Donald Tusk Signs Documents Against President’s Will: Dispute Over Judicial Assessor Nominations Escalates

Prime Minister Donald Tusk has countersigned judicial assessor appointment documents against President Karol Nawrocki’s will, sparking a sharp political and constitutional clash over the legality of court rulings.

Allegations of a Political Conspiracy and the Government’s “Solomon-Like” Solution

Prime Minister Donald Tusk signed the first of the documents regarding the latest assessor nominations on Wednesday to ensure they could legally begin their duties. He assessed that the Constitutional Tribunal and the president formed a political conspiracy to violate the constitution by bypassing the institution of countersignature.

The assessor nomination documents handed out in July by President Karol Nawrocki were sent by court presidents to the National Council of the Judiciary (KRS), which forwarded them to the Prime Minister’s Chancellery. The Prime Minister stated at a Wednesday conference that this occurred because the president handed out nominations without first fulfilling the constitutional obligation of obtaining the prime minister’s countersignature.

The president handed the acts of appointment to the new assessors at the end of July. He did not forward them to the head of government beforehand, citing a June 25 ruling by the Constitutional Tribunal which found that the prime minister’s countersignature requirement for such acts is unconstitutional.

Over 200 Assessors and the Threat of Undermining Court Rulings

The Prime Minister stated that the drama of the situation lies in the fact that two institutions responsible for protecting and respecting the constitution conspired to break it. He stated that the Constitutional Tribunal, under President Bogdan Święczkowski, decided to positively respond to President Nawrocki’s request by stating that such documents do not require the prime minister’s countersignature.

Tusk noted that the legal appointment of a group of over 200 assessors means they can process between 10,000 and 11,000 cases monthly, as assessors can also adjudicate before becoming judges in the full sense of the word.

However, the Prime Minister warned that if anyone deemed a ruling issued by one of the July assessors invalid due to the lack of a countersignature on the appointment act, it could de facto prevent this group of assessors from taking any action.

Consequently, the head of government stated that a Solomon-like solution was found, similar to several other cases. Court presidents sent the flawed appointment documents back to the KRS with the intention that they would reach him so that a countersignature would be placed on them despite the will of the president and Święczkowski.

KRS Stance and Sharp Criticism from the Head of Government

Tusk announced that the documents received by each nominee will carry both President Nawrocki’s signature and his own. According to the KRS, this fulfills the countersignature requirement despite President Nawrocki’s objections. He stated that after signing the first document at the Prime Minister’s Chancellery, he would sign the remaining ones following the Wednesday conference.

The Prime Minister emphasized the clear stance of the KRS from July 29, which states that official presidential acts not explicitly mentioned in the provisions of the Polish Constitution concerning presidential prerogatives require the countersignature of the Prime Minister.

Tusk stressed that as prime minister, he received such documents for countersignature from all previous presidents, including Andrzej Dudá, and no one doubted that such official decisions require a countersignature under the constitution and political principles.

He stated that the nominees did not go to the National School of Judiciary and Prosecution to play political games, but to become judges and adjudicate, and that they have become victims of a petty game.

An Attempt to Change the System Without Changing the Constitution?

The Prime Minister stated that Poles are waiting for expedited court proceedings, and the potential number of cases the nominated group can handle is impressive. He added that he finds no words to criticize this political game and the blatant violation of the constitution in the background.

He evaluated that the July appointment of assessors without a countersignature is another attempt to de facto break the constitution to change the system without amending it. Tusk stated that such actions would be possible if the constitution were amended as President Nawrocki desires, but the current constitution remains in force.

He added that it is very sad that both the president and members of the so-called Constitutional Tribunal are participating in this conspiracy against the constitution. The Prime Minister noted that he strives to solve problems resulting from the unconstitutional actions of President Nawrocki without escalating emotions.

Background of the Dispute: Tribunal Ruling, Sejm Resolution, and Criticism

In its June ruling, the Constitutional Tribunal found that assessor nominations constitute a functionally necessary action to execute the presidential prerogative of appointing judges without requiring a countersignature.

