The project involves the construction of a 17.7 km expressway-class bypass with a 2+1 lane layout around the east of Nowe Miasto Lubawskie Forming part of national road 15 – which links local urban centres with the trans-European transport network – the bypass should relieve the town of excessive traffic volumes Connecting with the existing national road 15 via a roundabout the road begins in the Kujawsko-Pomorskie region near the junction with district road 1808C It ends near the village of Kaczek in Warmińsko-Mazurskie Work under the project includes the construction of four roundabouts to ensure safe merging of traffic from the existing road network and the building and adaptation of sections of those roads that will intersect with the new bypass technical facilities (adapted for people with disabilities) animal crossings and other environmental protection structures meteorological stations and sites for a weigh-in-motion system to record the weights of vehicles as they drive past promotional activities and supervision of construction work Traffic analysis confirmed the need for the bypass around Nowe Miasto Lubawskie which will allow for speeds of up to 80 km/h and loads of up to 115 kN (11 tonnes) per axle.  The main goal of the project is to increase road capacity and eliminate bottlenecks by creating a section of national road integrated with the rest of the network Total investment for the project “Construction of a bypass for Nowe Miasto Lubawskie along National Road 15” is EUR 92 805 359 with the EU’s European Regional Development Fund contributing EUR 71 736 908 through the “Infrastructure and Environment” Operational Programme for the 2014-2020 programming period The investment falls under the priority “Roads infrastructure for towns and cities.” Ministerstwo obsługujące ministra właściwego ds Generalna Dyrekcja Drog Krajowych I Autostrad A Polish woman will step off an airplane in Chicago on Monday afternoon with a legal visa in her hand coming back to live in the United States four years after her deportation sundered her family in a rare case of the return of an immigrant who was expelled was deported in 2007 after living for 18 years in the Chicago suburbs Several applications she had filed to become a legal resident became hopelessly tangled in the immigration courts and were finally denied The Wasilewski family became one of the nation’s most visible examples of the impact of deportation just as the pace of removals has accelerated under the Obama administration Wasilewski left from O’Hare Airport in June 2007 were circulated widely with her husband gripping her and their son and weeping as he begged them not to cry “I can come back again to my sweet home in Chicago,” Mrs Wasilewski said by telephone last week from Nowe Miasto Lubawskie a country town in north central Poland where she has lived with Brian in a small apartment for the last four years she said she would not allow herself any joy until she and her son were on the airplane approaching Chicago Her homecoming will culminate a 22-year legal fight in which Mrs Her case has cast light on some of the immigration system’s cul-de-sacs and severe penalties that lawyers say have stopped hundreds of thousands of immigrants who lack legal status as Mrs Wasilewski did — otherwise law-abiding parents or spouses of American citizens — from finding a way to get right with the law from re-entering the United States for at least 10 years The authorities finally reversed course in July granting a waiver that allowed her to return with a legal permanent resident’s green card Wasilewski had the help of a tenacious lawyer The documentary filmmaker Ruth Leitman was appalled by the family’s separation and made a film about it Immigrant advocate groups in Illinois kept the case in the public eye with President Obama saying he wants to avoid separating immigrant families and focus on deporting foreigners who have been convicted of crimes with his unyielding determination to provide his wife and child with a life in the United States even after the country had expelled his wife in one of the bleakest periods of his solitary wait “It was very hard to choose between my family and the United States,” Mr Wasilewski said by telephone from his home in Schiller Park After traveling back to Poland to visit his wife and son He also wanted to erase the stain of deportation on his family “I did it for three reasons for my wife,” he said using a grand phrase that has been his mantra: “Honor Tony and Janina Wasilewski came here separately from Poland in 1989 Wasilewski eventually obtained a green card and then his citizenship applying for political asylum based on her anti-Communist activism in her home country marrying in 1993 and starting a small housecleaning business after years of delays during which Communist rule ended in Poland an immigration judge denied her asylum petition Wasilewski said the lawyer representing her did not make it clear that she had to leave the United States and could not try another avenue to gain residence when she applied for a green card under a different law the immigration authorities responded by initiating her deportation appealing all the way to the United States Supreme Court and trying to bring Mrs Wasilewski back after she was forced to leave He had to persuade the authorities to grant her a waiver by showing that her deportation had caused extreme hardship to a close relative who was a citizen the damage to an American child from a deportation — in this case Brian’s separation from his father — is not recognized as hardship Wasilewski’s waiver requests were turned down twice Wasilewski experienced after his wife and son left finally convinced officials that the hardship standard had been met a heart attack and bouts of depression and started drinking