— I must admit that this is an important day for us. We want to restore the proper functioning of the justice system as soon as possible, said Waldemar Żurek, Minister of Justice, presenting a draft law that is intended to solve the problem of the status of the so-called neo-judges and restore the rule of law in the courts. The status of judges appointed with the participation of the National Council of the Judiciary established after 2018 is being questioned by European tribunals. Based on the latest CJEU judgment of September 4, the Supreme Court declared the judgment issued with the participation of neo-judges null and void. Regulating the status of the so-called neojudges are the most important problem to solve today.
The minister emphasized that Poland and its citizens bear the consequences, including: financial, the current state of affairs.
The project is to be added to the List of Legislative Work of the Council of Ministers next week. The act is very extensive – it has almost 90 pages. The minister emphasized that the new regulations are consistent with the constitution and international law. Independently, the Ministry of Justice is preparing the act on the National Council of the Judiciary.
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Ministry of Justice
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A long history of regulations on the status of neo-judges
It is worth recalling that in September 2024 r. the concept of regulating the status of neo-judges presented jointly by Prime Minister Donald Tusk and Adam Bodnar, then Minister of Justice. Then in February 2025, Codification Commission The Judiciary and Prosecutor's Office under the leadership of Krystian Markiewicz presented two billswhich were to solve the issue of judges nominated by the neoKRS.
Then, in April 2025, the Ministry of Justice presented its projectwhich is their compilation. However, he sent it to the Venice Commission for an opinion. Waldemar Żurek withdrew his project from KW, and today he presented his own.
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The president's veto should be taken into account
Even if Żurek's bill is passed, it will likely be vetoed by President Karol Nawrocki. The president is already in his speech announced that “Polish legislation is created in this chamber in the Polish Sejm elected by the voters and in the Polish Senate and must gain the acceptance of the Polish President elected in universal and direct elections.” In this way the president announced that the laws which, in the opinion of the Coalition, would restore the rule of law on October 15 would not be signed by him.
The president also announced that he would not will promote or nominate those judges who “harm the constitutional legal order of the Republic of Poland“.
As a result, the road to curbing the chaos in the courts still seems long.
