Poland and Hungary Lose Their Challenge before the European Court of Justice

Poland and Hungary Lose Their Challenge before the European Court of Justice
Photo by Dusan Cvetanovic via Pixabay

17-02-2022

Manon Picard

International Justice and Human Rights Researcher, 

Global Human Rights Defence.

The Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ) decided to dismiss the challenge brought by Hungary and Poland against the conditionality mechanism which entered into force in January 2021. The conditionality mechanism is designed to withhold financing from the European Union (EU) if a Member State does not adhere to the rule of law. Hungary and Poland challenged the mechanism on account of its lack of compliance with the legal basis found in the EU treaties and went beyond the scope of the EU’s powers. However, the ECJ dismissed Hungary and Poland’s challenge and stated that the conditionality mechanism had been “adopted on an appropriate legal basis,” had the necessary procedural safeguards and was designed to protect the EU budget.     

The decision is one which had been awaited due to the ongoing accusations that Hungary and Poland have failed to respect the rule of law and the principles of democracy nationally; specifically in regard to the independence of the judiciary and of the media. Although the ECJ’s ruling has been well received by the majority of Member States of the EU, Hungary and Poland have heavily criticised the decision. The prime minister of Hungary, Viktor Orbán, who is currently in a tight race for the Hungarian elections in April, called the ruling a “political revenge”. As for Poland, its Deputy Justice Minister, Sebastian Kaleta, stated “we need to defend ourselves against an attack on our sovereignty”.  

The ECJ’s dismissal of Hungary and Poland’s challenge demonstrates the EU’s willingness to adhere to the rule of law and democracy, which are part of the EU’s admission criterion for Member States. According to Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, “today's judgments confirm that we are on the right track”.

Sources and further reading:

Al Jazeera. (2022, February 16). Poland, Hungary Lose Legal Challenge Against EU Rule-of-Law Tool. Al Jazeera. Retrieved February 17, 2022, from https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/2/16/poland-hungary-lose-legal-challenge-against-eu-rule-of-law-tool

Court of Justice of the European Union. (2022, February 16). Press Release – No 28/22. https://curia.europa.eu/jcms/upload/docs/application/pdf/2022-02/cp220028en.pdf

Euronews. (2022, February 16). ECJ Rules in Favour of Making EU Cash Handouts Conditional On a Country's Respect For Rule of Law. Euronews. Retrieved February 17, 2022, from https://www.euronews.com/my-europe/2022/02/16/ecj-to-rule-on-whether-eu-cash-handouts-can-be-made-conditional

France 24. (2022, February 16). EU's Top Court 'On Right Track' to Cut Funds to Poland, Hungary for Violating Democratic Rights. France 24. Retrieved February 17, 2022, from https://www.france24.com/en/europe/20220216-eu-s-top-court-on-right-track-to-cut-funds-to-poland-hungary-for-violating-democratic-rights