Mrs. Laura Codruța Kövesi
European Public Prosecutor
European Public Prosecutor’s Office
11 Avenue John F. Kennedy
L-1855 Luxembourg
Luxembourg
Dear Honourable Madam Prosecutor,
On behalf of the Independent Association of Prosecutors Ad Vocem (hereinafter: Ad Vocem), I would like to take this opportunity to express our deep respect for you, Honourable Madam Prosecutor, and for the European Public Prosecutor’s Office you lead. Poland’s accession to the EPPO is a significant event in the history of the Polish prosecutor’s office. Undoubtedly, Poland’s accession to the EPPO has raised hopes for raising standards not only in the prosecution of crimes in Poland and the functioning of the Polish prosecutor’s office, but also in strengthening the rule of law in our state.
The statutory objective of Ad Vocem is to participate in the creation and amendment of law and to strengthen the rule of law to ensure the greatest possible independence of prosecutors; to shape the moral and ethical attitudes of prosecutors, assessors and trainees, and to strive for transparency and clarity in the functioning of the broadly understood justice system. From this perspective, we closely monitor the actions of the Polish government aimed at integrating Polish prosecutors within the structures of the EPPO. This has led us to express several concerns regarding compliance with the principles of the rule of law in connection with the recently concluded competition for Polish candidates for the position of delegated European prosecutor. In this context, I would like to draw your attention, Honourable Madam Prosecutor, to the following facts.
I.
By the Act of January 24, 2025, amending certain acts in connection with the accession of the Republic of Poland to enhanced cooperation regarding the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, a new provision was introduced to the Act of January 28, 2016, on the Prosecutor’s Office – Article 95a, which contains the following regulations:
§ 1. Candidates for European Prosecutors are selected from among prosecutors through a competition for a European prosecutor and a competition for a delegated European prosecutor. The manner and procedure for conducting the competitions are determined by the Prosecutor General by way of an order.
§ 2. The Prosecutor General designates candidates for European prosecutors based on Article 16(1) of Regulation 2017/1939 [i.e., Council Regulation (EU) 2017/1939 of October 12, 2017, implementing enhanced cooperation on the establishment of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (‘the EPPO’)].
§ 3. The Prosecutor General designates candidates for delegated European prosecutors based on Article 17(1) of Regulation 2017/1939.
The content of this provision raises significant concerns regarding its compliance with EU law and the Constitution of the Republic of Poland.
Firstly, according to Article 16(1)(a) and (c) and Article 17(2) of Council Regulation (EU) 2017/1939, candidates for European prosecutor and delegated European prosecutor must be “active members of the public prosecution service or judiciary of the relevant Member State”. Meanwhile, the aforementioned Article 95a § 1 completely deprived judges of the possibility of applying. The justification for the draft law does not provide any rationale for this limitation of access to public service, which is granted under EU law, which, after all, applies directly in the Polish legal order.
Secondly, Article 95a § 2, second sentence of the Act on the Prosecutor’s Office states that the manner and procedure for conducting competitions are determined by the Prosecutor General by way of an order. As can be seen, this provision does not contain even the most general guidelines regarding the conditions that these competitions must meet, thereby leaving the Minister of Justice – the Prosecutor General with complete discretion in establishing the rules of the competition. This state of affairs is, of course, inconsistent primarily with Article 60 in connection with Article 31(3) of the Constitution of the Republic of Poland:
Article 60
Polish citizens enjoying full public rights shall have a right of access to public service based on the principle of equality.
Article 31(3)
Any limitation upon the exercise of constitutional freedoms and rights may be imposed only by statute, and only when necessary in a democratic state for the protection of its security or public order, or to protect the natural environment, health or public morals, or the freedoms and rights of other persons. Such limitations shall not violate the essence of freedoms and rights.
Moreover, Article 95a § 2, second sentence of the Act on the Prosecutor’s Office – which states that the Prosecutor General determines the rules for access to public service by way of an order – is inconsistent with Article 93(2) of the Constitution of the Republic of Poland:
Orders shall only be issued on the basis of statute. They shall not serve as the basis for decisions taken in respect of citizens, legal persons and other subjects.
Thirdly, in the competitions referred to in Article 95a § 2, second sentence of the Act on the Prosecutor’s Office, no judicial control is provided for candidates who not only did not win the competition but whose candidacies were declared inadmissible. Such control should at least address the formal aspect of access to public service, which is related to compliance with uniform criteria and procedures. The lack of such control is inconsistent with Article 77(2) of the Constitution of the Republic of Poland:
Article 77(2)
Statutes shall not bar the recourse by any person to the courts in pursuit of claims alleging infringement of freedoms or rights.
II.
On July 21, 2025, an announcement appeared on the official website of the National Prosecutor’s Office (https://www.gov.pl/web/prokuratura-krajowa/ogloszenie-o-naborze-na-urzad-delegowanego-prokuratora-europejskiego2), which states, among other things:
“The Prosecutor General announces the recruitment of candidates for the position of delegated European prosecutor.
