Poland court chaos: PM suspends head judge, protests flare and President races back

Poland’s long-running fight over its top court has turned into open confrontation in Warsaw. On Friday, October 30, judges backed by Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s government suspended Constitutional Tribunal president Bogdan Swieczkowski and his deputy for a month. Supporters of the previous nationalist government called it a “coup”, while the prime minister insisted it was the only way to restore proper rule of law after years of political control under Law and Justice (PiS).

Hundreds of people gathered outside the tribunal building as riot police stood guard. Some protesters tried to cut through fences. Three people were detained. President Karol Nawrocki, who was flying to Senegal, ordered his plane to turn around over Malaga, and rushed back to Warsaw. He later pushed past judges at the entrance and described the events as a forcible takeover of a constitutional body.

How the clash began

Judge Anna Korwin-Piotrowska, elected by the current parliamentary majority, suspended tribunal president Bogdan Swieczkowski and his deputy for a month and said she was taking temporary charge. She argued he had blocked new judges from sitting. Those judges had sworn their oaths in parliament after President Nawrocki refused to do it himself. Swieczkowski, a PiS appointee, called the move a “coup d’état”.

Prime Minister Tusk backed the suspension. He said restoring the rule of law after years of PiS control is the government’s duty and that “there is no other way”. Justice Minister Waldemar Zurek also asked for the two men’s immunity to be lifted so they could face charges.

Both sides dig in

Government supporters say PiS packed the tribunal between 2015 and 2023 and that European courts had already raised concerns about some appointments. They claim the suspension simply lets the court function properly again.

Opposition figures, including PiS leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski, insist the government has no power to suspend the president, the head of state. They say judges sworn in without the president’s involvement are not legitimate and that the events amount to an illegal takeover. Nawrocki held talks on Saturday, but Tusk’s party stayed away and no agreement was reached. Swieczkowski has said the judges he recognises will boycott a general assembly called by Korwin-Piotrowska for November 3.

Background and what happens next

This row sits on top of a decade of disputes that began when PiS packed the tribunal with its own people. Tusk’s coalition won power in 2023 promising to reverse those changes and unlock EU funds that had been frozen over rule-of-law concerns. Nawrocki’s election as president in 2025 gave the opposition a powerful veto and the ability to slow judicial reforms.

Previous EWN coverage looked at the political gridlock expected after Nawrocki’s win and how Tusk survived a confidence vote amid the fallout.

Protests continued into the weekend, with police still outside the building. Korwin-Piotrowska’s temporary leadership is due to last about a month. Whether the two camps can find any common ground, or whether the standoff simply hardens ahead of the judges’ meeting, remains the open question. For now both sides are digging in, each claiming they are the ones defending Poland’s constitution.