heavily To raise cash to support his wife and son in Poland he gave up the family’s home by selling it at a loss His anguish is recorded in “Tony and Janina’s American Wedding,” the documentary that Ms She had been at the airport on a freelance assignment on the day of Mrs Leitman took the film to church basements and public libraries “places where people did not necessarily agree with us,” she said and she is hoping the film will inspire broad changes Obama to expand the definition of hardship to make it easier for illegal immigrants whose families include American citizens to avoid deportation “What the heck is hardship if not Tony’s situation?” he asked Wasilewski says her only plan after she arrives is to spend time with her husband and son “The last four years were terrible for Brian,” she said too long; something is wrong with that,” she said Wasilewski said he plans to treat his son to a McDonald’s burger and his wife to a meal at a Chinese restaurant 0:00 Udostępnij na FacebookuUdostępnij na TwitterzeUdostępnij w mailu przeczytasz w 33 minutySkomentuj2019 was another year of defence of courts’ independence by defiant judges in Poland Unity is the dominant mood in the judicial community and judges are not afraid to criticise the subordination of courts by Law and Justice authorities The first repressions began in the second half of 2018 after Minister of Justice Zbigniew Ziobro appointed Piotr Schab as chief disciplinary officer for judges Publikujemy teksty po angielsku o praworządności w Polsce aby pełna informacja o sytuacji w naszym kraju docierała do czytelników i czytelniczek za granicą Udostępnij znajomym mieszkającym poza Polską who later served as a justice in the district court in Krosno Odrzańskie and has been reprimanded in the past for the poor quality of his work as a judge Lasota was a judge in Nowe Miasto Lubawskie whose rulings were frequently overturned by an appeal court Ziobro appointed them disciplinary officers and gave them the position of president in their home courts is known; his notoriety came from his ruling discontinuing the case against Mariusz Kamiński former head of the Central Anti-Corruption Bureau Schab was a member of the judicial panel which ruled that President Andrzej Duda could pardon Kamiński in the course of the trial This team of officers-prosecutors taking on judges ramped up its activity during the second half of 2018 It became clear that defiant judges would be persecuted for no good reason at all there were 11 known cases of judges being attacked 2019 confirmed that Ziobro’s disciplinary officers will ruthlessly pursue defiant judges and that disciplinary proceedings have turned into an instrument of repression The disciplinary officers quickened the pace of disciplinary proceedings from September 2019 after the outbreak of a smearing scandal in the Ministry of Justice they did not charge the judges involved in the scandal – cooperating with the ministry under Ziobro’s direction – but rather the judges targeted b the smear campaign They turned the screws even tighter after the CJEU judgment of November 2019 which instructed Polish judges how to assess the legality of the new National Council for the Judiciary and the Disciplinary Chamber of the Supreme Court The Disciplinary Chamber and the new National Council of the Judiciary (NCJ) were established by Law and Justice They were also mainly staffed with judges willing to cooperate with the Ministry of Justice The Chamber and the new NCJ are an important element of control over the justice system That is why Ziobro’s disciplinary officers are now prosecuting judges for implementing the CJEU’s judgment and challenging the legality of the new NCJ The subordination bill passed by Law and Justice in the Sejm has given Ziobro’s disciplinary ombudsmen new powers they will use against independent judges And if Andrzej Duda wins the presidential election we can expect the ruling majority to pass another law forcing a reorganization in the courts which will facilitate a purge of defiant judges across Poland the disciplinary officers will continue to loom over them and are demonstrating that they will defend free courts even at the price of repression Below we publish a list of 43 persecuted judges including groups of judges from Kraków and Poznań The judges are listed in alphabetical order repressed for her rulings and for applications for a preliminary ruling to the CJEU after the outbreak of the smear campaign scandal in the Ministry of Justice she was the first in Poland to refuse to adjudicate in a panel with the deputy disciplinary officer for judges Przemysław Radzik whose name appeared in the context of the smear campaign scandal Judge Radzik has been delegated to the Warsaw court Judge Bator-Ciesielska decided that there are doubts about his independence and the impeccability of his character she refused to adjudicate with the second deputy disciplinary officer Judge Anna Bator-Ciesielska also submitted questions to the CJEU about the status of judges delegated by the Ministry of Justice on the basis of these cases The disciplinary officer’s reaction was instantaneous and in December he issued five disciplinary charges against the judge The charges are for questioning the legality of the panels in which Lasota and Radzik sat for applying to the CJEU for a preliminary ruling (the officer found that the judge had exceeded her powers by forwarding the question – which she was entitled to do – and for giving interviews in the media about the case) The disciplinary officer also requested the disciplinary court suspend the judges from their duties and reduce their salaries for the duration of the examination of the disciplinary case Judge of the District Court in Gorzów Wielkopolski persecuted for her activity in Iustitia and criticism of the “good change” in courts She is the head of the Gorzów branch of Iustitia Judge Barańska-Małuszek became famous in 2018 when the disciplinary officer started pursuing her for her participation in Jerzy Owsiak’s Pol’and’Rock festival she spoke critically of the “reforms” introduced by the current authorities to the court system She also criticized Minister Ziobro and the new National Council of the Judiciary which was appointed in an unconstitutional manner by judges selected by Law and Justice and Kukiz’15 the disciplinary officer reviewed her work in court He found that she had issued several justifications for verdicts after the official deadline The judge explained that it was not her fault The disciplinary officer finally left Judge Barańska-Małuszek alone he came after her for further critical statements about “good change” in the courts Barańska-Małyszek is a very active member of the Iustitia association of judges the spokesperson issued disciplinary charges against in August 2019 and asked the disciplinary court to suspend her from her duties until a disciplinary verdict is reached The attempt to suspend Olympia Barańska-Małuszek is the first of its kind in Poland The disciplinary officer charged her with slandering Minister Zbigniew Ziobro (she criticised the ministry he leads for the smear campaign scandal and accused Ziobro of being behind it) as well as one of the prosecutors of the National Prosecutor’s Office whose past includes a disciplinary reprimand and who then campaigned to be made judge in the Disciplinary Chamber of the Supreme Court Judge of the District Court for Warsaw-Śródmieście pushed out for his brave judgments in which he invoked the constitutional right to protest and international law He is not being persecuted by the disciplinary officer or prosecutorial service we have put him on this list because he was “silenced” and questioned by the disciplinary officer The current authorities did not like the fact that Judge Biliński acquitted participants in street protests That is why the Ministry of Justice first abolished the court department dealing with petty offences Then the president of the court Maciej Mitera – a nominee of Minister Ziobro – moved the judge to the family court Biliński was then summoned for questioning as a witness by the disciplinary officer It is possible that the disciplinary officer was unhappy that the media wrote about Biliński’s dismissal persecuted for his civic activity and for rulings issued The disciplinary officer investigated his participation in a meeting with Judge Igor Tuleya at the European Solidarity Centre in 2018 organised by the Association of Judges Iustitia and lawyers from the region as its attendees included candidates in local government elections the disciplinary officer questioned the judge as a witness and in October 2019 charged him with three disciplinary charges related to his statements to the media in which he criticised his questioning by the disciplinary officer Judge Brazewicz was persecuted in 2019 for his judicial activities the disciplinary officer called on him and two other judges from the Court of Appeal in Gdansk to explain one of their judgments They are accused of misapplying the provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure Also of significance is the fact that Judge Brazewicz is involved in educational campaigns about the law and is acting as defender of several judges charged by the disciplinary officer including Judge Dorota Zabłudowska from Gdańsk In 1998-2006 Celej was a member of the old the disciplinary officer demanded explanations from him for critical statements made on TVN24 concerning the vice-president of the court Dariusz Drajewicz He was appointed by Minister Ziobro and is a member of the new NCJ TVN24 produced a programme stating that Drajewicz does little work in the Warsaw court Judges Piotr Gąciarek and Małgorzata Kluziak also spoke about it The disciplinary officer also demanded explanations from them Judge of the Court of Appeal in Lublin and spokesperson of this court persecuted for official statements about her superior she was summoned to explain statements made to TVN24 The judge spoke in the case of the vice-president of the Court of Appeal in Lublin who was transferred to Siedlce so that he could additionally receive a housing allowance Judge du Chateau spoke in this case as a press officer and mentioned official documentation and Judge Dariusz Mazur were also called on to explain their statements for TVN24 in the Daniluk case persecuted for her activity in Iustitia and for refusal to cooperate with the disciplinary officer Ziobro’s ministry dismissed her from as vice-president of the District Court as part of a nationwide purge of presidents and vice-presidents of courts Judge Ciemięga is an active member of Iustitia involved in the defence of independent courts She is a member of the association’s audit committee and vice-president of its Opole branch The disciplinary officer charged her at the beginning of November 2019 for refusing to appear at a hearing with the disciplinary officer and informing the public about it Ciemięga is refusing to appear before the disciplinary officer together with a group of judges who take the position that the chief disciplinary officer is not authorized to prosecute common court judges The same charges were levelled against the head of Iustitia thus their selection as targets is no accident The disciplinary officer sought to interrogate all of them likely because he wanted to frame them as the alleged group of judges involved in a smear campaign in cooperation with Ziobro’s justice ministry Member of the board of the Themis association of judges critical of Law and Justice’s proposals for changes in the judicial system He issued a verdict acquitting activists of KOD