The key facts

  • Poland's Supreme Court rejected the appeals by Święckowski and Sochański against their removal
  • On October 30, judge Anna Korwin-Piotrowska declared herself acting head of the tribunal
  • President Nawrocki called the events a

Supreme Court rejects appeals by dismissed judges

Poland's Supreme Court has upheld the removal of Constitutional Tribunal President Bogdan Święckowski. According to Gazeta.Ru, citing the outlet Interia, the court rejected the appeals by Święckowski and his deputy Bartłomiej Sochański against the rulings removing them from their posts as judges of the Constitutional Tribunal. Thus, the judicial body upheld the decision that triggered a sharp political crisis in Warsaw.

How the conflict unfolded

The standoff over the tribunal's leadership escalated on October 30, when a crowd of protesters gathered outside the Constitutional Tribunal building in Warsaw. A notice appeared on the tribunal's website announcing the removal of President Święckowski and Deputy Sochański, after which judge Anna Korwin-Piotrowska declared herself acting head of the tribunal as its most senior judge.

Politicians' reaction

Polish President Karol Nawrocki called what happened a forcible seizure of a constitutional body, urgently returned from a trip abroad, and demanded the reinstatement of the tribunal's previous leadership. Against this backdrop, former Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki announced preparations for a vote of no confidence in the government of the current head of the cabinet, Donald Tusk. The Supreme Court's decision effectively consolidates the change in the tribunal's leadership, but, as publications suggest, the political standoff over these events continues.