This judgment concerns a dispute between Poland and the European Commission regarding penalty payments imposed by the Court of Justice of the EU. Here are the key points: 1. The case relates to Poland’s failure to comply with interim measures ordered by the Court of Justice regarding Poland’s judicial reforms. The Court had ordered Poland to suspend certain provisions affecting judicial independence and imposed a daily penalty payment of €1 million for non-compliance. 2. The judgment addresses Poland’s challenge to the Commission’s decisions to recover penalty payments by offsetting them against EU funds due to Poland. Poland argued that after adopting new legislation in June 2022, it was no longer required to pay the penalties. 3. The key provisions examined include:
- The Commission’s authority to recover penalty payments through offsetting under the EU Financial Regulation
- The Court’s jurisdiction to review such Commission decisions
- The continuing validity of penalty payments even after partial compliance with Court orders
The Court rejected Poland’s arguments and upheld the Commission’s recovery decisions, confirming that partial compliance did not eliminate the obligation to pay the full penalty amount until complete compliance was achieved. The judgment clarifies important aspects of the EU’s enforcement mechanisms regarding rule of law issues.
