Attorney Krzysztof Wąsowski was presented today with what are being called bizarre charges by the prosecutor’s office in a case where he himself serves as defense counsel for three suspects. The association Lawyers for Poland has issued an open letter—obtained by Niezalezna.pl—demanding an immediate response from the National Bar Council (Naczelna Rada Adwokacka) to what they consider a form of pressure exerted on the attorney. “It is political in nature,” emphasized Judge Łukasz Piebiak. The situation has outraged many other lawyers as well.
Attorney Krzysztof Wąsowski, who represents individuals facing accusations in politically charged cases initiated by Prosecutor General Adam Bodnar’s office, has been summoned by the prosecutor not as legal counsel but as a suspect—in a case where he is defending three other individuals. A few days ago, Wąsowski revealed on social media that shortly after speaking with journalist Anita Gargas, two officers from the Central Anti-Corruption Bureau (CBA) appeared at his law office with a summons to appear before Prosecutor Karol Zok.
This revelation has caused significant outrage within large parts of the legal community in Poland. Numerous voices have called for the Bar Association to take action in this matter.
Open Letter from Lawyers for Poland
Niezalezna.pl obtained the open letter addressed to the President of the National Bar Council, Przemysław Rosati, issued by the association Lawyers for Poland, led by its president, Judge Łukasz Piebiak.
According to the letter, the case in which Wąsowski has been summoned as a suspect pertains to the Governmental Agency for Strategic Reserves (RARS). The association points out that the case is “political in nature, and of prestige to the current government as well as to the leadership of the prosecutor’s office and the Ministry of Justice.”
“The conduct of the law enforcement authorities suggests that the goal of this action is to force Dr. K. Wąsowski, attorney-at-law, to disclose information obtained from his clients in the course of providing their legal defense—or possibly to exert pressure on him to limit his ability to defend them,” – wrote Judge Łukasz Piebiak in the letter.
The letter underscores that the summoning of a defense lawyer as a suspect represents an “unprecedented attempt to violate attorney-client privilege and the right to defense.” The authors liken such practices to those known from North Korea, Russia, or Belarus.
The open letter calls for an urgent and firm response from the National Bar Council:
“In the opinion of the Association, it is in the public interest that the professional organization to which Dr. K. Wąsowski belongs respond swiftly and decisively,” – it states.
Charges Against the Attorney
Krzysztof Wąsowski appeared today at the prosecutor’s office in compliance with the summons. On social media, he reported that he “listened to the charge, against which he is defenseless, as he is bound by attorney-client privilege, and even more so, by the special secrecy of a defense counsel.”
“I am hoping that the Bar itself will be my ‘defense’… although despite my letters, so far, the leadership of my professional association has remained silent,” – he added.