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14 Małgorzata Y. Krół

6. The point of the debatę

A system of laws bas bccn defined abovc as a set of generał and ahstract norms dcrived cithcr from precedcnl or lcgis!ativc fiat. This is however not enough for law to eonie into being. What is indispcnsablc. io both cascs, is tbc jud ges' legal-cultural activity^,ł - partly creativc, partly rccrcativc - groundcd in the legal-cultural tradition to which numerous generations of law practilioncrs bave contributcd.“ An csscnlial part herc arc the various judges' intcllectual abilities and morał staturc, regardless of the type of system they opcralc in.

II. PRKCKDENT IN THE POLISII LEG Al. SYSTEM - NORMATIYE ASPECTS

Tbc Polisb legał system is of the statutory kind which means that law making and the judicial application of law are elearly separated. This corresponds to the division of powers betwcen lcgislativc, cxccutivc and judicial authorities, wbere nonę can replacc or substitute for another, and tbe rulc of law (Rechiutadt) means that this principlc be strictly obscrvcd. I

According to Art. 175 of Polish Rcpublic's Conslitution, tbc administ-ration of justicc resides with tbc Supremę Court. common courts. admmist-rativc tribunals and mililary tnbunals. Art. 87, in tura, makes it elear that Ihe sources of Polish law are the Constitution, sututes, ratified international agreements, and rcgulation, whilc Art. 178 Sec. 1 States that ia the discharge of their dutics the judges are independent and subjcct only to the constitution and statuses (emphasis mmc, MZK). This means that in idcological and constitutional terms Polish courts arc instrumenis of the administration of justicc which is bascd on laws laid down by the legislature (Sejm and Senat, the lower and higher houses of the Polish parliament) and arc not inlcndcd to crcate laws. This principle is confirmed by the law on the structurc of the common courts of July 27, 2001 (J. of L. No. 98, item 1070).

A special role in the Polish system is played by the highest lcvcl courts. The Supremę Court superviscs common courts as regards the conformity of their adjudication with the ław and promotes uniformity of adjudication Whcncver this is rclcvant, the Supremę Court resolves legał ąuestions If its resolution becomcs a legał prinoplc, it rcmams in force with respect to that court until the resolution is replaced by another one Thus, the generał principle • in force sińce 1989 - whereby lower courts sbould not be subject

“ See M. Zif k -Sadowski, Prana a ucZfUmrzml*.., jip. J7 KI ’* Sec R. D wor 11 n, Rtorqc grana ganaznie fPolufc traMłtfMM of Takinj luwt ScT>r>u4>). Waruawa 1998.

to any dircctives concermng the administralion of justicc or judicial practice was intended to safeguard the "punty" of the constitutional scparation of powers in Poland. It follows from the abovc that prcccdcnt is not part of the Polish legał system.

Ul. JUDICIAL APPLICATION OF LAW IN POLANO

Contrary to the letter of the Polish constitution and of the cxisling laws, precedent - abovc all regulative prcccdcnt does play an importanl role and numerous refcrcnccs to that cffect can be found in the oflidal statements of molives substantiating judicial decisions. Specifically rcfcrcncc is commonly madę to prcccdcnt, to prcvious judgement or ruling. to widcly held opinion, to recommendcd interpretation. to Supremę Court adjudication and Professional literaturę. Numerous eaamptes c*n be found in the rclevant official publications. viz. CZP, CRN, OSNC. Also the Supremę Court, in the offkial statements justifying its decisions or rulings. commonly tak es rccoursc to acocptcd linę of adjudication, i.c. prcccdcnt, in its argumentation. Agam numerous e.samplcs of this can be lóund in the collcctions of documents publishcd under the names of CKN, CZP, and OSNC.

To sum up.

1.    The courts resort eilher to cstablishcd linc of adjudication, to received practice, or to recommendcd uiterprctauon of legał norms, and whatcvcr problems arisc arc intcrprctive. In this way the courts in cfTcct rcspect the constitutional paradigm of tbc scparation of po wers

2.    Kegardless of the actual fortu of the justifying statements in tbc judgments therc is the question of the new normativc substancc of judicial deosions that rdy on interpretation. In cach and cvery casc this is a debatab-le point tn botb semantie and stnctly legał sense

IV. PRFCF-DFjNT in tfif. polish lecal doctrine

Polish law being of the statutory kind,ⁿ it is hardly surprising that legał theonsts pay littlc attention to prcccdcnt and its role in the system of law. Neverthcłcss. the qucstion is not entirdy ncglcctcd in the doctrine as testificd by refcrcnccs to - above all - currcnt adjudication. This can be scen in the basie law tcxtbooks. For cxamplc, in Radwański'$ dvil law tcxt that has

⁰ Sec eg W CzachuMki. /.obowutuuin Zarys nykiaJu fOfeligatioiu. I^clure notes], Wun«ł KO*. 9* ed.. Ch 1/2.