The European Commission’s complaint against Poland to CJEU

The Court of Justice of the Europe Union (CJEU) received a complaint from the European Commission (EC) against Poland regarding the jurisprudence and legitimacy of the Constitutional Tribunal to adjudicate the Court of Justice of the European Union on July 17, 2023.

The Court of Justice of the Europe Union announced the update regarding the complaint from the European Commission on Wednesday.

In the update, The CJEU stated that the complaint is mainly about jurisprudence and the right to legitimacy of the Constitutional Tribunal.

Furthermore, In the opinion of the Commission, the Constitutional Tribunal interprets the Constitution in two judgments: July 14, 2021 (P 7/20) and October 7, 2021 (K 3/21). 

Meanwhile, the two judgements, i.e., July 14, 2021 (P 7/20) and October 7, 2021 (K 3/21), violate Poland’s obligations under Article 19 Section 1, second subparagraph of the Treaty on European Union (TEU). It also rejects the general principles of autonomy, primacy, effectiveness and uniform application of EU law and the binding effect of CJEU judgments.

In addition, the Commission sought a declaration that Poland had failed to fulfil its commitments under Article 19 Section 1, second subparagraph of the TEU due to the Constitutional Tribunal’s failure to meet the requirements of an independently impartial court previously established by statute. 

According to the sources, Article 19 sec. 1, the Treaty of European Union states, 

• The Court of Justice of the European Union shall include the Court of Justice, the General Court and specialised courts to ensure that the law is observed in the arrangement and application of the Treaties.

• Member States shall provide remedies sufficient to ensure legal protection in the fields covered by Union law.

As per the announcement from CJEU, These reservations are related to irregularities in appointing three judges of the Constitutional Tribunal in December 2015 and in the procedure for appointing its President in December 2016.