EU Court Rules Poland's Justice Reforms Violate EU Law

The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has ruled that Poland's nationalist government breached EU law by endangering the independence of judges through sweeping changes to its judicial system. The court sided with the European Commission, which claimed that a December 2019 reform violated EU law. The reform prevented judges from questioning the legality of the appointment of other judges and allowed the Disciplinary Chamber of the Polish Supreme Court to penalize judges for their verdicts. The ruling settles a long-standing dispute between Warsaw and Brussels over the Polish government's rule-of-law violations.