who had disturbed a campaign rally by Anna Anders in Suwałki who later took the post of president of the Suwałki District Court (nominated by Ziobro) Judge Czeszkiewicz began experiencing problems as the president of the court sought to instigate disciplinary charges against him The deputy disciplinary officer in Suwałki charged him with alleged misapplication of the law when issuing cumulative judgements and alleged mistakes when questioning a girl who was the victim of a failed kidnapping the officer withdrew the charges against Czeszkiewicz prosecuted for her rulings and for criticism of the Disciplinary Chamber of the Supreme Court She is the first judge in Poland to be punished by the Disciplinary Chamber of the Supreme Court for issuing a just verdict The judge was charged for having issued a judgment aligned with human rights standards concerning a boy with a disability who is unable to read or write the Ministry of Justice disapproved of the verdict because Czubieniak released a “dangerous paedophile” the boy was not prosecuted because of his intellectual disabilities an example was made of Judge Czubieniak and she was found guilty of misapplication of the law by the Disciplinary Chamber the chief disciplinary officer initiated proceedings against her for criticism of the Disciplinary Chamber following her sentence Judge of the District Court in Poznań-Nowe Miasto and Wilda the disciplinary officer began reviewing her critical statements about “reforms” in the justice system at demonstrations in defence of judicial independence The investigation was conducted by the disciplinary officer for the Greater Poland region but he saw no misconduct on the part of Judge Frąckowiak the case was taken over by the chief disciplinary officer who added another charge concerning her participation in a mock trial for young people at the Jerzy Owsiak festival but the disciplinary officer assessed Frąckowiak’s work as a judge and in 2019 issued disciplinary charges against her for writing the justifications for verdicts after the statutory deadline it would be easy to charge the vast majority of judges in Poland with this infraction due to overwhelming case loads preventing them from writing justifications for their judgements in a timely manner The same can be seen in the histories of members of the new National Council of the Judiciary including its head Leszek Mazur and deputy disciplinary officer Przemysław Radzik The disciplinary officer also levelled another charge against Judge Frąckowiak concerning the use of sick leave for a trip to Denmark – she went there for a meeting related to defending free courts he added further charges for more cases of writing justifications for verdicts after the statutory deadline Judge Frąckowiak was issued with disciplinary charges for refusing to appear for questioning with the disciplinary officer whom she does not recognize as having the competence to prosecute common courts judges prosecuted for her activity as deputy disciplinary officer at the Court of Appeal in Poznań The chief disciplinary officer initiated proceedings against her because she refused to bring disciplinary charges against Judge Sławomir Jęksa prosecuted for his activity in Iustitia and criticism of judicial “reforms” taken up by the current government He is the vice-president of the Warsaw branch of Iustitia the disciplinary officer demanded explanations of critical statements he made on TVN24 concerning the vice-president of the court Drajewicz was appointed by Minister Ziobro and is a member of the new National Council of the Judiciary The programme discussed how Drajewicz does little work in the Warsaw court as did both Judge Małgorzata Kluziak and Marek Celej Former judge of the District Court of Katowice-Zachód He often criticised shortcomings in the justice system and was not afraid to criticise the current government for its actions regarding the courts he ran for mayor of Katowice as a non-partisan candidate The people of Katowice cast 11% of their votes for him which was a significant success for Gwizdak The disciplinary officer took an immediate interest in him investigating whether he had not violated the principle of judicial apoliticalness of judges while running for mayor of Katowice the law does not prohibit judges from standing as candidates in local government elections Judge Gwizdak took an unpaid leave of absence from work and notified the president of the court of his candidacy He voluntarily resigned from the bench in 2019 prosecuted for her judicial activities and for implementing CJEU judgments Judge Janas was examining an appeal against a divorce verdict in a panel composed of Judge Irena Piotrowska and another judge promoted to the Court of Appeal by the new National Council of the Judiciary Judges Janas and Piotrowska applied to the Supreme Court for a preliminary ruling on the status of the judge promoted by the new Council and whether judgments issued by him are valid they implemented the CJEU judgment concerning the new National Council of the Judiciary and the Disciplinary Chamber of the Supreme Court On the second day after they were questioned the disciplinary officer initiated proceedings against them and after a few days disciplinary charges were brought He considered examination of the legality of the new Council to be an abuse of power The disciplinary officer is also seeking to suspend them from their duties until a disciplinary verdict is reached prosecuted for his judicial activities and referring questions to the CJEU for a preliminary ruling The disciplinary officer became interested in him in 2018 after Jarocki referred questions to the CJEU for a preliminary ruling prosecuted for his judicial activities and criticism of the disciplinary officer It was he who acquitted the wife of Mayor of