Suspension of Bogdan Święczkowski

On 30 October 2026, the president of the Polish Constitutional Tribunal, Bogdan Święczkowski, together with the vice-president Bartłomiej Sochański, were suspended for a month by judge Anna Korwin-Piotrowska. The official X account of the tribunal and members of the opposition PiS party viewed the suspension of Święczkowski and the deployment of police to the Tribunal as an attempted coup. Earlier in 2026, the Sejm elected eight judges to the tribunal (six in March; one in September); President Karol Nawrocki only invited three of the eight to swearing-in ceremonies at the presidential palace.

Background

In June 2015, the outgoing centre-right Civic Platform-PSL government adopted a new Constitutional Tribunal act that repealed the previously binding act of 1997 and introduced transitional provisions allowing the Sejm to appoint new judges to the tribunal to replace judges whose term expires within 30 days of the new appointment. This act was signed by the outgoing President Bronisław Komorowski on 30 July, just days before his term ended following his defeat in May 2015 election. In the October 2015 election, Law and Justice won outright majority. Shortly before the new Sejm was to be sworn in, the outgoing PO-PSL government appointed five judges to the tribunal to fill vacancies for judges whose terms would expire in November and December.

The new right-wing United Right government that was inaugurated in November 2015, declared the outgoing Sejm's judge nominations from October null and void, citing procedural irregularities. The new President Andrzej Duda also refused to swear in the judges, and no ceremony was organized. On 30 November, the tribunal issued an interim injucton asking the Sejm to not appoint new judges prior to a judgement on the constitutionality of the 2015 Act. The government argued that the tribunal has no legal basis to issue injuctions, although the tribunal claimed that it possesses such power mutatis mutandis on the basis of the socialist Civil Procedure Code 1964.

In December 2015, the tribunal ruled that three judges appointed by the PO-PSL government were constitutional, while two were invalid, stating that the PO-PSL government had no right to fill vacancies that would emerge in December 2015. However, the government rejected this ruling, and appointed its own five judges to fill the incoming vacancies. In response, the tribunal president Andrzej Rzepliński allowed two United Right judges in the tribunal, but physically prevented the other three from working in the tribunal.

On 22 December, the Sejm adopted an amendment modifying the 2015 Act. The amendment envisaged that the rulings of the tribunal must be decided in plenary sessions with at least thirteen judges present in order to be valid, and that its judgements must be adopted by the qualified majority of 2/3 votes. In response, the tribunal, in a session of twelve judges, ruled this amendment unconstitutional with the majority of eight judges. However, the government declared this ruling null and void because it fell below the threshold of thirteen judges being present, and refused to publish this ruling in Dziennik Ustaw, which is a requirement for the tribunal's ruling to come into force. In July 2016, the government fully repealed the 2015 Act and implemented a new one. In December 2016, Rzepliński term expired, and the Sejm replaced him with Julia Przyłębska.

In the 2023 Polish parliamentary election, the United Right government had lost its majority and a new government of various opposition parties, the 15 October Coalition, was formed. By this time, the tribunal had already been fully composed of judges appointed by the 2015-2023 United Right government. The new government questioned the legality of three United Right's appointments, namely Julia Przyłębska, Justyn Piskorski, and Jarosław Wyrembak. In March 2024, the Sejm adopted a directive declaring the United Right's legislation on the tribunal unconstitutional. However, the government had been unable to change the existing laws on the tribunal because of the opposition of President Andrzej Duda. The new president who was elected in the 2025 Polish presidential election, Karol Nawrocki, likewise opposed the government's attempts to do so. Because of this, the government resorted to copying United Right's strategy from 2016 in which it refused to publish the tribunal's rulings in Dziennik Ustaw in order to deprive them of their effects.

