“On the territory of the Republic of Poland, the highest law is the Constitution of the Republic of Poland, whose guardian is the President in accordance with Article 126 of the Constitution. The only body that assesses the compliance of specific acts and government actions, including in the field of competence disputes, is the Constitutional Tribunal,” said Zbigniew Bogucki, Head of the Chancellery of the President of the Republic of Poland. The politician was commenting on the interim measure issued by the European Court of Human Rights, which ordered Poland to ensure that “the competent authorities do not hinder judges from taking up their positions.”
On Thursday, April 9, an event took place in the Sejm organized by Speaker Włodzimierz Czarzasty, during which individuals elected by the Sejm as judges of the Constitutional Tribunal took an oath “before the President of the Republic of Poland,” who, however, was not present in the Sejm.
The President of the Constitutional Tribunal, Bogdan Święczkowski, did not allow these individuals to begin their duties. In response to this decision, the anti-judges – Marcin Dziurda, Anna Korwin-Piotrowska, Krystian Markiewicz, and Maciej Taborowski – submitted a request for intervention to the European Court of Human Rights.
The institution issued an interim measure today ordering Poland to “ensure that its competent public authorities refrain from hindering the taking up and exercise of judicial duties by the judges of the Constitutional Tribunal elected by the Sejm on March 13, 2026.“The Court also emphasized that “the interim measure is immediately binding and enforceable.”
“In light of this interim measure, the President of the Constitutional Tribunal is obliged to immediately perform the duties incumbent upon him under the Act on the Status of Judges of the Constitutional Tribunal,” the institution stated.
According to the Court, the President of the Constitutional Tribunal must “create conditions enabling the anti-judges to perform their judicial duties.” The institution also requested that the Polish authorities “submit information regarding the applicants’ situation by May 20, 2026.”
The move by the European Court of Human Rights was also commented on during a press conference by Zbigniew Bogucki, Head of the Chancellery of the President. “On the territory of the Republic of Poland, the highest law is the Constitution of the Republic of Poland, whose guardian is the President in accordance with Article 126. The only body that assesses the compliance of specific acts and government actions, including in the field of competence disputes, is the Constitutional Tribunal. There is no higher law or other body that could decide on constitutional matters,” he stated.
He recalled that “the President submitted, under Article 189 of the Constitution, a motion to resolve a dispute between the Sejm represented by the Speaker and the President in the context of Article 4(1) of the Act on the Status of Judges of the Constitutional Tribunal – namely, whether an oath can be taken without the President.”
“The Act states ‘before,’ meaning in the presence of the President. This took place in the presence of the Speaker. All issues concerning the dispute are suspended until the Constitutional Tribunal issues its ruling. The President’s position is clear: he indicates that this was not an oath. However, he leaves this to the assessment of the only competent body that can ultimately decide on the matter, namely the Constitutional Tribunal,” he concluded.
“An exceptional example of judicial overreach”
Judge Łukasz Piebiak also referred to the decision of the European Court of Human Rights in a social media post.
“An exceptional example of judicial overreach. A brazen interference in the internal affairs of a sovereign state, devoid of any legal basis. The Constitutional Tribunal must not yield to this unlawful pressure. If the President administers the oath, these individuals will become judges. If not, then they will not. This is Poland,” he stressed.