Quo vadis, the third branch?

The second column is devoted to the current situation in the Polish judiciary. This time, the author poses questions as to whether the present dispute the judiciary does not enter the field reserved for the political (legislative and executive) authorities. Referring to the dispute over the system of nominating and appointing judges in Poland, the author argues that it may lead to undermining the most important guarantee of judicial independence - the irremovability of judges, and this may occur as a consequence of ill-considered actions of the judges. The author fears that the mutual undermining of judicial appointments may lead to very dangerous consequences in the future, which could result not only in the delegitimization of the judiciary, but also in its instrumentalization by political powers.

Keywords: the administration of justice in Poland, judiciary, separation of powers, constitutional courts, CJEU, judicial independence, irremovability of judges