Prelude

The Sejm elected eight judges to the tribunal in 2026. President Karol Nawrocki invited three of them, Magdalena Bentkowska, Dariusz Szostek, and Sławomir Patyra, to the Presidential Palace, where they were ceremonially sworn in. Nawrocki refused to swear in the other five of the elected judges, Maciej Berek, Marcin Dziurda, Anna Korwin-Piotrowska, Krystian Markiewicz, and Maciej Taborowski. Bogdan Święczkowski, the head of the Constitutional Tribunal, declared that the five judges would not be allowed in the tribunal until they were sworn in before the president. Nawrocki objected to the nomination of Berek, who was one of the Tusk government's ministers until 2025 and who has close ties to the Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who once described him as his "right-hand man". This nomination was also criticized by some members of the government.

Nawrocki stated that those who did not take the oath before the president could not be judges in the tribunal, and that he would not swear in Berek until Berek provided documentary evidence that he meets the requirements for the appointment, including 10 years of legal practice. On 13 October, the Venice Commission, an advisory body to the Council of Europe, issued a non-binding opinion, calling on Nawrocki to swear in the remaining judges immediately, "without claiming any power to review the election procedure", and stating that it is "constitutionally justified to permit the assumption of office ... without the President's participation where the President unlawfully refuses to administer the oath." By 14 October, the five judges that Nawrocki refused to swear in took an oath before the Sejm instead, directing their oaths at the absent president.

On 16 October, the eight new judges published an eight-point public statement. The judges asserted that Article 194 of the Polish Constitution gives no role to the Polish president in choosing Constitutional Tribunal judges nor in swearing them in and that the swearing in at the Presidential Palace is only a tradition. They stated that the Presidential office invited only three of them to the Presidential Palace, despite repeated requests; they viewed this as "an arbitrary attempt" to participate in the selection procedure. The judges stated that they had officially declared their allegiance to the President, that the legal conditions of swearing-in had been satisfied, and that all eight judges should be immediately permitted to start hearing cases. The judges declared that they intended to legally restore the function of the tribunal to its legal role as a constitutional institution.

By 19 October, the Venice Commission and many judges stated that all eight judges were full members of the tribunal despite taking an oath without the president. By the end of October 2026, Święczkowski as well as Bartłomiej Sochański, the deputy head of the tribunal, had only allowed five of the eight to start their duties in the tribunal. Święczkowski started a disciplinary case against Bentkowska, Szostek, and Patyra, including the three judges' co-signing of the eight judges' public statement as part of the case against the three.

Events

Suspension of Święczkowski

On 30 October, Anna Korwin-Piotrowska suspended Święczkowski and Sochański from their roles for a month, and filed four legal cases against Święczkowski.

Reuters reported that Polish police entered the tribunal premises following incidents outside the court. Dozens of police officers, including riot police, guarded the building's entrance.

Polish Justice Minister and Public Prosecutor General, Waldemar Żurek stated to journalists that he had applied to lift the immunity of Święczkowski and Sochański.

The tribunal's website announced Święczkowski's suspension on the evening of 30 October at about 18:00 local time, before being taken offline. At 18:25, an X/Twitter account associated with the tribunal according to Interia stated that "an unlawful takeover of the Constitutional Tribunal's website has been attempted", and that "all people responsible are instigating a coup d'état." Minister of Justice Waldemar Żurek stated that a coup against the tribunal had started several years earlier.

Nawrocki visit to the tribunal building

In an interview with Polsat News around 23:00, Korwin-Piotrowska stated that she was willing to allow Nawrocki to enter the building and meet with her on the condition that Nawrocki entered alone and that nobody else was allowed in. She stated that she would give appropriate instructions to the police should the President assure her that he would come alone.

Nawrocki, who was flying to Senegal when the police took over the tribunal's building, returned to Poland and held an emergency meeting in the Presidential Palace together with Zbigniew Kapiński, the First President of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Poland. The meeting ended shortly after midnight (from 30 to 31 October).

At 00:36, the presidential limousines set off for the Constitutional Tribunal. Korwin-Piotrowska stated that in order to allow Nawrocki to discuss the situation, she authorised the presidential convoy to enter the tribunal grounds. She stated that she and the other judges waited at the side entrance where VIPs' cars normally arrived, in front of the door. Korwin-Piotrowska said that she stood in front of the other judges.

