• Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter

maltawinds.comLogo

The Economy's Voice

Menu

Skip to content
  • Home
  • About
  • Local News
  • International News
  • Opinion
  • Demia on Sundays
  • Demeter
  • Business
  • Satire on Sunday
  • 500 trees planted at Majjistral Park
  • TWO WEIGHTS TWO MEASURES BY HEALTH AUTHORITIES

EU steps up legal action against Poland over judicial independence

Posted by Vento on 15th August 2018 in International News

The European Commission took another step in its infringement procedure against Poland over the rule of law Tuesday, pursuing efforts to protect the independence of the Polish Supreme Court.

The new Polish law on the Supreme Court lowers the retirement age of Supreme Court judges from 70 to 65, which puts 27 out of 72 sitting Supreme Court judges at risk of being forced to retire. This measure also applies to the First President of the Supreme Court, whose 6-year mandate, set out in the Polish Constitution, would be prematurely terminated.

According to the law, current judges affected by the lowered retirement age are given the possibility to request a prolongation of their mandate by the President of the Republic, which can be granted for a period of three years, and renewed once. There are no criteria established for the President’s decision and no judicial review is available if the request is rejected.

The EU Commission believes that the introduction of a consultation of the National Council for the Judiciary (NCJ) does not constitute an effective safeguard, as claimed by the Polish authorities. The NCJ’s opinion is not binding and is based on vague criteria. Moreover, following the reform of 8 December 2017, the NCJ is now composed of judges-members appointed by the Polish Parliament, in violation of European standards on judicial independence.

The EU executive says it has carried out a ‘thorough analysis’ of the response of the Polish authorities to the Letter of Formal Notice sent by the Commission on 2 July 2018 concerning the Law on the Supreme Court. The response of the Polish authorities does not alleviate the Commission’s legal concerns.

The Commission’s position is that the Polish law on the Supreme Court is incompatible with EU law as it undermines the principle of judicial independence, including the irremovability of judges, and thereby Poland fails to fulfil its obligations under Article 19(1) of the Treaty on European Union read in connection with Article 47 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.

The Commission has now moved to the next stage of the infringement procedure.

The Polish authorities have one month to take ‘the necessary measures’ to comply with this Reasoned Opinion. If the Polish authorities do not take appropriate measures, the Commission may decide to refer the case to the Court of Justice of the EU.

 

Posted in International News | Tagged Court of Justice, EU, European Commission, law, Poland, Supreme Court

About the Author

Avatar

Vento

Related Posts

US, EU impose sanctions on Russia over poisoning of Alexei Navalny→

Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz says his country will no longer rely on the EU for vaccines→

EU must prepare for ‘era of pandemics’, von der Leyen says→

EU leaders talk vaccine passports and urgency of hastening rollout→

advertisement
  • Posts
  • Comments
  • Tag Cloud
  • 500 trees planted at Majjistral Park

    6th March 2021 / Vento
  • TWO WEIGHTS TWO MEASURES BY HEALTH AUTHORITIES

    5th March 2021 / Reuben Buttigieg - President of ACE
  • ‘Justice in rents starts with the real property value’

    5th March 2021 / Vento
  • Northern Irish loyalist paramilitaries withdraw support for 1998 peace deal

    5th March 2021 / Vento
  • Agreement between the Government and MUMN regarding foreign public sector employees – Number of new conditions announced

    5th March 2021 / Vento
  • Avatar
    Joseph Tabone on In his final days as POTUS, Trump…Trump will be voted out…
  • Avatar
    Joseph Tabone on Moviment Graffitti in strong opposition to outrageous…Why the objections? If the…
  • Avatar
    Joseph Gatt on The government is committed to supporting Malta’s…Both the Business Start (B…
  • Avatar
    Hindi Lyrics on Nurse death toll from COVID-19 hits the…I have been looking for…
  • Avatar
    Mehfooz Roy on US Presidential Elections: Biden leads polls in…You really think sleepy Joe…
aviation banking Bitcoin blockchain Boris Johnson BOV brexit business China climate change COVID-19 cryptocurrency Donald Trump ECB economy Education environment EU euro area Europe European Commission European Parliament European Union Eurostat eurozone France Germany Government Infrastructure Malta investment Italy lockdown Malta maritime pandemic politics recovery restrictions technology travel UK United States US vaccine WHO

News Calendar

August 2018
M T W T F S S
 12345
6789101112
13141516171819
20212223242526
2728293031  
« Jul   Sep »
Footer logo
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
 




 
 
 

Copyright © 2016 MaltaWinds.com

Menu

  • About
  • Home