On June 30, an internal review order sent the Polish Academy of Sciences back to the case that stripped Dr. Jacek Bartosiak of his doctorate, triggering a legal battle that could drag on for years.
RDN’s June Decision
On June 30, the Rada Doskonałości Naukowej (RDN) directed the Polish Academy of Sciences (PAN) to repeat the procedural review that led to the 2024 decision stripping Bartosiak of his degree, citing formal errors that had been identified earlier.
The directive was a response to the previous administrative decision that declared his doctoral thesis plagiarised.
Dr. Bartosiak’s Appeal
Following the June ruling, Dr. Bartosiak announced in mid‑October that the case was a “clear success,” claiming the plagiarism accusations were unfounded.
He filed an appeal against the RDN decision with the regional administrative court, stating he wanted the decision to be “even better, more beneficial and to highlight the standards that should govern such proceedings.”
RDN Spokesperson’s Statement
Artur Woźniak, RDN’s press officer, confirmed that the appeal had been lodged and that he would not discuss the details, noting it was not public information.
He explained that the RDN’s decision to remand the case to PAN was a procedural step, not a judgment on the merits of the plagiarism claim, and that the administrative court would assess whether the RDN acted correctly in sending the case back.
Long‑standing Plagiarism Dispute
Dr. Michał Piegzik, who first triggered the 2024 PAN decision, said the protracted appeal process delays a substantive review of the thesis and that legal manoeuvres will not change the outcome of evidence evaluation.
He warned that if the RDN decision had not been contested, the matter would have returned to PAN in late October, taking about six months to resolve.
Origins of the Controversy
Initial doubts about Bartosiak’s 2015 doctoral thesis and the 2016 book “Pacific and Eurasia. On War” surfaced in mid‑2023, centred on alleged plagiarism from English‑language sources.
Piegzik’s investigation identified several instances of uncredited usage of American think‑tank analyses.
Current Status and Possible Outcomes
Because the 2024 PAN decision has not yet become final, Bartosiak remains formally a PhD holder but may lose the title if the appeal is dismissed.
Should the case proceed to the Supreme Administrative Court, the proceedings could linger for several years.
