The role of attorneys-at-law in whistleblowing

The article discusses the role of attorneys-at-law in the whistleblowing system in connection with the implementation of EU Directive 2019/1937 on the protection of persons who report breaches of Union law into the Polish legal order. The article provides an assessment of the proposed provisions regarding attorneys-at-law and points out the need for their necessary amendments. It also conducts a determination of whether and to what extent there is a need to specify the rules of professional deontology of attorneys-at-law in connection with their various activities related to the issue of whistleblowing.

Providing free civic counseling by attorney-at-law or advocate vs. lawyer-client privilege and avoiding conflict of interest

The Act on Free Legal Aid, Free Civic Counselling and Legal Education, amended in 2018, provides for a new form of assis-tance for citizens – free civic counseling. The article is an attempt to answer three research questions. Firstly, what is the con-nection between legal advice and civic counseling, and whether legal advice is a part of civic counseling? Secondly, is the person providing free civic counseling (adviser) obliged to keep in secret all information that he or she has learned over the course of his or her duties? Thirdly, is that possible that an adviser who is at the same time an attorney-at-law violates lawyer-client privilege or puts himself or herself into a conflict of interest, because of performing duties resulting from the Act on Free Legal Aid, Free Civic Counselling and Legal Education and the Ordinance of the Minister of Justice?

The importance of the judgment of June 5, 2018 in Coman and Others v Romania, C-673/16 for the jurisprudence of the Court of Justice of the European Union on the rights of persons in same-sex relationships

The Court of Justice of the European Union is gradually expanding its jurisdiction at the expense of the competences of the Member States of EU. However, some of them oppose this, since they perceive it as the CJEU interfering with their authority. Nonetheless, even in matters of their exclusive competence, member states are obliged to adhere to a pro-EU interpretation of their domestic law. The judgment of the CJEU in the Coman case is an example of that – although the case indirectly con-cerns the regulation of civil status, which is the competence of national authorities, Member States must also apply EU juris-prudence when creating and implementing the law in that regard. The article also points to several possible risks discussed in the doctrine which are connected with the Coman judgment, such as reverse discrimination or the risk of a slippery slope. The author identified the role of the judgment and its importance for the jurisprudence on the rights of persons in same-sex relationships.

Uncertainties arising from the proposed act on the Financial Information System. An attempt to assess proposed legal regulations in the context of accounts held by banks for other banks

The article is an analysis of the most significant issues related to the proposed act on the Financial Information System, which is currently undergoing legislative work to implement EU law into the Polish legal system, covering regulations aimed at ensuring the prevention of the use of the financial system for money laundering and terrorist financing, as set out in Directive 2018/843. Their objective is to establish centralized, automatic mechanisms (in all European Union Member States), such as registers or a search system, which are meant to enable the collection of relevant information on the identity of the holders of bank and payment accounts as well as safe deposit boxes, their representative holders and ultimate beneficial owners, taking into consideration the need to maintain the full confidentiality of the information obtained. As Member States are to determine the information that is useful and proportionate to collect in order to achieve the objective of minimizing the risks of money laundering and terrorist financing by enabling meaningful identification of ultimate beneficial owners of money transfers, whilst taking into account existing legal systems and practices, the article also attempts to assess the proposed legal regulations in the context of accounts held by banks for other banks.

An obligation to act in accordance with a contract, in a spirit of mutual trust and business cooperation. Clause 10.1 of NEC in the light of Polish law

This article presents the characteristics of the NEC contracts and an examination of clause 10.1 contained in such contracts. As these publications, as well as the competing FIDIC Conditions of Contract, originate from the Anglo-Saxon legal culture, the article provides a detailed analysis of clause 10.1 of the NECs, which introduces general rules of conduct for the participants with reference to Polish law. The aforementioned clause imposes an obligation on the parties to act in accordance with the contract, in the spirit of mutual trust and business cooperation. The analysis of the concepts present in the clause in question and of the Polish legal doctrine has produced the conclusion that expressing such a standard of conduct explicitly in the NEC template is not needed in Polish jurisdiction due to the correspondence of these rules of conduct with the values and princi-ples governing the national legal system.

