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It starts with the personnel

In 2017 the Ministry of Justice announced a plan to reform the justice system. The July 2017 amendments to the Law on the System of Common Courts, presented as part of this plan, provoked various concerns in the legal community, and prompted mass public protests. One of the most controversial regulations of the new act was the assignment to the Ministry of Justice of the right to dismiss court presidents and vice presidents during the first half-year after it took effect.
This report focuses primarily on the process of dismissing and appointing new presidents and vice presidents of common courts in the period from August 2017 until February 2018. It was created on the basis of information collected during 20 individual interviews with judges dismissed by the Minister of Justice from their positions as presidents and vice presidents; analysis of the sources of law; and press releases as well as information obtained from the Ministry of Justice in the procedure of access to public information.

Date of publication: April 2018

Authors: Małgorzata Szuleka, dr Barbara Grabowska-Moroz

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