Constitutional Tribunal faces 2027 funding crisis as seven judges demand general assembly

Seven judges of Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal have called for an urgent general assembly to approve the court’s budget plan for 2027, warning that the tribunal could otherwise lose the ability to operate next year.

The judges signed a letter to Tribunal President Bogdan Święczkowski. They said all judges properly elected by the Sejm should be allowed to participate in the assembly, rather than only those whose oaths were received by President Karol Nawrocki.

Under the law governing the tribunal, the general assembly is responsible for adopting the court’s proposed income and expenditure plan. The judges said the proposal must be approved correctly and that excluding properly elected judges could invalidate the process.

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The resolution on this matter must be adopted correctly. In particular, it is essential to ensure that all properly elected judges of the Constitutional Tribunal can participate in the General Assembly.

The dispute has already affected the tribunal’s budget preparations. A general assembly scheduled for July 14 did not take place after, according to a tribunal statement, two judges left the room and quorum was lost. The Finance Ministry later said the information submitted about the tribunal’s 2027 finances did not satisfy statutory requirements because it had not been adopted by the judges’ general assembly.

The seven judges warned that continued obstruction could prevent the tribunal from functioning in 2027 and limit its ability to protect citizens’ constitutional rights and freedoms.

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We therefore call for an end to the obstruction that could prevent the Constitutional Tribunal from functioning in 2027.