Afterwards, Nawrocki attempted to enter the building of the tribunal together with Kapiński. According to Korwin-Piotrowska, she heard Nawrocki arriving together with a group of people, stating that he was arriving, and appearing to intend to ram through the group of judges without stopping. She said that Nawrocki made a first unsuccessful attempt to push through, and then pushed her and the other judges aside with his hands. This physical contact between Nawrocki, Korwin-Piotrowska, and Markiewicz was described by a presidential spokesperson, who stated that "judges Markiewicz and Korwin-Piotrowska had tried to manhandle the President, thereby violating the head of state's inviolability", while Berek accused Nawrocki of "physically attacking" the two judges and posted a video of the confrontation on social media. Together with Nawrocki, Zbigniew Bogucki and Sochański and people unknown to Korwin-Piotrowska entered following Nawrocki. Korwin-Piotrowska said that she started greeting Nawrocki, but he was unwilling to respond, and instead walked into the lobby, yelled out that the judges were not members of the Constitutional Court except for Patyra, and walked up a stairway.

Sochański requested making a room available for Nawrocki, and said that he wanted to have a conversation. Korwin-Piotrowska gave Sochański a key to a room. She said that she gave him the key because he appeared to be exhausted.

After 03:00, a photo showing Nawrocki, Kapiński, the Chief of the Presidential Chancellery Zbigniew Bogucki, the head of the National Security Bureau Bartosz Grodecki, as well as Sochański inside the building of the tribunal was published. A spokesperson of the tribunal, Weronika Ścibor, stated that Bartłomiej Sochański was in his office and that the declaration issued by Anna Korwin-Piotrowska of his suspension was "non-existing". In an official statement, Nawrocki stated that he "enabled the legally serving Vice-President of the Constitutional Tribunal, Judge Bartłomiej Sochański, to enter the Constitutional Tribunal".

By around 04:00, Korwin-Piotrowska and the other judges felt it was best to postpone further talks, and one of them left with Sochański, taking him home due to concerns about Sochański's condition. A few moments later, a big group of people including Nawrocki left the tribunal building.

Aftermath

On the morning of 31 October, Nawrocki declared that due to the "threat to the internal security of the Republic of Poland", he had called for an emergency meeting with representatives of parliamentary forces in order to "restore constitutional order".

According to journalist Ewa Siedlecka, Korwin-Piotrowska announced that a General Assembly of the tribunal would be held on 3 November 2026 to establish the tribunal's budget for 2027. Korwin-Piotrowska issued an order recommending that the judges perform their duties outside the tribunal's building because of security concerns. She suspended the tribunal's employees from performing their duties and suspended the operations of the tribunal's registry office, its chancellery, and legal service office.

On 31 October, starting from 13:00 local time, Nawrocki met with the representatives of parliamentary parties, including Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz of Polish People's Party, Szymon Hołownia of Poland 2050, Mateusz Morawiecki of Development Plus, Sławomir Mentzen and Krzysztof Bosak of Confederation Liberty and Independence, Jarosław Kaczyński and Mariusz Błaszczak of Law and Justice, as well as representatives of the Together Party. The New Left and Civic Coalition refused to send any of its represenatives to the president.

On 31 October, the police section of the Solidarity trade union challenged the legality of the police deployment around the Constitutional Tribunal building.

Protests

Several hundred protesters gathered outside the secured grounds of the Tribunal in opposition to the suspension. Some breached the court's fence while others threw objects at police, with three people being detained. Several protesters shouted "Tusk traitor", while others prayed with rosaries and Catholic religious images.

Reactions

Politicians and ambassadors

Supporters

Prime Minister of Poland Donald Tusk posted on his X account that the government was obliged to restore the rule of law, calling the process difficult but unavoidable after "years of lawlessness under PiS".

