“In 1990, the entire Supreme Court was dissolved, with only about 20 percent of the Communist-era judges (all judges from the criminal chamber) allowed to keep their posts. Those who judged political cases in line with the Communist regime were expelled from the Supreme Court.

Most of the remaining judges from the Communist era have long ago retired, such that the average age of judges in Poland today is about 40 years old. And the National Judiciary Council, in conformity with the Polish Constitution, is an independent body free of political influence.”