Limiting the possibility of reimbursing the incurred costs of the defence counsel’s fee only up to the amount of the prescribed minimal fee in the case of a person with regard to whom criminal proceedings have been discontinued SK 105/20
Ref. No. SK 105/20
JUDGMENT
IN THE NAME OF THE REPUBLIC OF POLAND
Warsaw, 4 October 2023
The Constitutional Tribunal, composed of:
Piotr Pszczółkowski – Presiding Judge
Zbigniew Jędrzejewski
Mariusz Muszyński
Bogdan Święczkowski
Andrzej Zielonacki – Judge Rapporteur,
having considered, at a sitting in camera on 4 October 2023 – in accordance with Article 92(1)(1) of the Act of 30 November 2016 on the Organisation of the Constitutional Tribunal and the Mode of Proceedings Before the Constitutional Tribunal (Journal of Laws – Dz. U. of 2019, item 2393) – Mr N.W.’s constitutional complaint, lodged with the Tribunal for it to consider the conformity of:
Article 632(2) in conjunction with Article 616(1)(2) of the Criminal Procedure Code of 6 June 1997 (Journal of Laws – Dz. U. of 2020, item 30, as amended) in conjunction with § 15(2) in conjunction with § 11(1)(2) of the Regulation of 22 October 2015 issued by the Minister of Justice as regards rates for the services of advocates (Journal of Laws – Dz. U. item 1800, as amended) – “insofar as the challenged norm limits the possibility of reimbursing the incurred costs of the defence counsel’s fee only up to the amount of the prescribed minimal fee in the case of a person with regard to whom criminal proceedings have been discontinued” – to Article 2, Article 32(1) and Article 42(2) of the Constitution of the Republic of Poland,
adjudicates as follows:
§ 15(2) of the Regulation of 22 October 2015 issued by the Minister of Justice as regards rates for the services of advocates (Journal of Laws – Dz. U. of 2023, item 1964) is inconsistent with Article 2 in conjunction with Article 32(1) and Article 42(2) of the Constitution of the Republic of Poland.
Moreover, the Tribunal decides:
to discontinue the proceedings as to the remainder.
The ruling was adopted by a majority vote.
Piotr Pszczółkowski
Zbigniew Jędrzejewski
Mariusz Muszyński (dissenting opinion)
Bogdan Święczkowski
Andrzej Zielonacki