European Judicial Council Network expels Polish member

Today (28 October), the ENCJ General Assembly gathered in Vilnius to discuss the position of the Polish National Judicial Council, the KRS, in the ENCJ.  

In September 2018 the ENCJ suspended the membership of the KRS and the KRS was stripped of its voting rights and excluded from participation in ENCJ activities. After that decision the ENCJ Board stayed in contact with the KRS and monitored the situation. The Board felt however that after the suspension no improvements in the functioning of the KRS have been noted. And in effect, the situation further deteriorated. Therefore the Board decided to propose to expel the KRS from the Association.

It is a condition of ENCJ membership, that institutions are independent of the executive and legislature and ensure the final responsibility for the support of the judiciary in the independent delivery of justice. 

The ENCJ has found that that the KRS does not comply with this statutory rule anymore. The KRS does not safeguard the independence of the Judiciary, it does not to defend the Judiciary, or individual judges, in a manner consistent with its role as guarantor, in the face of any measures which threaten to compromise the core values of independence and autonomy. 

Therefore today the ENCJ General Assembly voted to expel the KRS.

This is by no means a decision to celebrate. The KRS was one of the founding members of the network and their representatives to the network were very much respected and contributed highly to the work of the network, both in the Board and in the various ENCJ projects over many years.

The ENCJ has been set up to improve co-operation between, and good mutual understanding amongst, the Councils for the Judiciary and the members of the Judiciary of the European Union Member States. To exclude a Council from this cooperation is counterintuitive and is not a decision that has been taken lightly. For each of the Councils present here today who voted in favour, this is an act in defence of the ENCJ and the values it stands for such as Judicial Independence and the Rule of Law in Europe.

Councils for the Judiciary should support any judiciary which is under attack and do all they can to persuade the executive and legislature to support the action which they are taking in this regard. The prudent convention that judges should remain silent on matters of political controversy should not apply when the integrity and independence of the judiciary is threatened.  There is a collective duty on the European judicial community to state clearly and cogently its opposition to proposals from governments which tend to undermine the independence of individual judges or Councils for the Judiciary.

The ENCJ wants to make absolutely clear that it remains committed to defending the independence of the Polish Judiciary. The ENCJ will continue to cooperate with all the relevant stakeholders in order to defend and restore the independence of the Polish Judiciary as soon as possible. Once a Council for the Judiciary in Poland fulfils the requirement that it is independent from the Executive and Legislature, and actually supports the values of the ENCJ, the ENCJ will be happy to welcome any such Council back as a member.

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