Abstract
In order to understand the Polish case, one has first to zoom out of the case and zoom into the very nature of European integration: Unlike other regional integration mechanisms, like ASEAN, the EU has been built from the outset on the rule of law—the European Court of Justice (EUCJ) therefore is an essential part of the EU´s institutional structure.
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Notes
- 1.
European Commission Staff Working Document (2020). 2020 Rule of Law Report, Country Chapter on the rule of law situation in Poland. 30 September 2020; EUR-Lex, at https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:52020SC0320.
- 2.
Wojciech Kosc (2021). “Poland digs in over mine spat with EU”. Politico, 27 December 2021; at https://www.politico.eu/article/poland-digs-in-over-mine-spat-with-eu/.
- 3.
Anna Wlodarczak-semczuk (2021). “Polish court rules some EU law is unconstitutional, deepening dispute”. Reuters, 7 October 2021; at https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/polish-constitutional-tribunal-some-articles-eu-treaties-unconstitutional-2021-10-07/.
- 4.
For details on the Polish case see Marta Lasek—Markey (2021). “Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal on the status of EU law: The Polish government got all the answers it needed from a court it controls”. European Law Blog, 21 October 2021; at https://europeanlawblog.eu/2021/10/21/polands-constitutional-tribunal-on-the-status-of-eu-law-the-polish-government-got-all-the-answers-it-needed-from-a-court-it-controls/.
- 5.
Constitutional Court of Poland (2021). “Article 6(1), first sentence, of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, insofar as the term 'tribunal' used therein comprises the Constitutional Tribunal”. K6/21 at https://trybunal.gov.pl/en/hearings/judgments/art/11709-art-6-ust-1-zd-1-konwencji-o-ochronie-praw-czlowieka-i-podstawowych-wolnosci-w-zakresie-w-jakim-pojeciem-sad-obejmuje-trybunal-konstytucyjny (accessed 30 December 2021).
- 6.
Verfassungsblog on Matters Constitutional (2022). “From Romania with Love”. 14 February 2022; at https://verfassungsblog.de/from-romania-with-love/.
- 7.
European Court of Justice (2021). Interim Relief, Order by the Vice-president of the Court, 6 October 2021; at https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:62021CO0204(01)&from=EN.
- 8.
European Commission (2021) “Rule of Law: Commission launches infringement procedure against Poland for violations of EU law by its Constitutional Tribunal”. Press release, 22 December 2021; at https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/IP_21_7070 (emphasis added).
- 9.
The Irish Times (2022). “Brussels ready to recoup unpaid fines from Poland as rule of law rift widens”. 14 January 2022; at https://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/europe/brussels-ready-to-recoup-unpaid-fines-from-poland-as-rule-of-law-rift-widens-1.4776348.
- 10.
New York Times (2021). “How the E.U. allowed Hungary to become an illiberal model”. 3 January 2022; at https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/03/world/europe/hungary-european-union.html?referringSource=articleShare.
- 11.
Euronews (2021). “EU begins legal action against Hungary over anti-LGBT law”. 15 July 2021; at https://www.euronews.com/2021/07/15/eu-begins-legal-action-against-hungary-over-anti-lgbt-law.
- 12.
Deutsche Welle (2021). “Hungarian top court declines to rule on EU law in asylum case”. 10 December 2021; at https://www.dw.com/en/hungarian-top-court-declines-to-rule-on-eu-law-in-asylum-case/a-60077221.
- 13.
See EUR-lex. Glossary of Summaries. Primacy of EU law. Accessed 27 December 2021 at https://eur-lex.europa.eu/summary/glossary/primacy_of_eu_law.html.
- 14.
Costa v ENEL (Case 6/64).
- 15.
Internationale Handelsgesellschaft mbH v Einfuhr- und Vorratsstelle fur Getreide und Futtermittel (Case 11/70); Amministrazione delle Finanze dello Stato v Simmenthal SpA (Case 106/77); Marleasing SA v La Comercial Internacional de Alimentacion SA (Case C-106/89).
- 16.
