“Such a data carrier should primarily be left with the person who was searched if they declared that it contained information covered by attorney–client privilege. If the person’s declaration raises doubts, then—without reviewing its contents—the device should be sealed in a secure envelope and handed over to the court,” said Przemysław Rosati, President of the Polish Bar Council (Naczelna Rada Adwokacka), in an interview with Niezalezna.pl. He confirmed that he had intervened with Prosecutor General Waldemar Żurek in this matter.
Nearly a week ago, media outlets reported that Judge Jakub Iwaniec of the Warsaw-Mokotów District Court had allegedly been involved in a car accident. The incident was said to have occurred in the Lublin region on Saturday evening. In response to these reports, attorney Michał Skwarzyński denied that his client had been behind the wheel at the time of the collision.
On Sunday, at the prosecutor’s request, police officers seized Judge Iwaniec’s phone, despite the intervention of his defense lawyer, attorney Skwarzyński.
“I made it clear to the prosecutor that the secured phone contains information protected by attorney–client privilege and that I am the defense attorney. That alone should have been sufficient for the phone to be handed over to the court. Instead, it was sent to the National Prosecutor’s Office,” Skwarzyński told Niezalezna.pl.
Asked for comment, Przemysław Rosati, President of the Polish Bar Council, said that he had sent an official letter today to Prosecutor General Waldemar Żurek.
“He heads the prosecution service and is the natural counterpart for such interventions. Referring to the information provided to me by attorney Skwarzyński, I requested clarification of the matter—both regarding the circumstances described by him and, above all, the need to protect attorney–client privilege. I do not accept such situations. They are unacceptable from the standpoint of fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution and international law, but above all from the standpoint of the rights and interests of citizens who, for various reasons, may come into contact with the justice system. Attorney–client privilege is sacred,” Rosati emphasized.
He explained that the law clearly defines how to handle materials or data carriers that may contain privileged information.
“The authority must act in accordance with the rules set out in Article 225, applied correspondingly by virtue of Article 236a of the Code of Criminal Procedure,” he said, adding that “the legal profession has never accepted and will never accept any actions that violate attorney–client privilege.”
“It is absolute in nature. This means that under no circumstances may any authority conducting searches or seizing documents or devices access information covered by this privilege. Protecting it is an absolute duty of the state authorities. On one hand, it guarantees several constitutional rights—from the right to privacy to the right to defense—and on the other, it builds citizens’ trust in their own state and its institutions, including prosecutors and courts,” he emphasized.
The Bar Council President added that if attorney Skwarzyński’s account is confirmed, the situation must be investigated.
“Not only because of what Mr. Skwarzyński has indicated specifically, but also to ensure that such situations never happen again,” he warned.
Asked whether the phone, which remains in the prosecutor’s possession, should be handed over to the court, Rosati pointed to the applicable procedures:
“Such a device should first of all be left with the person who was searched, if they declared that it contains information covered by attorney–client privilege. If the person’s declaration raises doubts, then—without accessing its contents—the device should be sealed in a secure envelope and delivered to the court. Only the court may decide what happens to it.”
“The rule is clear. It’s really not a complicated provision. Such actions must always be condemned. They cannot be tolerated. Once we start tolerating them or fail to react, it will end very badly for citizens,” Rosati concluded.