Professor Matczak calls the events around Poland's Constitutional Tribunal 'total devastation'

A lawyer's assessment amid the crisis surrounding the tribunal

Marcin Matczak, a professor at the University of Warsaw, described what is happening around Poland's Constitutional Tribunal as reports Life.ru.

What triggered the escalation

The conflict was triggered by a decision to temporarily suspend the president of the Constitutional Tribunal, Bogdan Święczkowski, and his deputy, Bartłomiej Sochański. The dispute is unfolding between Donald Tusk's government and the tribunal's leadership over the admission of new judges to the bench. Tension around the tribunal building had been building gradually: as early as October 17, the Polish opposition set up a tent camp outside the court, opposing the procedure for the swearing-in of judge Maciej Bereza, elected by the Sejm — his oath was taken in parliament without the president's participation.

Clashes and the authorities' response

Clashes broke out near the tribunal building between demonstrators and the police: according to law enforcement, three people were detained after they climbed over the fence and entered the institution's grounds. After that, the Constitutional Tribunal accused the participants of the conflict of attempting a coup d'état — this is a claim by representatives of the judicial body, not an established fact. President Nawrocki cut short his trip to Senegal and, upon returning to Warsaw, met with Święczkowski and the First President of the Supreme Court, Zbigniew Ziobro's predecessor in office discussions, Małgorzata Gersdorf's successor role holder — the meeting also included First President of the Supreme Court Zbigniew Kapiński.

Context and limitations

All information about the conflict in this publication comes from a single outlet — Life.ru; no independent confirmation of the reported facts and assessments is available in accessible materials. Matczak's assessment is the opinion of a private lawyer, and the tribunal's statement about an