Bar Council: Threat to judicial independence in Poland and Ireland is ‘sinister’

The head of the Council of The Bar of Ireland has spoken out against threats to the autonomy and independence of the courts and judiciary in Poland and in Ireland, calling it a “sinister development”.

Although he admitted that the comparison between Ireland and Poland, which has come under international scrutiny following recent legislative reforms, was not “immediately apparent”, he said that the changes in Poland “did not happen overnight”.

The intervention by Paul McGarry SC represents the latest in a series of attacks by senior members of the legal profession on the Government’s controversial Judicial Appointments Bill.

Mr McGarry said that judicial independence is a critical tenet of democracy and that unwarranted political interference in both countries is proving damaging to the integrity of the profession and ultimately in its ability to uphold the rule of law on behalf of citizens.

In March 2017, The Bar of Ireland and the Law Society jointly wrote to the Taoiseach outlining their concerns about legislation in Poland, which is again coming under scrutiny in relation to case of Artur Celmer and the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU).

The case of Mr Celmer, a Polish man represented by Fahy Bambury Solicitors, is being expedited by the European courts and will be concluded by the end of the month, The Irish Times reports.

Mr McGarry said the case “has demonstrated the impact that interference in the judiciary in one member State can have”.

He added: “While it is widely recognised and agreed that some reform of judicial appointments in Ireland is required, the Bill which passed through the Dáil last night is problematic for many reasons already articulated often and by many legal and political observers, not least the European Commission which has stated that insufficient input from the judiciary on the new body to appoint judges will result in legislation which will not be in line with European standards.

“The analogy with Poland may not be immediately apparent, but it is worth recalling that the changes in Poland did not happen overnight. This is why we have consistently opposed the new legislation: any interference with the perception of judicial independence, however small, is unacceptable.

“The upholding of the Constitutional tripartite separation of powers of the Legislature, the Executive and the Judiciary is fundamental to a functioning justice system. Any threat to this is a most sinister development for individual nations and Europe as a whole.”