WHERE THE LAW ENDS. The collapse of the rule of law in Poland – and what to do
WHERE THE LAW ENDS. The collapse of the rule of law in Poland – and what to do
Author(s): Author Not Specified
Subject(s): Constitutional Law
Published by: ESI – European Stability Initiative
Keywords: polish justice system; Jaroslaw Kaczynski; Andrzej Duda; Zbigniew Ziobro;
Summary/Abstract: No member state of the EU has ever gone as far in subjugating its courts to executive control as the current Polish government has done. The Polish case is a test whether it is possible to create a Soviet-style justice system, where the control of courts, prosecutors and judges lies with the executive and a single party, in an EU member state. || The Polish government’s assault on its judiciary represents a threat to the EU’s legal order and long-term political stability. The EU and national legal orders are now so intertwined as to make up a single patchwork quilt, from which so great a hole cannot be cut, without the whole unravelling. 328 years ago, the great English philosopher John Locke noted that “wherever the law ends, tyranny begins.” Poland is at this threshold now. The stakes could not be higher. The outcome of this conflict will determine whether the EU has a future as a community based on the rule of law.
Series: ESI Reports
- Page Count: 25
- Publication Year: 2018
- Language: English
- Content File-PDF