Deputy Prime Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski of the New Left party declared his support for the takeover on social media, in contrast to the rest of the party.

The government's actions were endorsed by former president Lech Wałęsa, who wrote on his social media that he stands with Tusk "regardless of the circumstances".

Opposition

President of Poland Karol Nawrocki, who was flying to Senegal, returned to Poland. The Constitutional Tribunal's official X account stated that everyone who was involved with the interventions was "committing the crime of a coup d'état."

PiS leader Jarosław Kaczyński accused the government of staging a coup against the Tribunal. Former Minister of Justice Zbigniew Ziobro denounced the suspension as a "blatant, criminal attack" on the constitutional order, and called for resistance. Politicians of the right-wing populist party Confederation, including Sławomir Mentzen and Krzysztof Bosak, protested outside the Constitutional Tribunal in response to the suspension.

Deputy Marshal of the Sejm Marcin Horała from Development Plus stated that Korwin-Piotrowska's actions are illegal, arguing that she is in no legal position as one of many judges of the Constitutional Tribunal to suspend the body's president and vice-president, and that even if they had been properly removed, the most senior judge, Wojciech Sych, would have become the new president.

The Polish ambassador to China, Jakub Kumoch, resigned from his position in response to "the events". The Polish ambassador to Romania, Paweł Soloch, also resigned from his position, stating he does not see the possibility to continue his service "due to the attempted illegal takeover of the Constitutional Tribunal".

Mixed stances

Szymon Hołownia, the leader of Poland 2050, has stated that while "Bogdan Święczkowski, together with PiS nominees, has turned the Constitutional Tribunal into a caricature of a constitutional court", the government's decision to suspend Święczkowski by force "only kills the patient" and "deepens the decline of the Tribunal". He stated that the government's action "brings shame to Poland" and called for the president and prime minister to enter negotiations and work out a compromise on the Constitutional Tribunal.

Anna Maria Żukowska, the leader of The Left's parliamentary group, stated that "the rule of law is not restored by force" and that "force can only provoke a reaction from another force". She argued that in its current form, the tribunal does not serve Polish citizens but only those in power", as it "will always be flawed and doomed to political torment" because "either some will not recognize and publish its judgments, or others will". At the same time, she argued that president Nawrocki bears responsibility for the tribunal's dysfunction.

Adrian Zandberg, leader of the left-wing opposition party Together, warned that the escalating conflict could further paralyze the state and spark violence, calling for a cross-party agreement in what he described a "constitutional reset".

Academia

Supporters

Four former judges of the Constitutional Tribunal, Marek Safjan, Jerzy Stępień, Bohdan Zdziennicki, and Andrzej Zoll wrote a joint letter in which they praised Korwin-Piotrowska for "necessary steps to restore the function and status of this systemic institution".

Opposition

Ryszard J. Piotrowski, a legal scholar of the University of Warsaw, criticised Święczkowski's suspension and takeover of the Constitutional Tribunal's building as "a clear violation of the constitution, a clear violation of the law and a clear attack on a constitutional body of the state." He accused the government of undermining the authority of the tribunal by refusing to publish its rulings in Dziennik Ustaw.

Piotr Uziębło, a legal scholar of the University of Gdańsk, stated that suspending Święczkowski was illegal, and that "even violations within the Tribunal do not allow for taking action in this way".

Marcin Matczak, a legal scholar of the University of Warsaw, argued that there was no legal basis to suspend Święczkowski, stating that Żurek was not legally allowed to suspend the president of the tribunal, because while the Minister of Justice supervises ordinary courts, the Constitutional Tribunal is explicitly excluded from the Minister's authority. He stated that "the suspension of the President of the Constitutional Tribunal by the Minister of Justice is therefore an act that directly violates five provisions of the Constitution", and that he wishes the government "luck when the government changes and the new Ziobro starts to exploit this precedent against the President and judges of the Constitutional Tribunal."

