resolution, included in the package on Constitutional Tribunal reform, calls for the judges to resign and participate in the process of democratic change.

The draft provisions introducing the law on the Constitutional Court state that judgments delivered by the court in recent years by a session of judges not authorized to preside would be considered invalid and have no effect. The justification cites that these were three judges (and their successors) elected in 2015 instead of the previously duly elected three judges.

Regarding the current judges, the intention was that they could submit retirement declarations within one month of the new provisions taking effect, except for those deemed incapable of delivering judgments. The President of the Constitutional Court would be temporarily replaced by the most senior judge, and within three months the General Assembly of Judges would nominate candidates for the presidency to the President. The position could be filled again for one more term, but only once.

According to the draft law on the Constitutional Court, the nine-year term for a judge would remain. A candidate must be between 40 and 70 years old, possess excellent legal knowledge, and hold qualifications necessary for the positions of Supreme Court or Supreme Administrative Court judge.

Candidates could be nominated not only by the Presidium of the Sejm or a group of 50 deputies, but also by the President, a group of at least 30 Senators, the General Assembly of the Supreme Court, the General Assembly of the Supreme Administrative Court, the National Council of Legal Advisers, the Supreme Council of Lawyers, and the National Council of Prosecutors.

The draft constitutional amendment envisions that on the day changes take effect, the terms of current constitutional judges would expire, but they would continue serving until successors are elected. Judges would then have the option to retire. Elections would be held by the Sejm with a 3/5 majority for nine-year terms; if that majority is not reached, an absolute majority would decide. The order of terms would be staggered to ensure stability: three years for five judges, six years for five, and nine years for the remaining five. This approach is intended to maintain smooth operation of the legal system and reduce the risk of a constitutional crisis. The changes would also allow politicians to become Constitutional Court judges four years after their term in the Sejm, Senate, or European Parliament ends, or four years after leaving government service.

Candidates for President and Vice President of the Constitutional Court would be selected by the General Assembly and presented to the President for a three-year appointment. These provisions are also included in the draft law on the Constitutional Court.

The Constitution would include a provision allowing any court to refer a legal question to the Constitutional Court about the compatibility of a normative act with the Constitution if the resolution of a pending case depends on that answer and direct application of the Constitution is insufficient.

Hołownia’s statements, such as “You have to do everything” and “I hope it will work,” reflect a broader debate about the direction of reform. Critics question whether the President of Poland can be convinced to back measures that would alter the structure of the Constitutional Court and potentially affect the rule of law.

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PAP/rdm