The System of Legal Protection Authorities in Poland (1944–1989): Selected Issues

The system, organization, and practice of the judicial authorities in communist Poland (1944–1989) as instruments of a totalitarian and authoritarian system are well known. Over the past 35 years, numerous studies have been published on the judicial crimes of that period, especially from 1944 to 1956. Most of these studies are historical, while some are legal. Meanwhile, during the communist era, the state organized the activities of the legal protection organs not only to protect the existing political situation, but also to regulate and stabilize social relations, as in any other country. These aspects of the activities of the legal protection organs were widely discussed in legal literature until 1989 when the focus shifted to describing the judiciary as an instrument for maintaining communist authority. This is not surprising; it was the closing of a gap that had existed for many years. However, enough time has passed since the collapse of the communist system to take a fresh look at how the system of legal protection bodies – i.e., courts (including administrative courts since 1980), the Constitutional Tribunal (since 1986 only), the prosecution service, the bar, the bar of legal advisors, notaries, state commercial arbitration, misdemeanor boards, and other minor institutions that existed on a temporary basis – was organized and operated. Of particular interest is how the independence of bodies that are self-governing by nature and for historical reasons has been curtailed (the bar and the notary). The fundamental research question is whether the legal protection system in the People’s Republic of Poland protected citizens’ rights, and how much it was merely a façade designed to conceal an organized apparatus of repression and coercion, especially after 1956. This question is important because the political transformation of 1989 brought only partial changes to the organization of the system in terms of both structure and personnel. This suggests that the system functioning until 1989 could be adapted to the conditions of a democratic constitutional state. To this end, it is necessary to examine the similarities and differences between the Polish system and those in other countries with established traditions of the rule of law.