Poznań Jacek Jaśkowiak of the charge of using a vulgar word at a demonstration She said during a 2017 speech that she was “f*****g furious” about what the Law and Justice government is doing Joanna Jaśkowiak was sentenced to a fine in the first instance court Judge Jęksa explained that it was considered in isolation from political realities He also said: “The accused used vulgar words that were heard by children But a much greater evil is what is happening in Poland We have a series of violations of the Constitution resulting from restrictions on the freedom of assembly the takeover of constitutional institutions violation of the principle of the tripartite division of powers and the refusal to publish the rulings of the Constitutional Tribunal” had already been investigated by the disciplinary officer of the Greater Poland courts the chief disciplinary officer took over the case and initiated three proceedings The disciplinary officer did not appreciate the verbal and written justification of the verdict acquitting the wife of the mayor of Poznań which he considered to be a political manifesto and charged Jęksa with disciplinary offenses in 2019 The disciplinary officer also believes that Judge Jęksa should have recused himself from ruling in this case because he allegedly may have known Joanna Jaśkowiak at some time (there is no hard evidence of this The third proceeding is for criticizing the disciplinary officer from Poznań who had previously investigated Jęksa’s case prosecuted for his judicial activities and for implementing the CJEU judgment He was the first in Poland to implement the CJEU judgment of November 2019 concerning the new National Council of the Judiciary and the Disciplinary Chamber of the Supreme Court he considered an appeal against a verdict of a court of first instance and decided to examine the status of the judge who had been appointed by the new Council he subpoenaed the list of signatures in support of candidates to the new Council in order to examine its legality and thus to determine whether it was duly authorized to appoint and promote judges A hailstorm of repression rained down on him The Ministry of Justice immediately dismissed him from his delegation to the district court and the president of his home court in Olsztyn Maciej Nawacki (a nominee of Minister Ziobro) suspended him from adjudicating for a month which the Disciplinary Chamber later ruled inappropriate Judge Juszczyszyn faces disciplinary charges for implementing the CJEU judgment and the disciplinary officer has also accused him of filing allegedly unfounded motions for recusal from one case He was also charged for issuing a statement to the media prosecuted for her activity in Iustitia and refusal to cooperate with the disciplinary officer She is president of the Opole branch of Iustitia the Ministry of Justice dismissed her from the post of President of the Court in Olesno The disciplinary officer issued disciplinary charges against her at the beginning of November 2019 for refusing to appear for a hearing with the disciplinary officer and for informing the public about it The judge is refusing to appear before the disciplinary officer together with a group of judges who are of the opinion that the chief disciplinary officer is not authorized to prosecute common court judges The same charges were brought against the head of Iustitia thus it is no accident that they are being targeted The disciplinary officer is seeking to question all of them likely because he wants to cast them as members of an alleged group of judges running a smear campaign and who cooperated with Ziobro’s ministry A retired judge of the District Court in Warsaw prosecuted for her activities on behalf of free courts and criticism of the “reforms” of the present authorities in the justice system Kluziak is the former president of the District Court in Warsaw but immediately after the appointment of a new president the Ministry of Justice dismissed her deputy in the middle of her term Kluziak is actively involved in the defence of free courts and is one of the founders of the Justice Defence Committee the disciplinary officer demanded explanations from her for her critical statements made on TVN24 concerning the court’s vice-president Dariusz Drajewicz a nominee of Minister Ziobro and a member of the new National Council of Justice as did Judges Piotr Gąciarek and Marek Celej prosecuted for activities to educate young people He is known for his satirical cartoons about the justice system published in “Rzeczpospolita” and on the blog “Ślepym Okiem Temidy” The disciplinary officer prosecuted him in 2018 for his participation in a mock trial for young people at the Owsiak Festival The disciplinary officer disapproved of the fact that the judge in the simulated trial appeared in a judge’s toga the disciplinary officer dropped the case against Judge Krupa The disciplinary officer charged him for attempting to review the legality of the new National Council of the Judiciary The judge was in a panel composed of three justices alongside Wojciech Maczuga and Kazimierz Wilczek who were to examine an appeal against a verdict issued by a magistrate The judges therefore asked for information on who appointed the magistrate – the new Dagmara Pawełczyk-Woicka (a nominee of Minister Ziobro) herself also a member of the new National Council of the Judiciary who reported the judges to the disciplinary officer The disciplinary officer quickly charged them for attempting to investigate the legality of the new Council although it later turned out that the magistrate had been appointed by the old Council The judges were brought up on disciplinary charges in November 2019 after the CJEU issued its verdict and these were the first disciplinary proceedings in Poland for attempting to investigate