Poland’s Supreme Court challenges legal provisions requiring Prime Minister’s countersignature for judicial appointments, reigniting political tensions.
Background: The September 2024 Controversy
In September 2024, President Andrzej Duda designated Judge Krzysztof Wesołowski to head the General Assembly of the Civil Chamber of the Supreme Court, a position responsible for selecting candidates for the First President of the Supreme Court. For this appointment to take effect, the presidential decision required the countersignature of Prime Minister Donald Tusk, which was initially provided.
The decision faced strong criticism from the legal community, as Wesołowski is considered a so-called “neo-judge.” Tusk later admitted to an error and announced he was withdrawing his countersignature, stating in an official letter titled “Withdrawal of Countersignature” that he “did not have the necessary information for the proper evaluation of the presidential decision.”
Supreme Court Challenges Legal Provisions
First President of the Supreme Court Małgorzata Manowska has now challenged the legal provisions that require the Prime Minister’s countersignature to validate the President’s designation of a Supreme Court judge to chair the General Assembly responsible for selecting candidates for the First President.
The Supreme Court explains that this designation is necessary when the First President cannot preside over the assembly or when their candidacy has been submitted, otherwise the incumbent First President presides by law.
Challenges Extend to Other Judicial Appointments
The challenged legal provisions also apply to selecting candidates for the president of a specific Supreme Court chamber. Therefore, the objections raised by Manowska in her Constitutional Tribunal petition also address the requirement for countersignature when designating a Supreme Court judge to chair the assembly of judges for a chamber, which selects candidates for the president of that chamber (including the Chamber of Professional Responsibility).
The Supreme Court emphasizes that the contested interpretation “makes it impossible to elect candidates for the position of President of the Supreme Court overseeing the Social Insurance and Labor Chamber, which has been vacant since September 3, 2024.”
Additional Areas of Challenge
The Supreme Court’s press office further reports that Manowska also challenges the interpretation requiring the Prime Minister’s countersignature for the President’s decision to appoint a Supreme Court judge to lead Poland’s most important court in case of a vacancy in the First President position. This also applies to provisions concerning appointing a judge to head a chamber when there is a vacancy in that chamber’s presidency.
Moreover, the submitted petition includes “the issue of the countersignature requirement when the President of the Republic of Poland designates Supreme Court judges to sit in the Chamber of Professional Responsibility of the Supreme Court, as well as when appointing judicial assessors in ordinary courts and regional administrative courts.”
