Final act
The subjugation of the Polish judiciary
Marta Bucholc, Maciej Komornik
Deutsche Fassung
Abstract
From 2015–2019, the Polish government hugely restricted the independence of the judiciary. It brought the constitutional court to heel and placed the regular courts of law under the control of the executive. The third and final blow came at the end of 2019. The “muzzle law” passed by the government majority is being used to discipline all judges who, invoking European law, still refuse to conform to the vertical power structure. Having already been smeared by the politicians, they also face the prospect, after the law has come into effect, of legal action by the judges of newly-created disciplinary chambers, who have been installed in office by the government.
(Osteuropa 12/2019, pp. 23–37)