Protesters in Warsaw demonstrate against the Supreme Court law change in 2018 | Janek Skarzynski/AFP via Getty Images Poland’s judiciary reforms ‘violate’ EU law, says court adviser Reforms ‘liable to expose judges to external intervention and pressure from the president’ and ’impair the Supreme Court’s ‘objective independence.’

Poland's reforms of its Supreme Court, including lowering judges' retirement age, are "contrary to EU law," a top European Court adviser said Thursday.

Advocate General Evgeni Tanchev said the European Court of Justice should rule that the provisions of Polish laws relating to the lowering of the retirement age of Supreme Court judges to 65 are in breach of EU law. His advice follows infringement proceedings launched by the European Commission in April.

"The contested measures violate the principles of irremovability of judges and of judicial independence," Tanchev wrote.

Poland introduced a new law on the Supreme Court in April 2018, lowering the retirement age for Supreme Court judges and obliging judges who turn 65 before a July 3 cutoff date to stand down, unless they had officially requested — to Poland's president — to extend their mandate and had a health certificate showing they are fit to continue.

The European Commission opened infringement proceedings against Poland earlier this month, amid concerns that the new law, introduced by the country's ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party, contradicts EU rule-of-law principles.

Tanchev noted that the "external intervention and pressure" from Poland's president is a particular cause for concern. The presidential seal of approval for a judge to continue to serve "impairs" the court's objective independence, and influences the decisions judges will inevitably make, Tanchev said.

"Especially given that the requirement to apply to the President of the Republic for the extension of retirement age is accompanied by a reduction in the retirement age," he said.

The European Court of Justice ordered Poland in December to suspend the lowering of judges' retirement age, which the PiS had already said it would scrap. A final judgement on that is pending.

The opinions of advocates general are not binding on the European Court, but judges normally follow their advice.