Who's now officially in charge of the Supreme Court? The Polish President's staff has said that it's judge Józef Iwulski. However, the judge himself says that the President did not bestow such duties upon him. Professor Małgorzata Gersdorf, the First President of the Supreme Court has allocated judge Iwulski to fulfill her duties in her absence, but only because she's planning to take a vacation. Judge Gersdorf continues to be the first President, assured Judge Iwulski, and added that he's not taking over.
Not a deputy, nor a successor
At a press conference in the Supreme Court on Wednesday, judge Gersdorf commented on naming judge Józef Iwulski as acting president of the Court during her absence. "This is a normal procedure. When the First President cannot fulfil his or her duties, he or she designates an acting replacement for the period of absence. Usually in such cases, a head of one of the Chambers gets picked."
"Judge Iwulski has agreed to fill in for me. The responsibilty is quite a burden at the moment, and so I would like to express my gratitude to him for taking up the task," said judge Gersdorf.
"I'm not a deputy, and even more so, not a successor of the First President of the Supreme Court, Małgorzata Gersdorf. I'm only filling in for her while she's absent," announced the Chairman of Labour and Social Insurance Chambers of the Supreme Court, judge Józef Iwulski.
Who's in charge?
"Frankly speaking, I've anticipated such possibility," said judge Józef Iwulski in TVN24 "Fakty po Faktach". He aswered a question on whether on not he was expecting being asked by the President to fill in for judge Gersdorf as the Supreme Court's chief.
"I would have rejected such an appeal," he added.
Currently, Józef Iwulski is the Chairman of Labour and Social Insurance Chamber of the Supreme Court. Judge Gersdorf has named him as her replacement in the period of her absence.
"In our opinion, Professor Gerdorf is still the First President of the Supreme Court," said judge Iwulski in TVN24. "I will fill in for her while she's away," he added.
Mr Iwulski emphasised that the Supreme Court's opinion regarding the tenure of Professor Gersdorf and her active status results directly from the Constitution.
Law or Constitution?
From Wednesday on, under the new legislation, and not by the decision of the First President, judge Józef Iwulski will lead the Supreme Court in its operations, reads the statement issued by the Chancellery of the President.
We hereby declare that Małgorzata Gersdorf remain the head of the Supreme Court until 30 April 2020, wrote the Polish Bar Council Presidium in a statement issued on Thursday. The Council added that it fully supports the resolution issued last week by the General Assembly of the Supreme Court Judges, regarding this matter.
The Polish Bar Council quotes an entry from the Constitution: "The First President of the Supreme Court is chosen by the Polish President for a six-year term from among the candidates proposed by the General Assembly of the Supreme Court Judges."
The president of the Supreme Court, Małgorzata Gersdorf, defied the new law on Wednesday morning by going to her office as usual, to applause from hundreds of supporters who chanted "constitution" and sang the Polish national anthem.
"My presence here is not about politics, I am here to protect the rule of law," she told reporters.
Szczerze mówiąc, przewidywałem taką możliwość - powiedział w "Faktach po Faktach" Józef Iwulski, odpowiadając na pytanie, czy spodziewał się, że w czasie wtorkowego spotkania prezydent poprosi go o pełnienie funkcji pierwszego prezesa Sądu Najwyższego. - Odmówiłbym przyjęcia takiego pisma - dodał. Józef Iwulski jest prezesem Izby Pracy i Ubezpieczeń Społecznych Sądu Najwyższego. Pierwsza prezes Małgorzata Gersdorf wyznaczyła go jako osobę zastępującą ją na czas jej nieobecności. (http://www.tvn24.pl)
Szczerze mówiąc, przewidywałem taką możliwość - powiedział w "Faktach po Faktach" Józef Iwulski, odpowiadając na pytanie, czy spodziewał się, że w czasie wtorkowego spotkania prezydent poprosi go o pełnienie funkcji pierwszego prezesa Sądu Najwyższego. - Odmówiłbym przyjęcia takiego pisma - dodał. Józef Iwulski jest prezesem Izby Pracy i Ubezpieczeń Społecznych Sądu Najwyższego. Pierwsza prezes Małgorzata Gersdorf wyznaczyła go jako osobę zastępującą ją na czas jej nieobecności. (http://www.tvn24.pl)
Autor: gf / Źródło: TVN24, Reuters, PAP
Źródło zdjęcia głównego: tvn24