The Act on the Supreme Court, insofar as it concerns the rules
of procedure for selecting candidates for the position of the First President of the Supreme Court K 3/17
Ref. No. K 3/17
JUDGMENT
IN THE NAME OF THE REPUBLIC OF POLAND
Warsaw, 24 October 2017
The Constitutional Tribunal, in a bench composed of:
Julia Przyłębska – Presiding Judge
Leon Kieres
Mariusz Muszyński – Judge Rapporteur
Justyn Piskorski
Andrzej Zielonacki,
having considered, at a sitting in camera on 24 October 2017 – 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. item 2072) – an application lodged by a group of Sejm Deputies with the Tribunal to consider the conformity of:
1) Article 16(1)(1) of the Act of 23 November 2002 on the Supreme Court (Journal of Laws – Dz. U. of 2016 item 1254, as amended) – insofar as it concerns the rules of procedure for selecting candidates for the position of the First President of the Supreme Court – to Article 2 and Article 183(2) in conjunction with Article 183(3) of the Constitution;
2) Article 16(1)(3) of the Act referred to in point 1 above – insofar as it does not provide for the issuance of a resolution by the General Assembly of the Judges of the Supreme Court with regard to the selection of candidates for the position of the First President of the Supreme Court – to Article 2 in conjunction with Article 183(3) of the Constitution;
3) the resolution of 14 April 2003 issued by the General Assembly of the Judges of the Supreme Court with regard to the rules of procedure for selecting candidates for the position of the First President of the Supreme Court (not published):
a) insofar as it does not specify in § 8 of the rules of procedure for selecting the aforementioned candidates, where the rules constitute an appendix to the resolution referred to in point 3, the obligation to issue a resolution to present the President of Poland with candidates proposed by the General Assembly of the Judges of the Supreme Court for the position of the First President of the Supreme Court – to Article 2 in conjunction with Article 183(3) of the Constitution;
b) to Article 2 and Article 183(2) in conjunction with Article 183(3) of the Constitution, due to the fact that it pertains to matters that are required to be regulated by statute;
4) § 8 of the rules of procedure referred to in point 3 above to Article 2, Article 7 and Article 183(3) of the Constitution;
and in the event that the Tribunal ruled the allegations to be apt, the applicants requested the Tribunal to determine the legal effects of its ruling in the present case on situations that had emerged before the delivery of the ruling as well as to state that legal acts adopted on the basis of unconstitutional regulations were not legally effective,
adjudicates as follows:
1. Article 16(1)(1) of the Act of 23 November 2002 on the Supreme Court (Journal of Laws – Dz. U. of 2016 items 1254, 2103 and 2261 as well as of 2017 items 38 and 1452) – insofar as it concerns the rules of procedure for selecting candidates for the position of the First President of the Supreme Court – is inconsistent with Article 2 and Article 183(2) in conjunction with Article 183(3) of the Constitution of the Republic of Poland.
2. Article 16(1)(3) of the Act referred to in point 1 is consistent with Article 2 in conjunction with Article 183(3) of the Constitution.
3. The resolution of 14 April 2003 issued by the General Assembly of the Judges of the Supreme Court with regard to the rules of procedure for selecting candidates for the position of the First President of the Supreme Court (not published) is inconsistent with Article 2 and Article 183(2) in conjunction with Article 183(3) of the Constitution.
4. § 8 of the rules of procedure for selecting candidates for the position of the First President of the Supreme Court, where the rules constitute an appendix to the resolution referred to in point 3, is inconsistent with Article 2, Article 7 and Article 183(3) of the Constitution.
Moreover, the Tribunal decides:
to leave without examination the request for the Tribunal to determine the legal effects of its ruling in the present case on situations that emerged before the delivery of the ruling as well as to state that legal acts adopted on the basis of unconstitutional regulations are invalid.
The ruling was adopted by a majority vote.
Julia Przyłębska
Leon Kieres
Mariusz Muszyński
Justyn Piskorski
Andrzej Zielonacki