Polish parliamentary immunity on the comparative background

The purpose of this publication is to present the scope of the parliamentary immunity in the Polish legal system. The paper examines both non-accountability and inviolability of the members of parliament from four different angles: ratione loci (where the protection is granted), ratione temporis (when the protection starts and ends), ratione personae (to whom it extends) and ratione materiae (what acts are covered by the protection). Polish regulations are presented with numerous references to the legal systems of other democratic countries, especially those which are members of the European Union. The paper advances a thesis that the scope of the parliamentary immunity in Poland is relatively broad and consequently, it may be argued that some elements of this privilege maybe taken away from the Polish Members of Parliament without affecting their freedom of action within the scope of parliamentary mandate.

Dispute over the Scope of Immunity of a Member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe

The case of Marcin Romanowski, former deputy minister of justice, who was charged by the prosecutor’s office related to irregularities in the management of the Justice Fund, revealed a dispute over the scope of the immunity of a member of the PACE. When deciding on the arrest, the prosecutor’s office was guided by legal expertise, which showed that M. Romanowski was not protected by the immunity of the PACE. However, the court decided, under the influence of a letter from the chairman of the PACE, that M. Romanowski was covered by immunity. The appellate court did the same. Therefore, there is a need to analyze the reasons for the discrepancies in the assessments of legal experts and the PACE regarding the scope of immunity of a PACE member. The author attempted to explain these controversies by taking into account not only legally binding norms, but also the “soft law”.