Sąd Najwyższy versus prawa podstawowe, czyli kilka uwag o skuteczności Karty praw podstawowych Unii Europejskiej w polskim porządku prawnym

December 1, 2024, marks the 15th anniversary since the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union gained the effect equal to the Treaties. The Polish-British Protocol has also been in force for the same period. This is therefore a good time for some summaries or reflections. The subject of this article is an attempt to answer the question concerning the status of the Charter in the Polish legal order, primarily from the perspective of the jurisprudence of the Polish Supreme Court, as a court whose decisions have no legal remedy. The main subject of consideration, however, must be preceded by the limitations in the application of the Charter resulting from Article 51(1) of the Charter and the Polish-British Protocol. The paper is divided into four chapters and a conclusion. The first chapter outlines the general context of the EU human rights protection system and the meaning of the Charter. This is followed by a discussion of concerns regarding the personal and material scope of the Charter. The next chapter analyses the case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union, the Polish Supreme Court, and the Polish Constitutional Tribunal on the understanding of the Polish-¬-British Protocol. The analysis carried out in the previous chapters highlights the context in which the Polish Supreme Court rules. Its activity focuses on the fourth chapter. The text concludes with a summary. The text aims to provide an overview of the issues regarding the application of the Charter by the Polish Supreme Court. It mainly bases itself on case law to show the perspective of the courts, though it is not exhaustive and some issues, such as access to the preliminary ruling procedure, are only hinted at.