Niels Petersen, Konstatin Chatziathanasiou (2021). “Primacy’s twilight?” European Parliament Think tank. 27 April 2021; at https://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document/IPOL_STU(2021)692276.
- 17.
Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (2012); at https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:12012P/TXT&from=EN.
- 18.
Council of Europe (1950). Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.; at https://www.echr.coe.int/documents/convention_eng.pdf.
- 19.
European Parliament (1997). The Division of Competences in the European Union. H. Adjudicating the Dilemma of Competences—Judicial Kompetenz-Kompetenz; at https://www.europarl.europa.eu/workingpapers/poli/w26/adju_en.htm.
- 20.
“Article 10: Union law
1. The Constitution, and law adopted by the Union's Institutions in exercising competences conferred on it, shall have primacy over the law of the Member States.
2. Member States shall take all appropriate measures, general or particular, to ensure fulfilment of the obligations flowing from the Constitution or resulting from the Union Institutions' acts.” Treaty Establishing a Constitution for Europe (18 July 2003); at https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52003XX0718(01)&from=EN.
- 21.
Official website of the President of Poland (2021). The President vetoed the Broadcasting Act. 27 December 2021; at https://www.prezydent.pl/aktualnosci/wydarzenia/prezydent-zawetowal-ustawy-o-radiofonii-i-telewizji,47225?utm_source=POLITICO.EU&utm_campaign=c859bd31a7-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2021_12_28_05_59&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_10959edeb5-c859bd31a7-190655620 (accessed 28 December 2021).
- 22.
Consolidated version of the Treaty on European Union. Official Journal of the European Union, C 326/13, 26 October 2012; at https://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:2bf140bf-a3f8-4ab2-b506-fd71826e6da6.0023.02/DOC_1&format=PDF emphasis added.
- 23.
Ibid., emphasis added.
- 24.
The draft was signed in Rome on 29 October 2004 by representatives of all 25 member states; 7 held referendums, France and The Netherlands rejected the project which led after a reflection process to the Treaty of Lisbon.
- 25.
Rafal Manko (2019). Protecting the rule of law in the EU. EPRS | European Parliamentary Research Service, November 2019; at https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2019/642280/EPRS_BRI(2019)642280_EN.pdf.
- 26.
Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2020/2092 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2020 on a general regime of conditionality for the protection of the Union budget. Official Journal of the European Union L 433 I/1; at https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32020R2092&from=EN.
- 27.
European Court of Justice (2021). InfoCuria, case law, Opinion of Advocate General Campos Sanchez-Bordona, Case C‑156/21, Hungary v European Parliament and Council of the European Union, 2 December 2021; at https://curia.europa.eu/jcms/upload/docs/application/pdf/2022-02/cp220028en.pdf https://curia.europa.eu/juris/document/document.jsf?text=&docid=250424&pageIndex=0&doclang=EN&mode=req&dir=&occ=first&part=1&cid=4861192.
- 28.
Court of Justice of the European Union (2022). PRESS RELEASE No 28/22 Luxembourg, 16 February 2022; at https://curia.europa.eu/jcms/upload/docs/application/pdf/2022-02/cp220028en.pdf.
- 29.
Article 7 “2. The European Council, acting by unanimity on a proposal by one third of the Member States or by the Commission and after obtaining the consent of the European Parliament, may determine the existence of a serious and persistent breach by a Member State of the values referred to in Article 2, after inviting the Member State in question to submit its observations.”
- 30.
European Parliament, Parliamentary questions on application of the new regime of conditionality for the protection of the Union budget 8 October 2021; at https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/P-9-2021-004585_EN.html#def1.
- 31.
Legal Service of EP, Analysis of EC response, 27 August 2021; at https://www.politico.eu/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/21/Legal-Service-Opinion.pdf.
- 32.
European Commission, Statement 7 October 2021. “European Commission reaffirms the primacy of EU law”; at https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/statement_21_5142.
- 33.
European Commission (2021) Press release, 22 December 2021.
- 34.