Fact-checking and freedom of speech

The article discusses the impact of the fact-checking process on freedom of speech. On the one hand, it was pointed out that the verification of the facts by specialized organizations, for various reasons, cannot be regarded as a fully reliable way of distinguishing between truth and falsehood in socially important matters. The findings made within the framework of fact-checking often fit into the public debate by taking a partisan position on a specific issue, and not so much objectively determining the truthfulness of certain statements formulated in public discourse. On the other hand, it was noted that fact-checking, although it does not undermine the freedom of speech – on the contrary, being an expression of it – is at the basis of the decisions of online social networking services, which may be viewed as an interference with the freedom of expression. While labeling content as untrue or misleading is not a violation of the freedom of speech of people formulating or disseminating it, removing such content from social networking services as well as blocking and obstructing access to legal content considered to be disinformation does constitute the infringement of freedom of expression.

The Polish Deal – constitutional uncertainties

The aim of this article was to assess the constitutionality of the Act of October 29, 2021 amending the Personal Income Tax Act, the Corporate Income Tax Act and certain other acts. This regulation – proclaimed by politicians as the most significant reform of the tax system in history – was created extremely quickly, with no extensive consultations, and the manner of the proceedings was reflected in the quality of the act itself. In the opinion of the author of this article, the flawed regulations also concern their constitutionality. Due to the hasty proceedings, it is questionable whether the appropriate vacatio legis period was maintained and whether the regulations on accounting for sale of cars used for business activity and the prohibition of amortization of residential property as part of business activity infringe the previously acquired rights of taxpayers.

Subjective and functional conditions for awarding the Saint Florian Badge and the Cross of Saint Florian

The paper contains the analysis of public policies on prizes and honors of voluntary fire brigades. The authors show the issue of the conditions for awarding the Saint Florian Decoration and the Saint Florian Cross. These two forms of honoring merits, along with several other forms of rewarding firefighters, were provided for by the legislator in 2022. The authors present the most important rules of the special awarding policy and interpret the Polish constitutional and statutory provisions. These regulations are compared with the established legal practice, traditional customs and with Polish legislation.

Legal obligation of the court to hear the suspect before adjudicating a security measure against him – gloss to item no. 1 of the judgment of the Constitutional Tribunal of the Republic of Poland of August 19, 2020 (case file no. K 46/15)

The gloss is an attempt to present the approving stance of the author on the judgment of the Constitutional Tribunal of the Republic of Poland. It concerns the issue of appropriate procedural protection of rights of a suspect in case of his insanity. The author emphasizes the most important elements of the Polish Ombudsman’s motion in this case, analyzes the legal aspects of the regulations in question and summarizes the most important theses of the judgment in relation to their validity.

Overview of the decisions of the Polish Supreme Court

The Resolution of the Polish Supreme Court of March 24, 2022 (case file no. III CZP 48/22) is of particular importance for legal practice. The Court indicated that the sanction of nullity provided for in Article 6 (1) of the Act of March 24, 1920 on the Acquisition of Real Estate by Foreigners does not apply to the acquisition of real estate on the basis of a legally binding decision on the division of joint property after the termination of joint property between spouses. In the Resolution of April 13, 2022 (III CZP 90/22), the Polish Supreme Court stated that minors who are step-siblings are not participants in the proceedings for establishing contact between them (Article 1136 of the Code of Commercial Companies). Moreover, in the Resolution of April 13, 2022 (III CZP 85/22), the Polish Supreme Court decided that the submission of an application for the preparation of a justification and the delivery of a decision with the justification does not constitute a condition for the admissibility of a complaint against the decision referred to in Article 7661 § 1 of the Polish Code of Civil Procedure. In addition, the Polish Supreme Court, in the Resolution of April 6, 2022 (III CZP 12/22), stated that the court of the second instance, in a closed session, may issue a decision to quash the judgment and discontinue the proceedings in a panel of three judges (Article 386 § 3 in connection with Article 367 § 3 in connection with Article 374 of the Polish Code of Civil Procedure).

The report on the National Scientific Conference of Legal Professions of Public Trust, “Membership in professional self-governments”, Toruń, January 20, 2022.

The third edition of the National Scientific Conference of Legal Professions of Public Trust was held on January 20, 2022. The event was organized remotely, due to the current epidemic situation, and was dedicated to the topic of membership in professional self-governments. The conference was organized by the Department of Administrative Law at the Faculty of Law and Administration of Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń. The main topics discussed during the conference were primarily inspired by the legislative changes concerning specific legal professions of public trust and also by de lege ferenda proposals regarding memberships in professional self-governments. A total of eleven presenters delivered lectures during the conference, both representatives of academic circles of six universities, as well as practitioners – representatives of professional self-governments of attorneys-at-law, advocates and notaries.