The government does not recognize the effects of rulings issued by the current Constitutional Tribunal. In a March 2024 resolution, the Sejm indicated that respecting tribunal rulings issued in violation of the law may breach the legality principle, and these rulings have not been published in the Journal of Laws since. Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek declared that he does not refer to the current tribunal’s decisions as judgments, and earlier in July, he appealed for the prompt deployment of over 200 graduates who passed their judicial exams.

After the president handed out the assessor nominations in July without sending them for the prime minister’s signature due to the tribunal’s ruling, the KRS published a position indicating that official presidential acts not listed in Article 144, paragraph 3 of the Constitution require a countersignature. It noted that the effectiveness of these appointments will be determined by the prime minister’s countersignature.

Supreme Court First President Zbigniew Kapiński expressed a different view, calling the council’s position egregiously unfair to those who received their appointment acts. He added that since the prime minister does not participate in appointing judges who enjoy full constitutional irremovability, there is no rational reason to make the appointment of assessors dependent on a political decision.

Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek Comments on the Assessor Case

Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek addressed the matter on Wednesday afternoon in a statement published on the Prime Minister’s Chancellery profile on X. He recalled that the prime minister has countersigned over two hundred acts appointing judicial assessors, noting that an assessor exercises judicial functions and issues rulings.

He assessed that without the prime minister’s signature, the assessor nominations would be invalid, and their rulings could be challenged.

Żurek emphasized that delaying the nominations was unacceptable, as the assessors could have been adjudicating in Polish courts since May, with every month of their work resolving nearly 11,000 cases for citizens awaiting court verdicts.

Regarding the Constitutional Tribunal’s ruling, Żurek stated that the tribunal lacks a proper composition, meaning its supposed rulings will not be recognized.

Commentary from Zbigniew Bogucki of the Presidential Chancellery

According to Zbigniew Bogucki, head of the Presidential Chancellery, the prime minister’s signatures on the assessor appointments previously handed out by President Nawrocki have no legal significance. Bogucki described them as a dramatic and inept attempt to escape a self-created legal quagmire, framing them as an unconditional capitulation to the president’s exclusive constitutional prerogative confirmed by the Constitutional Tribunal.

Bogucki questioned the competence of the individuals advising the prime minister, encouraging him in a post on X to ignore such advisors to avoid embarrassing both himself and the office of the Prime Minister.

Bogucki argued that even when a countersignature was customarily granted regarding assessor appointments, the prime minister’s signature was placed on a presidential decree rather than on individual appointment acts, which were never countersigned.

He pointed out that Article 106, paragraph 1 of the Law on the Common Courts System states that judicial assessors are appointed by the President for an indefinite period upon the request of the KRS, with no mention of a countersignature. He added that the absence of a countersignature requirement was confirmed by the Constitutional Tribunal’s rulings on June 25, 2026, and in 2007, which indicate that executive branch involvement in appointing judicial representatives threatens judicial independence.

Bogucki ironized that the prime minister should include the Supreme Court in his conspiracy theory since the First President of the Supreme Court filed the application with the tribunal.

Bogucki also stated that forcing assessors to submit appointment acts for a neo-countersignature constitutes an unacceptable form of pressure on the judiciary to enforce obedience to the executive branch, marking an unlawful, anti-democratic interference in judicial independence that must be judged criminally and constitutionally in the future.

In Bogucki’s assessment, the prime minister is attempting to divide common court assessors and administrative court assessors arbitrarily. He encouraged the prime minister to find the courage to fulfill his actual duty of countersigning the presidential decree regarding the revocation of the Order of the White Eagle from the President of Ukraine instead of signing meaningless appointment acts.

National Council of the Judiciary Commentary

The National Council of the Judiciary also commented on the matter in a statement on X, noting that thanks to the prime minister’s countersignature, assessors will be able to begin adjudicating, resulting in up to 10,000 completed cases monthly and reduced waiting times for citizens.

The KRS emphasized that it has supported the appointed assessors from the beginning, highlighting discussions during council meetings, meetings with assessor representatives, and a late July resolution positively evaluating the presidential appointments and noting that a countersignature would decide their effectiveness.