the legality of the new Council The disciplinary officer also motioned for the suspension of these judges from their duties until a disciplinary verdict is issued prosecuted for her judicial activities and for wearing a T-shirt with the inscription “Constitution.” because on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Poland’s independence in 2018 she celebrated the anniversary with a commemorative photo together with other judges from Olsztyn in which she was wearing a T-shirt with the inscription “Constitution.” The disciplinary offer claimed this was a sign of bias and said she should be excluded from one of the cases on her docket Judge Lutostańska was hearing an appeal against a ruling concerning the activists of the Democracy Defence Committee (KOD) from Olsztyn charged for placing T-shirts with the inscription “Constitution Jędrek” on sculptures located in downtown Olsztyn market This was a happening in which the activists reminded the president that he was under a duty to observe the Constitution The police sought to bring misdemeanour charges for this the District Court in Olsztyn refused to proceed ruling that the act did not constitute a crime This decision was upheld by Judge Lutostańska and for this she was brought up on disciplinary charges – the disciplinary officer decided that she should not have ruled in this case T-shirts with the inscription “Constitution” have been worn by judges all over Poland but so far only Judge Lutostańska has been prosecuted for it Former judge of the District Court for Warsaw-Śródmieście He is probably the most hated Polish judge by the right wing and Law and Justice Łączewski is under fire for a verdict from 2015 in which he sentenced the former head of the CBA to prison for an illegal operation by the CBA against Andrzej Lepper Kamiński was pardoned by President Andrzej Duda in the course of the trial but strange things started to happen around Judge Łączewski; he also became the target of an extensive smear campaign the disciplinary spokesman charged him with alleged political activity for baseless submissions to the prosecutor’s Office the Prosecutor’s Office in Krakow charged Łączewski with criminal charges This became possible after the judge himself resigned from the bench in November 2019 Łączewski has both a criminal and disciplinary case against him for alleged contacts on Twitter with a fake account impersonating Tomasz Lis and the judge may be the victim of a deliberate provocation aimed at him He denies the charges and wants to stand trial as soon as possible criminal charges have been brought against him although a few days earlier a court had accepted his motion for the discontinuance of the case he had initiated Judge Łączewski’s troubles are related to the sentence he issued against Mariusz Kaminski vice-president of the Law and Justice party The judge was subjected to strong pressure and left on his own Łączewski has filed civil suit against the Minister of Justice Zbigniew Ziobro the disciplinary officer requested clarification from her in connection with her question to the Court of Justice of the European Union The disciplinary officer considers the question to be a “judicial excess.” prosecuted for criticising “good change” in the judiciary The disciplinary officer was displeased with an article he published judowielodzcy.pl in which he described staffing difficulties in the Łódź court he was charged with a disciplinary violation in 2019 Judge Maciejewski was hit with a second charge for not agreeing to remain for an extra week in his post as head of a court department which the president of the court expected of him It cannot be ruled out that the disciplinary charges against Judge Rafał Maciejewski are related to his involvement in the defence of free courts Maciejewski belongs to the Iustitia and Themis associations of judges which are critical of “good change” in the courts And the community of Łódź judges has shown more than once that it will defend the independence of the judiciary Not without significance is also the fact that he is married to Judge Ewa Maciejewska also being persecuted by the disciplinary officer for preliminary questions to the CJEU alongside Rafał Lisak and Kazimierz Wilczek pursued by the prosecutorial service for her judicial activities The prosecutor’s office is seeking to charge her for an admissible interpretation of the law which she applied in one of the cases involving the National Court Register The prosecution is an attempt to make her a scapegoat because one of the companies did not fulfil the formalities required by law prosecuted for her judicial activity and for her actions in defence of free courts She was the vice-president of the District Court in Warsaw dismissed in 2017 by the Ministry of Justice as part of purges taking place across the country The dismissal may be related to the fact that years ago she pointed out mistakes in the work of Łukasz Piebiak later appointed Deputy Minister of Justice with power over the courts After criticism of his work by Judge Malinowska Piebiak was charged with disciplinary offences and the disciplinary court found him guilty on two charges Judge Malinowska is also involved in the defence of free courts the disciplinary officer charged her for criticizing judges applying to the National Council for the Judiciary for promotions by invoking the arguments of other legal authorities she challenged the legality of the new Council prosecuted for criticism of “good change” in the courts and his activity in defence of free courts He is president of the largest association of independent judges in Poland the association grew to become the largest defender of free courts while consolidating the judicial community at the same time That explains why Markiewicz became one of the greatest enemies