Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek removed Mrs. Małgorzata Hencel-Święczkowska from her position as president of the Sosnowiec District Court in September 2023.
Background
Mrs. Małgorzata Hencel-Święczkowska is the wife of Bogdan Święczkowski, the president of Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal. She assumed her position in Sosnowiec in 2017 during the ruling period of the Law and Justice Party (Prawo i Sprawiedliwość).
Minister’s Justification
Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek defended his decision to suspend Hencel-Święczkowski by stating it was necessary to restore the rule of law. He accused some judges, who received nominations during the PiS government, of being appointed to their positions in an unlawful manner.
Opposition from the Tribunal President
Święczkowski criticized the minister’s decision, stating that it had a personal character and was a form of retaliation against the Constitutional Tribunal’s actions that displeased Żurek.