“The Union is founded on the values of respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities. These values are common to the Member States in a society in which pluralism, non-discrimination, tolerance, justice, solidarity and equality between women and men prevail” (emphasis added).
- 35.
Article 19.1 TEU: “The Court of Justice of the European Union shall include the Court of Justice, the General Court and specialised courts. It shall ensure that in the interpretation and application of the Treaties the law is observed. Member States shall provide remedies sufficient to ensure effective legal protection in the fields covered by Union law.”
- 36.
Ursula von der Leyen (2021). https://twitter.com/vonderleyen/status/1450385524867444741.
- 37.
Petersen, Chatziathanasiou (2021).
- 38.
Future of Europe 2021-Special Eurobarometer 96.1 (2022) “62% Membership in the EU is a good thing. Bad thing: 10%”; at https://europa.eu/eurobarometer/surveys/detail/2554
- 39.
Aljazeera (2022). “Poland’s president proposes bill to end rule of law row with EU”. 3 February 2022; at https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/2/3/polands-president-proposes-bill-to-end-rule-of-law-row-with-eu. See also Judgment in Case C-430/21, Press release No 31/22, Luxembourg, 22 February 2022, on primacy of EU law and prohibition of disciplinary measures against judges; at https://curia.europa.eu/jcms/upload/docs/application/pdf/2022-02/cp220031en.pdf.
- 40.
Ursula von der Leyen (2022). Speech by President von der Leyen at the European Parliament Plenary on the rule of law and the potential approval of the Polish national recovery plan, 7 June 2022; at https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/SPEECH_22_3528.
- 41.
The case is one of 94 currently pending applications against Poland, mostly lodged in 2018–2022, concerning various aspects of the reorganisation of the Polish judicial system initiated in 2017.
- 42.
European Court of Human Rights (2022). Judgment Advance Pharma SP. z o.o v. Poland “Systemic dysfunction in judicial appointments procedure in Poland”. Press Release, ECHR 039 (2021) 03.02.2022; at https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/app/conversion/pdf/?library=ECHR&id=003-7249361-9866930&filename=Judgment%20Advance%20Pharma%20SP.%20z%20o.o%20v.%20Poland%20-%20Systemic%20dysfunction%20in%20judicial%20appointments%20procedure%20in%20Poland.pdf.
- 43.
Reuters (2022). “EU notifies Poland it will withhold its EU cash to cover unpaid fines”. 8 February 2022; at https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/eu-notifies-poland-it-will-withhold-its-eu-cash-cover-unpaid-fines-2022-02-08/ (case C-121/21 Czechia v Poland on Turów).
- 44.
Lily Bayer (2021). “Next year will be critical for the rule of law—Europe’s troublemakers face tough electoral challenges”. Politico, 27 December 2021; at https://www.politico.eu/article/eu-europe-rule-law-elections-hungary-viktor-orban-fidesz-poland-pis-donald-tusk-slovenia-janez-jansa/.
- 45.
European Parliament, Press release 5 April 2022. Question time with Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, at https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/de/press-room/20220401IPR26529/question-time-with-commission-president-ursula-von-der-leyen.
- 46.
Politico (2022). “In major first, EU triggers power to cut Hungary’s funds over rule-of-law breaches”. 27 April 2022; at https://www.politico.eu/article/eu-european-commission-rule-law-mechanism-hungary-funds/.
- 47.
Hungary Today (24 May 2022). “Government declares state of emergency due to war”; at https://hungarytoday.hu/pm-orban-government-declares-state-of-emergency/.
- 48.
OSCE International Election Observer Mission. Hungary—Parliamentary Elections and Referendum, 3 April 2022. Preliminary Conclusions; at https://www.osce.org/files/f/documents/4/6/515111_1.pdf.
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Reiterer, M. (2023). The Primacy of EU Law Over National Law: Rule of Law Contested—Reflections on the Case of the Polish Constitutional Court. In: Deguchi, M., Yakushiji, K. (eds) Europe and Asia as a Legal Area for Fundamental Rights. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-7542-4_6
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