of “good change” in the courts and was targeted by an organized smear campaign against independent judges he is being pursued by the disciplinary officer He is investigating the gossip that tarnished his image and demands explanations for critical statements made in the media the disciplinary officer has already brought disciplinary charges against Markiewicz The first disciplinary proceedings against the head of Iustitia is for failing to attend a hearing with the disciplinary officer and for public statements about why he does not recognise the disciplinary ombudsman He was charged for this in November 2019 along with other Iustitia judges The second proceedings related to undermining the legitimacy of the new National Council for the Judiciary and with calling on judges to ignore the Law and Justice-appointed Disciplinary Chamber of the Supreme Court he was hit with 55 disciplinary charges for this The attack on Markiewicz is intended to deter other judges from criticising the “good change” in the courts she was summoned to explain one of the rulings she had issued The disciplinary officer did not like the fact that she had discontinued a case brought by the prosecution and of local importance She dismissed the case because of blunders by the prosecutor’s office This case may be merely the pretext for prosecuting Judge Mroczek who coolly accepted the new president of the court appointed by Minister Ziobro she refused to shake hands with deputy disciplinary officer Michał Lasota she has been involved in defending the independence of the judiciary prosecuted for criticism of judicial “reforms” by the current government and for his activity in the Themis association of judges he was called to account for his statements to TVN24 The judge addressed the case of the vice-president of the Court of Appeal in Lublin who was transferred to Siedlce for adjudication so that he could additionally receive a housing allowance were also summoned to explain their statements for TVN24 in Daniluk’s case The disciplinary proceedings against him may be because he was in the panel that issued a ruling ascertaining excessive lengthiness of proceedings in one of the cases conducted by Michał Lasota Of significance is the fact that Lasota is also the deputy disciplinary officer The disciplinary officer may have been displeased that the media discussed the ruling The disciplinary officer has already questioned two judges from the panel that issued the ruling Nawrocki was most probably also dismissed for this reason by the Ministry of Justice from his delegation to the Court of Appeal in Gdańsk prosecuted for his activity as the court’s president He was dismissed by Minister Ziobro’s ministry he sought the dismissal of jury member Iwona Szmurło the party of Minister of Justice Zbigniew Ziobro Judge Omelan wanted her dismissal because she was said to behave vulgarly during a meeting in a family court case Ziobro’s ministry decided that in his motion to the city council in Elbląg to dismiss the juror Omelan violated the secrecy of deliberations for which he was dismissed from the post of court president The juror herself later resigned from the court The Ministry of Justice sought a disciplinary trial for him for allegedly violating the secrecy of judicial deliberations the chief disciplinary officer has already brought disciplinary charges against him Judge Omelan showed a copy of a document about the juror in his defence during a hearing with the disciplinary officer on the alleged violation of the secrecy of deliberations The disciplinary officer determined that Judge Omelan should not be in possession of such a document Judge of the District Court for Kraków-Śródmieście she acquitted the doctors who had treated Minister Ziobro’s father The doctors were accused of medical errors because Ziobro’s father died after a procedure Judge Pilarczyk was subjected to enormous pressure from the prosecutor’s office The prosecutor’s office started to review medical documentation from the treatment of Ziobro’s father and the opinions of experts given during the trial The opinions cost as much as PLN 370,000 (in its verdict the court assigned their costs to the treasury) Investigators also examined whether the hospital was mismanaged and whether medical records were falsified A few days before the acquittal was pronounced the prosecutor’s office initiated an investigation against judge Pilarczyk on the basis of a denunciation submitted by Minister Ziobro’s mother The investigators checked whether Pilarczyk had properly granted such high remuneration to the experts potentially overstepping the judge’s powers prosecuted for her judicial activities and for implementing the CJEU judgment Judge Piotrowska was examining an appeal against a divorce verdict in a panel composed of Judge Aleksandra Janas and another judge promoted to the Court of Appeal by the new National Council of the Judiciary Judge of the Poznań-Stare Miasto District Court prosecuted for criticism of the “reforms” made by the current authorities in the courts and for his activity in Iustitia Przymusiński is one of the faces of the independent courts movement He is a member of the board of directors and spokesperson of the Iustitia Association of Polish Judges which defends the judiciary against attempts to subjugate it to the ruling party Przymusiński is also not afraid to criticise the “reforms” to the justice system carried out by the Law and Justice government and nominees associated with the party For one such statement about the new National Council of the Judiciary on TVN24 he was called upon by the disciplinary office to provide explanations as early as 2018 the Ministry of Justice abolished the department of the Poznań court chaired by Przymusiński The judicial community linked this decision with his