Mateusz Stępień, a sociologist of Jagiellonian University, described the suspension of Święczkowski as "detrimental to Poland's stability and security", stating that the government's actions constituted an "open conflict, pushing one's own agenda, and seeking political and legal loopholes."

Marcin Wiącek, professor of law at the University of Warsaw, argued that there is no legal basis for suspending Święczkowski, noting that the "state of higher constitutional necessity" evoked by Korwin-Piotrowska "is not provided for in the provisions of Polish law." He also stated that the evoked Article 130, which allows for the removal of a judge from duties for a month, only applies to ordinary courts but "does not provide a basis for ordering a recess in the duties of the President of the Constitutional Tribunal". Wiącek added that the government's "overinterpretation" of the law deepends divisions and created dangerous precedents for future governments.

Bartosz Lewandowski, the rector of Collegium Intermarium, member of Ordo Iuris, and lawyer for PiS politicians, stated that "even lawyers who have so far been largely sympathetic to the government are now saying: there was no legal basis for Ms. Anna Korwin-Piotrowska to suddenly remove President Święczkowski from his duties", and described suspending Święczkowski as "an act of anti-constitutional coup against one of the constitutional bodies, aimed at furthering the political interests of the group currently ruling Poland".

Jacek Zaleśny, professor of constitutional law at the University of Warsaw, stated that "the actions taken against the President and Vice-President of the Constitutional Tribunal have no legal basis", and that "no law provides for the construction referred to by Anna Korwin-Piotrowska" in her letter ordering the suspension of Święczkowski.

Mixed stances

Antoni Dudek, a political scientist and historian at the Jagiellonian University, argued that the takeover of the Constitutional Tribunal by the KO-led government does not end the constitutional crisis, but deepens it. He stated that "simply put, the administration of the palace on Szucha Street in Warsaw will change, and nothing more", and that once the government changes, Święczkowski's suspension "will serve as the basis for holding the current cabinet accountable". According to Dudek, the solution would have been an agreement between all major political parties on the composition and legitimacy of the tribunal.

Ewa Łętowska, a legal scholar of the Institute of Law of the Polish Academy of Sciences, stated that the legal basis for Święczkowski's suspension was "not provided for in the provisions of the Act on the Constitutional Tribunal", and expressed her worries that the Constitutional Tribunal had lost its authority.

Maciej Gutowski, a legal scholar at the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, stated that he assessed the situation with "sadness, fear, and rather pessimism", and that "nothing good will come of this". He argued that while United Right was hitherto responsible for the constitutional crisis, suspending of Święczkowski worsenes the crisis and government's actions ended up "harming the constitutional court under the banner of the rule of law and causing a complete crisis of recognition". He stated that the government should have sought to limit the conflict instead of escalation, and accused it of nominating political allies as judges instead of "the most outstanding constitutionalists, unaffected by serving on government benches".

Lawyer Krzysztof Izdebski of the Stefan Batory Foundation stated that "no one is 100% right" in the conflict, but that "being right also is not crucial". He argued that suspending Święczkowski "will not lead to a situation in which the Constitutional Tribunal will perform its duties in a neutral manner" and escalates the perception of the Constitutional Tribunal as a politicized, biased institution.

Others

Polish online analytics foundation Res Futura analyzed internet traffic on social media platforms from the night of 30-31 October, finding that the opposition (most notably president Karol Nawrocki) generated the highest volume of engagement regarding the events. While the governing coalition maintained a share of the digital outreach, it failed to build a narrative outside its own base. This digital deficit however, did not benefit the Law and Justice party. Instead, the foundation argues that the far-right Confederation captured the online momentum.

In an IBRiS for Rzeczpospolita conducted weeks prior to the event (October 16-17), it found that 32% of Poles believed president Nawrocki was in the right (regarding the appointments to the constitutional tribunal), while 27.8% believed the same of prime minister Tusk. Other 32.7% refused to side with either, and 7.5% were unsure.

See also

Polish constitutional crisis

Protests against Polish judiciary reforms