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Automatically translated version. May contain inaccuracies compared to the original.
30 October 2026.
According to Polish media reports, the newly elected judges arrived at the Tribunal building.
Anna Korwin-Piotrowska informed the police of possible security threats, after which officers arrived at the institution.
At about 18:00 Korwin-Piotrowska announced a one-month suspension of Tribunal President Bogdan Siewnczkowski and his deputy Bartłomiej Sochański, stating that as the judge with the longest relevant tenure she was assuming leadership of the institution.
One of the legal grounds cited was Article 130 of the Polish Act 'On the Structure of Common Courts,' which provides for the temporary removal of a judge from duties for up to one month.
However, the application of this provision to judges of the Constitutional Tribunal, as well as Korwin-Piotrowska's own powers, provoked serious legal objections.
Siewnczkowski and Sochański refused to recognize the suspension, calling it an illegal seizure of the Tribunal's site and an attempt to take control of the institution.
In practice, two centers of authority emerged over the same constitutional body.
That same day Justice Minister and Prosecutor General of Poland Waldemar Żurek filed five motions seeking permission to bring the judges to criminal responsibility: four concerning Siewnczkowski and one concerning Sochański.
According to him, the materials comprise 224 pages and 50 volumes of documents.
Notably, the motions were delivered to Korwin-Piotrowska, whom the government side recognized as authorized to run the Tribunal. At the same time, their submission does not mean proof of guilt or automatic removal of the judges' powers.
Evening of 30 October.
Protesters gathered near the Tribunal, including representatives of PiS, Confederation, and other right-wing political forces.
The opposition accused Tusk's government of attempting an illegal takeover of a constitutional body.
Tusk, on the contrary, supported the restoration of the rule of law after years of violations under PiS rule. Thus, the governing majority backed the newly elected judges, while President Nawrocki and PiS supported Siewnczkowski and Sochański.
Night from 30 to 31 October.
Learning of the events, President Nawrocki urgently cut short his visit to Senegal and returned to Poland.
After consultations with former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Zbigniew Kapiński and Siewnczkowski, at around one o'clock in the morning the president personally arrived at the Tribunal building.
A physical scuffle occurred at the entrance, video recordings of which were spread by Polish media.
The parties presented opposing versions of the incident and mutual accusations.
31 October 2026.
Around five in the morning Nawrocki left the Tribunal building, calling the events a violation of constitutional order and a forcible seizure of a state body.
He reported that he had ensured access to the institution for Deputy President Sochański, whose powers he considers lawful, and announced urgent consultations with parliamentary political forces.
At the same time Korwin-Piotrowska announced her intention to hold a general assembly of the Tribunal's judges on 3 November.
As of this morning the conflict remains unresolved: the president and the governing parliamentary majority support different leadership of the Constitutional Tribunal.
What is the legal essence of the conflict
In fact, the constitutional crisis has three main legal components.
The first is the acquisition of judicial powers. The president refused to accept the judges' oaths and blocked their assumption of office.
The second is the legality of the removal of the Tribunal's leadership. Article 130 of the Act on the Structure of Common Courts does not apply to judges of the Constitutional Tribunal, therefore Korwin-Piotrowska had no authority to apply it.
The third is the limits of intervention by other branches of state power.
Consequences
The president and Poland's parliamentary-government majority mutually deny the legality of each other's actions.
Donald Tusk and his allies claim they are restoring constitutional order after years of PiS influence over the judicial system.
In turn, President Nawrocki, PiS and the Tribunal's previous leadership accuse the governing majority of attempting to establish control over an independent constitutional body.
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