Poland · Overview
The legal system of Poland
A codified civil-law system rebuilt after 1989 and reshaped again by EU accession in 2004. Private law rests on the 1964 Civil Code, crime on the 1997 Penal Code. The judiciary has been the subject of a decade of contested reform, with rulings of the CJEU and the ECtHR on judicial independence forming part of the operative law.
Legal tradition
Poland belongs to the civil law tradition. A codified civil-law system rebuilt after 1989 and reshaped again by EU accession in 2004. Private law rests on the 1964 Civil Code, crime on the 1997 Penal Code. The judiciary has been the subject of a decade of contested reform, with rulings of the CJEU and the ECtHR on judicial independence forming part of the operative law.
How power is divided
A tripartite separation under Article 10, with a directly elected President holding a legislative veto that only a three-fifths Sejm majority can override.
Where law comes from
- Constitution
- Supreme law; basis of the constitutional complaint.
- EU law
- Directly applicable since 2004 and, in its field, takes precedence.
- Ratified treaties
- Rank above statutes where ratified by prior statutory consent.
- Statutes (ustawy)
- Including the Civil Code, Penal Code and the codes of procedure.
- Regulations (rozporządzenia)
- Executive acts issued under a specific statutory authorisation.
- Local enactments
- Binding only within the territory of the issuing authority.
The legal profession
Two advocacy professions exist side by side: adwokaci and radcowie prawni, both with rights of audience after a bar traineeship and examination. Notaries and bailiffs are separate regulated professions.
Found something out of date on Poland · Overview?
Corrections are reviewed against the primary source before anything changes.