EU refers Poland to top court over rule of law

By Diyar Guldogan

ANKARA (AA) - European Commission on Monday referred Warsaw to the European Court of Justice to protect the independence of the Polish Supreme Court.

In a statement, the commission said the new Polish law on the Supreme Court lowers the retirement age of Supreme Court judges from 70 to 65, putting 27 out of 72 sitting Supreme Court judges at risk of being forced to retire.

It added the Polish law on the Supreme Court is "incompatible with EU law as it undermines the principle of judicial independence, including the irremovability of judges."

The commission also asked the Court of Justice to order interim measures, restoring Poland's Supreme Court to its situation before 3rd April 2018, when the contested new laws were adopted.