%0 Journal Article
%T Appointment of Judges to the Constitutional Tribunal in 2015 as the Trigger Point for a Deep Constitutional Crisis in Poland
%A Chmielarz-Grochal, Anna
%A Sułkowski, Jarosław
%J Przegląd Konstytucyjny
%V 2018
%N Issue 2 (2018)
%P 91-115
%K constitutional crisis, constitutional justice, politicization of justice, judicial independence
%@ 2544-2031
%D 2018
%U https://ejournals.eu/en/journal/przeglad-konstytucyjny/article/appointment-of-judges-to-the-constitutional-tribunal-in-2015-as-the-trigger-point-for-a-deep-constitutional-crisis-in-poland
%X 
	The paper is meant to briefly present the sequence of events and the analysis of the constitutional crisis in Poland that is not be reduced to the personal matters and solely to the composition of the Constitutional Tribunal. Such crisis seems to result from the lack of recognition for current constitutional order and from the fact that major political forces seem not to value inviolability of constitutional status quo.

	It shall be pointed out that in the lack of qualified constitutional majority (that have not been achieved in the last election) preventing from any legal changes to the Constitution, political majority keeps forcing such interpretation of the Constitution which is accordance with their political interests. This rises imbalance of the entire constitutional system in Poland.

	The constitutional crisis has also resulted in lowering the position of the Constitutional Tribunal in the public eye, as well as in questioning the guarantees of impartiality and independence of constitutional judges. The dispute has turned into a serious crisis of this branch of judiciary that have been challenged as a necessary part of democratic state of law.

	The paper ends with the conclusion of a strong need of the multilevel public debate – involving legal, political and social arguments – on the role of constitutional court in democracy, that may be – particularly in so-called ‘young democracies’ – exposed to extra-legal political pressure