Spokesman defends Polish president’s appointment of new chief justice amid criticism from political allies

President Karol Nawrocki made an "independent, merit-based" decision in appointing Zbigniew Kapiński to lead Poland's Supreme Court, a spokesman has said, rejecting criticism from the president's political allies.

Outgoing Chief Justice Małgorzata Manowska and Zbigniew Kapiński, the new head of Poland's Supreme Court.

Photo: PAP/Piotr Nowak

Rafał Leśkiewicz said on Tuesday that Nawrocki had "acted within his constitutional powers" and had not yielded to pressure from any political camp when appointing Kapiński as head of the Supreme Court.

Prezydent Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej Karol Nawrocki postanowieniem z dnia 25 maja 2026 r. powołał z dniem 27 maja 2026 r. Zbigniewa Kapińskiego na stanowisko Pierwszego Prezesa Sądu Najwyższego. pic.twitter.com/6h6Z6HJ45S

— Kancelaria Prezydenta RP (@prezydentpl) May 25, 2026

The appointment was announced on Monday and has drawn criticism from figures close to Nawrocki’s own political base, including Jarosław Kaczyński, leader of the conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party, and Sławomir Cenckiewicz, a historian and former head of the president’s National Security Bureau (BBN).

Both criticized Kapiński over his role in a 2000 court ruling concerning former President Lech Wałęsa, who denied in an official declaration that he had collaborated with the communist-era security services.

The ruling found that Wałęsa had submitted a truthful declaration stating he had not been an agent of the communist-era Security Service (SB).

Leśkiewicz told the Wirtualna Polska news website that Nawrocki had listened to different views but evaluated Kapiński's candidacy "on its merits," citing his judicial record, achievements and professional experience.

"Decisions on appointments arising from the constitution are made directly by President Karol Nawrocki," Leśkiewicz said. "He takes responsibility for them, and time will tell whether he chose well. In our view, he chose well."

He added that Kapiński’s long judicial and academic experience had been an important factor in the decision. Kapiński also received the most votes in the Supreme Court’s general assembly, which selected five candidates for the post in February.

'No hidden meaning'

Leśkiewicz said Nawrocki respected Kaczyński and other PiS politicians who supported his presidential bid, but added that the final decision on such appointments rested with the president.

"There will be matters on which we agree and matters on which we do not," he said, adding that there was "no hidden meaning" behind the appointment and describing it as the president’s sovereign and autonomous decision.

Asked whether Nawrocki had informed Kaczyński before the announcement, Leśkiewicz declined to discuss the internal workings of the president’s office.

Kaczyński wrote over the weekend that he could not imagine the Supreme Court being led by a judge who had participated in the 2000 Wałęsa ruling, though he did not mention Kapiński by name.

Cenckiewicz said Nawrocki had made a "terrible mistake" by appointing Kapiński.

Leśkiewicz said Cenckiewicz was entitled to his opinion and that the disagreement would not damage their relationship.

He also pointed to Kapiński’s more recent rulings, including a decision stating that the removal of Dariusz Barski, a close associate of former Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro, as national public prosecutor violated the law.

Leśkiewicz also cited Kapiński’s rejection of the terms “neo-judges” and “paleo-judges,” labels used in Poland’s long-running dispute over judicial reforms and appointments.

On the Wałęsa case, Leśkiewicz said he had “no doubt” today that Wałęsa had been an SB informant. He added that key original documents reached the Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) only in 2016, long after the 2000 ruling.

Kapiński has defended the ruling, saying it was based on the evidence available to the court at the time. He told the wPolsce24 outlet that documents later discovered in the home of former communist-era Interior Minister Czesław Kiszczak cast new light on the matter, but were unavailable to the court in 2000.

The term of outgoing Chief Justice Małgorzata Manowska ended on Tuesday.

Under Polish law, the president appoints the head of the Supreme Court for a six-year term from among five candidates chosen by the court’s general assembly. The post may be held for a maximum of two terms.

(rt/gs)

Source: IAR, PAP