Judge Tuleya: Maciej Berek Can Formally Run for the Constitutional Tribunal, but Should Not

Judge Igor Tuleya says Maciej Berek may be legally able to stand for Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal, but should not do so. In an interview with Rzeczpospolita, Tuleya linked that view to the expectations of citizens who defended the tribunal.

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I am convinced that citizens who defended the Constitutional Tribunal believe that Maciej Berek should not run for it.

The Justice Ministry has presented a bill that would reverse provisions of the so-called muzzle law. Judges would no longer face disciplinary responsibility for examining whether other judges were properly appointed. Tuleya called the direction positive, although he said such proceedings had not been initiated after 2023 and had rarely intimidated judges before then. The purpose, he said, was to ensure citizens could reach a genuinely independent court.

He described the change as protection for the future, since no one knows who might become justice minister later. But he criticized a separate proposal that would allow the minister to select the chief disciplinary prosecutor for ordinary-court judges from candidates put forward by judicial assemblies. Tuleya said the National Council of the Judiciary would be a better choice. The minister could present his position there, he argued, while also helping restore the council’s authority.

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I am critical of this proposal.

Tuleya said the promised restoration of the rule of law was still only beginning. Judges and citizens had expected faster progress, but proposals addressing the problem of so-called neo-judges were being blocked, he said. He nevertheless urged continued work on solutions, even in a difficult political situation.

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We are disappointed.

He assessed Waldemar Żurek’s first year as justice minister positively, saying Żurek’s determination could not be questioned. The lack of spectacular results, Tuleya argued, showed how deeply the judiciary had been damaged and how firmly the old system had become entrenched. When legislation is blocked, he said, alternative routes may be necessary, pointing to the selection of new judicial council members as an example.

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If Żurek is unable to do something, I fear that nobody would be able to.