Poland's constitutional court said on Thursday that Polish law can take precedence over EU law amid an ongoing dispute between the European bloc and the eastern European member state. The decision by the Constitutional Tribunal came after Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki requested a review of a decision by the EU's Court of Justice (ECJ) that gave the bloc's law primacy. Two out of 14 judges on the panel dissented from the majority opinion. "The attempt by the European Court of Justice to involve itself with Polish legal mechanisms violates ... the rules that give priority to the constitution and rules that respect sovereignty amid the process of European integration," the ruling said.
Brussels considers the Constitutional Tribunal illegitimate due to the political influence imposed upon Poland's judiciary by the ruling Law and Justice party (PiS).
Poland has come under repeated fire from the EU including over issues to do with LGBTQ rights and women's rights and media freedom. The judiciary reforms by the PiS government have been seen as a threat to Poland's membership within the 27-member bloc as well as to the stability of the EU as a whole. The court's decision on Thursday came as little surprise. The presiding judge, Julia Przylebska, is a government loyalist who was appointed by the ruling party. DW 10/07/2021
