The State Tribunal in Poland on Wednesday penalized Małgorzata Manowska, the First President of the Supreme Court, for failing to convene a full session as ordered.
Tribunal Imposes Fine on Manowska
The State Tribunal, in a three-person panel, issued the penalty against Manowska on Wednesday, as reported by Wyborcza.pl. The ruling stems from a decision made by the Tribunal on March 11th, concerning a case involving former KRRiT chief Maciej Świrski.
The Tribunal previously expressed legal doubts regarding Manowska’s directive on appointing panels and applying criminal procedure before the Tribunal. To resolve these doubts, Tribunal members sought to pose legal questions to the full Tribunal, requiring Manowska to convene it by April 4th, as she also chairs the Tribunal as the First President of the Supreme Court.
“The State Tribunal Cannot Remain Passive”
The deadline passed without action. Judge Przemysław Rosati stated in the justification for Wednesday’s decision that, considering the Tribunal’s constitutional duties, it cannot remain passive when obligations are clearly not being fulfilled.
Background of the Świrski Case
In Autumn 2025, the Tribunal announced the formation of a panel to hear the case of the former head of KRRiT, consisting of Maciej Miłosz as chairman and members Marcin Radwan-Röhrenschef, Piotr Sak, Marcin Wawrzyniak, and Adrian Salus.
Subsequently, a motion was filed with the Tribunal by MP Maciej Tomczykiewicz (KO) to disqualify Judge Sak. This motion was assigned to Judges Rosati, Marek Mikołajczyk, and Piotr Zientarski, who questioned the full Tribunal on March 11th.
The questions concerned the mechanism for forming adjudicating panels within the Tribunal, which, according to the justification, should be defined by statute and associated regulations, not by the presiding officer’s directive.
Manowska’s Response and Tribunal’s Ruling
Judge Rosati then instructed Manowska to convene a full session of the Tribunal “no later than April 4th, under penalty of a disciplinary sanction.” A continuation of the hearing regarding Judge Sak’s disqualification was scheduled for Wednesday.
In a statement issued in mid-March, Manowska stated that expecting the matter of panel appointments to be resolved within a month and a half was “naive,” suggesting a politically motivated action.
On Wednesday, Rosati informed the Tribunal that Manowska had overturned the March directive and failed to convene the session within the specified timeframe. While she ordered a report on the legal issues to be prepared by September 30, 2026, this would delay a full session until after September 30th, coinciding with the end of Manowska’s term as First President of the Supreme Court on May 26, 2026.
Penalty and Further Action
Judge Rosati determined that Manowska “failed to fulfill her obligation” to convene the full session, leading to delays in resolving the legal issues and undermining public interest. He emphasized that the Tribunal’s efficiency is crucial for upholding constitutional order.
The Tribunal imposed a monetary disciplinary fine of 3,000 złoty on Manowska, citing the seriousness of the violations, the importance of the disregarded obligation, the evident bad faith expressed in her statement, and the lack of justification for non-compliance.
The Tribunal again ordered Manowska to convene a full session to resolve the legal questions by no later than May 11th, again under penalty of sanction. Rosati stressed the urgent need to resolve the legal issues to ensure the smooth handling of the Świrski case.
Additionally, the Tribunal adjourned the hearing on Judge Sak’s disqualification from the Świrski case until May 12th.
Following the session, Rosati told reporters that convening the full Tribunal to amend the regulations months ago would have prevented the procedural issues in the Świrski case. He dismissed Manowska’s directive to prepare a report by September 30th as “purely formal.”
Rosati also stated that the Tribunal is currently handling only one case, ensuring the availability of its members to fulfill their duties promptly. He emphasized that every member of the Tribunal is obligated to participate in a full session to address the presented legal issues, which requires convening such a session.
The Case of Maciej Świrski
The initial motion to bring Świrski before the State Tribunal was submitted to the Sejm by a group of 185 MPs in May 2024. The then-Minister of Culture, Bartłomiej Sienkiewicz, stated that the head of KRRiT was not paying subscription fees to public media.
The Sejm’s Committee on Constitutional Responsibility reviewed the motion and, on June 12, 2025, adopted a report recommending that the Sejm approve it. PiS MPs opposed bringing the head of KRRiT before the Tribunal and appealed to the Constitutional Tribunal, which ruled in mid-July 2025 that two provisions regulating accountability before the State Tribunal of a member of KRRiT were inconsistent with the Constitution.
The Sejm adopted a resolution in March 2024 stating that considering the decisions of the Constitutional Tribunal issued in violation of the law may be considered a violation of the principle of legality by those bodies. Since the adoption of that resolution by the Sejm, the rulings of the Constitutional Tribunal have not been published in the Journal of Laws.
Finally, in late July 2025, the Sejm voted to hold Świrski accountable before the State Tribunal. The Speaker of the Sejm forwarded the resolution and documents to the State Tribunal.
Świrski did not recognize the Sejm’s decision, but on July 28, 2025, the Council members decided to dismiss him from his position as Chairman of KRRiT. Agnieszka Glapiak was appointed as the new chairwoman.