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Poland proposes law reversing disputed Supreme Court reform
WARSAW, Nov 21, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – Poland’s governing party on Wednesday proposed draft legislation reversing a disputed Supreme Court retirement law, bowing to a ruling from the EU’s top court, which had raised fears of a threat to judicial independence.
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) ordered Poland in October to “immediately suspend” its decision to lower the retirement age of Supreme Court judges from 70 to 65.
The disputed law had required more than a third of current Supreme Court judges to step down, including Poland’s Supreme Court chief justice Malgorzata Gersdorf.
Poland’s right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) government had defended the April 3 retirement law as part of reforms to tackle corruption and overhaul a judicial system still haunted by the communist era.
But PiS MP Marek Ast, who submitted the draft legislation to parliament on Wednesday, said the bill reverses the retirement law, in compliance with the ECJ ruling.
“In accordance with the expectations of the ECJ… if the law comes into force, the affected judges will be able to return to the Supreme Court on the same terms (of employment), as if they had never left,” Ast told Polish media on Wednesday.
With the PiS controlling a majority of seats in parliament, the legislation is expected to pass easily. To take effect, it must also be signed by PiS-allied President Andrzej Duda.
However, the need for the legislation is has been called into question. Legal experts believe the ECJ ruling itself is enough to reverse the retirement law.
The Luxembourg tribunal, which could impose fines if it finds Poland in breach of EU law, had said the ruling was an interim measure and that it would issue a final ruling at a later date.
Chief justice Gersdorf asked 23 of the court’s judges to return to work just days after the ECJ ruling.
Calling the law a “purge”, Gersdorf had refused to step down, citing a constitutional guarantee that she serve a six-year term until 2020.
The ECJ’s ruling on the Supreme Court retirement law took place within the context of a broader battle between Brussels and the PiS government over the sweeping judicial changes it has introduced since taking office in 2015.
The changes have also led the EU to trigger unprecedented proceedings against Poland over “systemic threats” to the rule of law that could see the country’s EU voting rights suspended.
BSS/AFP/AU/17:45 hrs