On Thursday, Minister of Justice Waldemar Żurek presented a draft amendment to the Act on the National Judicial Council. The proposed amendments are intended to reconstruct the constitutional compatibility of the KRS and let all active judges to vote in the election of the members of the council.
Żurek stressed the importance of the reform. «A bill we have been waiting for for a long time. I hope it will be a groundbreaking bill" - said the minister. «Today, the Council's composition is unfortunately inconsistent with the constitution, due to the fact that it does not include all these groups from all the courts that function in Poland».
Common elections for judges
The task introduces a completely fresh electoral system. «Elections become common to judges, this is simply a complete noveum and elections are organized by the PKW, which verifies candidates' applications and arranges public hearings» - explained Żurek. Each justice will be able to vote for a maximum of 15 candidates, according to the parity of the representation of the individual courts.
A justice with a minimum of 10 years of jurisprudence, including a minimum of 5 years in the court in which he is presently ruling, will be able to run for KRS. Candidates will be able to submit active groups of judges and professional governments - the Chief Bar Council, the National Council of Legal Advisors and the National Notary Council. «Remember that the justice strategy is connected. Without lawyers, legal advisers and notaries, the strategy could not function» - argued the minister.
The task besides provides for the creation of a Social Council to oversee the KRS for 4 years. «We would very much like the president to sign this bill. all citizen will be able to see and even participate in public hearings" - appealed Żurek. Candidates will pass public hearings 7 days before the election, which will be broadcast and recorded.
Background of the reform
The current initiative is another effort to repair the KRS. The erstwhile draft of July 2024, prepared by erstwhile Minister Adam Bodnar, went to the Constitutional Court last August at the request of president Andrzej Duda. The changes of December 2017 handed over the selection of members of the KRS from judges to the Sejm, which sparked controversy and global criticism.
Note: This article was created utilizing Artificial Intelligence (AI).
