Litigation and dispute resolution in Poland Litigation is one of the dispute resolution methods in Poland. If you need to settle a dispute and choose court litigation in Poland, our litigation attorneys are ready to represent you in from of the relevant authorities and take all the necessary measures to make sure that the process runs smoothly. If you are looking for alternative methods to resolve disputes in Poland, our Polish attorneys can give you practical advice and assistance for mediation and arbitration in Poland.

The Polish legal system

The Polish judicial system is divided into the Supreme Court of Poland, the Supreme Administrative Court, the administrative courts, the appellate courts, district courts and regional courts, and the military courts. Additionally, the Polish Constitution is protected by the Constitutional Court.

The Constitutional Court, or the Constitutional Tribunal is an independent body of the State and has the role of checking and deciding the constitutionality of statutes and protecting the rights guaranteed by the Constitution. It consists in 15 judges, appointed for a period of 9 years.

The Supreme Court of Poland is considered the last instance in all sorts of cases and is divided into the following chambers: the Criminal Chamber, the Labor Law, Social Security and Public Affairs Chamber, the Military Chamber and the Civil Chamber. These chambers are also divided into divisions. The Supreme Court is governed by the Chairman of the board, twelve members of the board (four presidents, eight judges) and four deputies (all of them are judges).

The administrative cases, such as acts of law of municipal units and local public administration bodies, administrative decisions or the lack of implication from the administrative bodies are handled by the administrative courts (14 of them) and by the Supreme Administrative Court (as last instance).

The second instance courts or the appellate courts, are judging the cases already heard at the regional and first instance courts. There are 11 courts of appeal in Poland.

The regional instance courts are situated in all major cities and are handling cases already heard at the first instance courts. Alternatively, they can handle major cases, and in this case they are considered first instance courts. The first instance courts are hearing the minor criminal and civil cases. There are 45 regional courts and 315 district courts in Poland.

Alternative dispute resolution methods in Poland

resolving disputes in Poland is calling the Court of Arbitration. This is possible only if the An alternative method ofis calling the. This is possible only if the contract signed between the parties contains a clause regarding the possibility of solving the conflicts in front of the Arbitration Court, at the Polish Chamber of Commerce in Warsaw.

The parties involved in a arbitration process are free to choose the arbitrators, who will appoint the presiding arbitrator. The presiding arbitrator must have his name listed in the List of Arbitrators. The place and the language of the proceedings are also decided by the parties.

This method is often chosen in order to resolve commercial disputes mostly because the duration of proceedings is shorter, lasting between 6 to 9 months.

The duration of a litigation process in Poland

Unlike the process presented in front of the Arbitration Court, a litigation may take years before a settlement is decided, depending on the gravity of the facts and mainly because many times, the decisions are contested and the decision from a second instance court is required.