Overview of the decisions of the Polish Supreme Court

The judgment of the Polish Supreme Court of December 20, 2023 (case file no. III CZP 41/23) is of particular importance for legal practice. The Court indicated that in the case of notifying the party or their representative about the impossibility of preparing a justification for the contested decision, appealing against this decision is not conditioned upon the effective submission of a request for justification and the delivery of the decision along with the justification. In the judgment of December 14, 2023 (case file no. III CZP 32/23), the Polish Supreme Court stated that in divorce cases, both those not concluded by July 3, 2021, and those initiated between July 3, 2021, and April 14, 2023, the first-instance court shall adjudicate with a single judge unless the president of the court orders the case to be heard by a panel of three judges. If such a case is heard by a single judge and two lay judges, the proceedings are null and void (Article 379 point 4 of the Polish Code of Civil Procedure).

The judgment of the Polish Supreme Court of December 20, 2023 (case file no. III CZP 41/23) is of particular importance for legal practice. The Court indicated that in the case of notifying the party or their representative about the impossibility of preparing a justification for the contested decision, appealing against this decision is not conditioned upon the effective submission of a request for justification and the delivery of the decision along with the justification. In the judgment of December 14, 2023 (case file no. III CZP 32/23), the Polish Supreme Court stated that in divorce cases, both those not concluded by July 3, 2021, and those initiated between July 3, 2021, and April 14, 2023, the first-instance court shall adjudicate with a single judge unless the president of the court orders the case to be heard by a panel of three judges. If such a case is heard by a single judge and two lay judges, the proceedings are null and void (Article 379 point 4 of the Polish Code of Civil Procedure).