activity in Iustitia Judge Przymusiński himself resigned from this function A collective disciplinary trial was initiated by the disciplinary officer against judges from the Krakow district and appellate courts The disciplinary officer was displeased by resolutions adopted by local assemblies of judges the President and the new National Council of the Judiciary The disciplinary officer demanded that the presidents of these courts snitch on the authors of these resolutions and who voted for them prosecuted for criticising the “good change” in the judiciary and for his refusal to cooperate with the disciplinary officer He is the chairman of the Iustitia Audit Committee Starosta was summoned for questioning by the disciplinary officer in connection with critical media statements about “good change” in the judiciary Starosta refused to appear before the officer He questioned the legitimacy of the summons to the hearing and for this he was hit with the first charges in August Starosta challenged the authority to prosecute judges of common courts by Minister Ziobro’s disciplinary officer together with a group of judges from Iustitia formally prosecuted by the prosecutor’s office for private cases but his judicial activity is in the background The prosecutor’s office charged him in conjunction with a conflict with his ex-wife the prosecutor’s office would not have taken an interest in Judge Sterkowicz if the right-wing “Gazeta Polska” had not written about him The weekly went after the judge because he had ruled in cases involving journalists from the newspaper for criticising the Law and Justice “reforms” in the judiciary and for defending the independence of courts Tuleya is the second most hated judge in Poland by right-wingers and the Law and Justice party He fell out of favour in 2013 because of the verdict issued in the bribery case against cardiac surgeon Dr who was accused of corruption by Ziobro and the CBA under the leadership of Mariusz Kamiński during the first Law and Justice government Tuleya compared the methods used by the CBA – when it was headed by Mariusz Kamiński – with those of the Stalinist era Tuleya also incurred the wrath of the right by a second ruling in 2017 concerning Law and Justice voting on the budget in the Column Hall in December 2016 He suggested that Law and Justice politicians may have perjured themselves Now the disciplinary officer is conducting several inquiries that may lead to disciplinary action against him In connection with his ruling on Law and Justice voting on the budget in the Column Hall a special internal department of the National Prosecutor’s Office is also conducting an investigation and Judge Tuleya is facing charges alongside Wojciech Maczuga and Rafał Lisak Judge of the District Court Gdańsk-Południe prosecuted for her activity in Iustitia and for her activity in defence of judicial independence The disciplinary officer is pursuing her for accepting the Gdańsk Equality Award from the then Mayor of Gdańsk the disciplinary officer demanded an explanation from her Acceptance of the prize is rather a pretext for prosecuting Judge Zabłudowska one of the faces of the movement in defence of free courts prosecuted for defending free courts in the legal National Council of the Judiciary and in the Themis association of judges He is one of the most veteran judges in the defence of the judiciary’s independence Żurek was an advocate of the independent National Council of the Judiciary which was dissolved by Law and Justice in contravention of the Constitution He is also a member of the board of Themis Żurek is as disliked by the right wing and the current government as Judge Tuleya He has strongly criticized the subordination of the courts to the current government Dagmara Pawelczyk-Woicka (a nominee of Minister Ziobro) dismissed him from the function of court spokesman in 2018 and moved him to another department The judicial community perceived this as harassment against Żurek He appealed all the way to the Supreme Court Judge Żurek was also investigated by the CBA Judge Żurek is also being prosecuted by the disciplinary officer for refusing to take cases in his new department because he was waiting for his appeal against the decision to transfer to another department to be concluded the new president of the court reported him Żurek is being prosecuted for selling his tractor – he allegedly failed to file a tax return after the sale Żurek may also have problems because of his participation in a debate on the justice system in Lublin – Judge Tuleya has also been summoned to explain his presence there Żurek is strongly backed by judges of the Lesser Poland judicial community who have defended and supported him in numerous resolutions The judge has already had his first disciplinary trial at the Disciplinary Court in Katowice he was hit with another disciplinary charge for criticising on Twitter Kamil Zaradkiewicz who was admitted to the Supreme Court owing to the new National Council of the Judiciary a former employee of the legal Constitutional Tribunal began collaborating with the Ministry of Justice controlled by Minister Ziobro Translated by Matthew La Fontaine. The text was originally published at Rule of Law in Poland Zbigniew Ziobro Absolwent Wydziału Dziennikarstwa i Nauk Politycznych Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego. Od 2000 r. dziennikarz „Gazety Stołecznej” w „Gazecie Wyborczej”. Od 2006 r. dziennikarz m.in. „Rzeczpospolitej”, „Polska The Times” i „Gazety Wyborczej”. Pisze o prawie, sądach i prokuraturze. Edukacja Ekologia Gospodarka Historia Kobiety Kościół Kultura LGBT+ Media Nacjonalizm Nauka NGO Niepełnosprawność Opozycja Policja i służby Polityka społeczna Prawa człowieka Prawa zwierząt Propaganda Protesty Sądownictwo Świat Uchodźcy i migranci Władza Wybory Zdrowie