Poland’s long-running fight over its top court erupted into open confrontation on Friday, October 30, 2026, when a judge announced she was taking charge of the Constitutional Tribunal after ordering its president and deputy suspended for a month. The move was immediately rejected by the court’s president, who accused those behind it of staging a “coup d’état” — and within hours, protesters and police were facing off outside the court building in Warsaw.
The clash is the latest and most dramatic escalation in a dispute over judicial independence that has divided Poland for a decade, pitted the government of Prime Minister Donald Tusk against President Karol Nawrocki, and repeatedly drawn in the European Union. It leaves the country’s most powerful court with two rival claims to leadership and no mutually accepted authority to settle the question of who is actually in charge.
Key Takeaways
- Judge Anna Korwin-Piotrowska announced she was taking charge of the Constitutional Tribunal after suspending its president, Bogdan Święczkowski, and his deputy for a month.
- Święczkowski rejected the suspension and accused those involved of staging a “coup d’état”, while protesters clashed with police outside the Warsaw court building.
- The confrontation is rooted in a decade-long dispute over the court’s independence, with parliamentary elections due in 2027 set to test the balance of power in Poland.
How the Confrontation Unfolded in Warsaw
On Friday, Korwin-Piotrowska announced that she was taking charge of the court after ordering Święczkowski and his deputy suspended for one month. Święczkowski refused to accept her authority, and his deputy was turned away at the court’s entrance.
Outside the building, protesters clashed with police. Officers said objects had been thrown at them and that three people were detained after climbing over the building’s fence. Police said they had deployed to maintain security following warnings of threats against judges and staff, but had not entered the building itself.
Opposition leader Jarosław Kaczyński joined the protest and tried to enter the court. He accused Tusk of staging a “coup” against the institution and turning Poland into a “police state”, while calling for intervention by the president.
The crisis is centred on competing claims to authority within the Constitutional Tribunal, with no mutually accepted authority currently able to resolve the dispute.
President Cuts Short Visit as Tusk Defends the Move
President Karol Nawrocki, an ally of the former governing party and a political rival of Tusk, cut short an official visit to Senegal to return to Poland. “At a moment like this, the president must be in Poland,” he wrote on X.
Tusk defended his government’s approach, saying the restoration of the rule of law was a duty. “After years of PiS lawlessness, it’s a difficult, sometimes painful process that requires decisive action. There is no other way,” he wrote on X.
Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek, who also serves as prosecutor general, blamed the crisis on the tribunal’s president, accusing him of turning the institution into his “private fiefdom” and preventing newly elected judges from carrying out their duties. Żurek said he had submitted five requests to lift the immunity of Święczkowski and his deputy, supported by 50 volumes of case files. He defended Korwin-Piotrowska’s decision, saying she was a legally appointed judge and insisting that the government had no involvement in her move.
- Korwin-Piotrowska suspended the tribunal’s president and deputy for one month and said she was taking charge.
- Święczkowski rejected the order, calling it a “coup d’état”, and his deputy was turned away at the entrance.
- Three people were detained after climbing over the court building’s fence during protests outside.
- President Nawrocki cut short a visit to Senegal, while Prime Minister Tusk defended the rule-of-law drive.
A Decade-Long Dispute Over Judicial Independence
The latest confrontation is rooted in a dispute that began in 2015, when the former nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) government appointed judges to the Constitutional Tribunal in a process later considered irregular by the European Court of Human Rights in 2021.
During its eight years in power, PiS appointed judges to the tribunal, including Święczkowski and his deputy. The court became a central point of conflict between Poland and the European Union over judicial independence and the rule of law, and the dispute contributed to a wider confrontation with Brussels, with the EU freezing funds over rule-of-law concerns.
The Constitutional Tribunal has the power to strike down legislation. Under the previous PiS government, it helped impose an almost total ban on abortion and challenged the supremacy of EU law. In December, the EU’s top court ruled that the tribunal did not meet European standards of judicial independence.
Since returning to power in December 2023, Tusk’s government has challenged the legitimacy of parts of the tribunal and stopped publishing some of its rulings. The dispute has intensified over appointments: Nawrocki refused to swear in five judges elected by Tusk’s parliamentary majority. They subsequently took their oaths in parliament, but Święczkowski prevented them from hearing cases.
Why Both Sides Are Accusing Each Other of a Coup
The dispute reflects two competing claims over the legitimacy of the Constitutional Tribunal. Święczkowski filed a complaint with the prosecutor’s office in January 2025, accusing Tusk and senior government officials of attempting a systemic coup by undermining the Constitutional Tribunal, the Supreme Court and the National Council of the Judiciary. PiS argues that the latest developments are part of that effort to weaken the country’s judicial institutions.
Tusk’s government, meanwhile, says the tribunal was captured by PiS and is being used to block judges elected by the current parliamentary majority. Korwin-Piotrowska had previously said on public television that, in her view, Święczkowski was breaking the law by preventing the newly elected judges from hearing cases.
There has been no military intervention, the government elected in 2023 remains in office, and the president continues to exercise his functions. The standoff is a constitutional and political crisis, not a change of government — but it raises a serious question about whose rulings from the tribunal will be treated as valid. Any decisions issued by the tribunal could now face challenges over its authority.
The crisis comes as Europe’s security debate sharpens: Washington has been pressing European allies over their stance toward Russia, as covered in the Pentagon’s message to Europe on rhetoric toward Russia and NATO, while regional diplomacy continues on other fronts, including Türkiye’s offer to help revive Ukraine-Russia talks. Poland’s internal crisis now lands in the middle of that wider European moment.
What to Watch Next
The legality of the order suspending Święczkowski is likely to become a central issue, and the confrontation could leave the court with two rival claims to leadership. Nawrocki could respond by addressing the country, convening the National Security Council, or taking further action against government legislation.
The protests outside the court could grow in the coming days, while the European Commission’s response will be closely watched given its earlier confrontation with the PiS government over judicial reforms. The crisis also comes at a difficult political moment for Tusk: his coalition holds a narrow majority in parliament, while Nawrocki has blocked or vetoed several government initiatives, including measures relating to abortion and appointments.
With parliamentary elections due in 2027, the dispute over control of the Constitutional Tribunal is becoming a major test of the balance of power between the government, the presidency and the judiciary — and whatever happens at the court in Warsaw in the coming days will shape that contest.