Poland's Court Fight Widens With Immunity Requests and an Ambassador's Exit

The standoff over Poland's Constitutional Tribunal widened on Oct. 30. The prosecutor general asked to lift the immunity of the court's two top officials, a senior diplomat resigned in protest, and a judge whose appointment is contested called a general assembly of the court's judges for Nov. 3, according to The Kyiv Independent.

President Karol Nawrocki has meanwhile returned to Warsaw after cutting short a trip to Senegal. Daily Finland, citing the president's chief of staff, reported that he plans to consult Supreme Court President Kapiński on the attempted suspension of the tribunal's president.

The numbers behind the latest escalation

• Five immunity requests. Prosecutor General Waldemar Żurek filed four concerning tribunal President Bogdan Święczkowski and one concerning deputy president Bartłomiej Sochański, The Kyiv Independent reported. Żurek said the requests are not criminal charges.
• 50 volumes of case files. According to Żurek, that is how much material accompanied the requests.
• One-month suspension. Judge Anna Korwin-Piotrowska issued suspensions of that length against Święczkowski and Sochański, Daily Finland reported, citing the Polish news agency PAP. The accusation was that the two improperly performed their duties and kept legally appointed judges, including her, out of the court's proceedings.
• Three people detained. The Kyiv Independent said protesters outside the court threw objects at police and breached a perimeter fence. Philippine Canadian Inquirer described the crowd as dozens of people.
• Nov. 3. Korwin-Piotrowska has called a general assembly of the tribunal's judges for that date, according to The Kyiv Independent.
• Three of six judges. Tensions have built since early 2026, when Nawrocki declined to swear in three of the six judges chosen by parliament, according to Daily Finland.

What happened at the court

Korwin-Piotrowska was elected to the tribunal by parliament, but the court's existing leadership does not recognize her appointment. It disputes her authority to suspend anyone. The tribunal said on social media that its website had been illegally taken over and accused those involved of attempting a coup.

Daily Finland, citing ANI, reported that heavily armed police surrounded the building at Korwin-Piotrowska's request, citing a possible risk to the safety of judges and staff. The outlet said officers did not enter. Former prime minister Beata Szydło, now a member of the European Parliament, wrote that police had forced their way in. Reports differ on that point.

The Kyiv Independent, citing Polish Radio, reported that a protester cut a chain on a gate and Święczkowski came onto the grounds. He said the gate was opened on his instructions. He confronted officers and demanded entry to the building but was stopped.

Political reactions and a diplomat's resignation

Prime Minister Donald Tusk wrote on X that "Restoring the rule of law is our duty," adding that the process after years of Law and Justice rule is difficult and needs decisive action. Law and Justice leader Jarosław Kaczyński said the government was using state power against the tribunal. He warned of a slide toward authoritarianism, calling Poland a "police state," and urged continued protests.

Jakub Kumoch, Poland's ambassador to China, announced his resignation and asked to be recalled, saying that in light of events at home he could no longer serve. Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski called the end of the mission unprofessional and said Kumoch no longer represented Poland. Marcin Przydacz, head of the president's International Policy Bureau, tied the resignation to the tribunal crisis and accused the government of intervening unlawfully in the court.

Why it matters: who speaks for Poland's top court

The dispute is now over who legitimately runs the country's highest constitutional body. The government does not accept rulings from judges appointed under the previous Law and Justice administration, which governed from 2015 to 2023. Nawrocki and Święczkowski do not recognize judges chosen by parliament in 2026. As long as each side rejects the other's appointees, it is unclear whose decisions the court's judges, officials and the public are expected to treat as binding.

The immunity requests add a legal track against the court's leaders, though they are not charges. The sources do not say how or when they will be decided.

What happens next

Nawrocki's consultations with the Supreme Court president are the next announced step, followed by the Nov. 3 judges' assembly. The tribunal's current leadership has said Korwin-Piotrowska cannot speak for the court, so whether that meeting goes ahead as planned is unsettled.

Earlier on Around Prague: Poland's President Rushes Home as Constitutional Court Standoff Deepens

Around Prague, based on reporting by Daily Finland, Philippine Canadian Inquirer, The Kyiv Independent