(…)
The candidate should:
1. hold the position of prosecutor and not be in a state of inactivity;
2. demonstrate unquestionable independence;
3. have at least 10 years of experience as a prosecutor, including at least 5 years of experience in conducting investigations into economic crimes and fiscal crimes;
4. have experience in conducting and supervising proceedings in cases of crimes indicated in the directive of the European Parliament and Council (EU) 2017/1371 of July 5, 2017, on combating through criminal law offenses against the financial interests of the Union (O.J. EU L 198 of 2017, p. 29);
5. be proficient in the official language of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office.
The candidate’s academic achievements may also be evaluated.”
As can be seen, the Prosecutor General did not limit himself to defining the manner and procedure for conducting the competition, to which he is authorized by the aforementioned Article 95a § 2, second sentence of the Act on Prosecutor’s Office. The Prosecutor General also specified other criteria for candidates for the position of delegated European prosecutor that were not mentioned in Article 17 of Regulation (EU) 2017/1939 (namely, the above-mentioned criteria 3 and 4, and the issue of the candidate’s academic achievements). However, Article 95a § 2, second sentence of the Act on Prosecutor’s Office does not grant the Prosecutor General the right to impose on candidates for the position of delegated European prosecutor any criteria other than those indicated in Article 17 of Regulation (EU) 2017/1939.
In summary, not only does Article 95a § 2, second sentence of the Act on Prosecutor’s Office grant the Prosecutor General powers that, according to the Constitution of the Republic of Poland, the legislator cannot grant him, but also the Prosecutor General has exceeded the powers granted to him by the Act on Prosecutor’s Office. Furthermore, although the announcement states that “The procedure for evaluating candidates is determined by the Prosecutor General’s Order No. 27/25 of July 17, 2025, concerning the manner and procedure for conducting competitions to select candidates for the position of delegated European prosecutor,” this order has not been published.
III.
The announcement referred to in point II also states:
“The Commission for conducting the competition to select candidates for the position of delegated European prosecutor, appointed by the Prosecutor General’s Order No. 26/25 of July 17, 2025, consists of:
– Chairperson of the Commission – Mr. Krzysztof Karsznicki – Deputy Director of the Office of the National Prosecutor’s Office;
– Deputy Chairperson of the Commission – Mr. Jacek Łazarowicz – prosecutor of the Regional Prosecutor’s Office in Warsaw delegated to the Department for Organized Crime and Corruption of the National Prosecutor’s Office;
other members:
– Ms. Grażyna Stronikowska – European Prosecutor;
– Ms. Izabela Stolarczyk – prosecutor of the Regional Prosecutor’s Office in Katowice delegated to the Department for Economic Crime of the National Prosecutor’s Office;
– Ms. Anna Wiśniewska – prosecutor of the Regional Prosecutor’s Office in Szczecin delegated to the Department of Preparatory Proceedings of the National Prosecutor’s Office;
– prosecutor from the Office of the National Prosecutor designated by the Deputy National Prosecutor as the secretary of the commission without voting rights.”
It should also be noted that the Prosecutor General’s Order No. 26/25, mentioned in the announcement, has not been published.
Subsequently, on October 3, 2025, an announcement titled “Results of the competition to select prosecutors for the position of delegated European prosecutor” appeared on the official website of the National Prosecutor’s Office (https://www.gov.pl/web/prokuratura-krajowa/wyniki-konkursu-wylaniajacego-prokuratorow-na-kandydatow-na-urzad-delegowanego-prokuratora-europejskiego). The content of this announcement is as follows:
At the meeting on October 2, 2025, the Commission for conducting the competition to select candidates for the position of delegated European prosecutor adopted a resolution designating the following individuals as candidates for the position of delegated European prosecutor, distinguished by the highest qualifications (in alphabetical order):
– Jacek Bilewicz – prosecutor of the National Prosecutor’s Office;
– Michał Choroba – prosecutor of the Circuit Prosecutor’s Office in Warsaw-Praga;
– Joanna Garus – prosecutor of the Circuit Prosecutor’s Office in Warsaw;
– Agnieszka Kępka – prosecutor of the Circuit Prosecutor’s Office in Lublin;
– Joanna Pawlik-Czyniewska – prosecutor of the Regional Prosecutor’s Office in Wrocław;
– Jolanta Piwowarska – prosecutor of the Circuit Prosecutor’s Office in Piotrków Trybunalski;
– Małgorzata Szczęsna – prosecutor of the Circuit Prosecutor’s Office in Warsaw;
– Anna Wolska-Bagińska – prosecutor of the District Prosecutor’s Office in Gdynia.”
In this regard, we would like to draw your attention, Honourable Madam Prosecutor, to the fact that the winner of the competition, Mr. Jacek Bilewicz, is not only one of many prosecutors of the National Prosecutor’s Office but is also the Deputy Prosecutor General, appointed without following the procedures specified in Article 14 § 2 Act on Prosecutor’s Office. This means that he is currently against the law but in fact the supervising prosecutor in relation to all members of the competition commission – except for Ms. Grażyna Stronikowska. However, he was the supervising prosecutor of the latter until she assumed the position of European prosecutor and was previously her longtime colleague – first at the Prosecutor General’s Office and then at the National Prosecutor’s Office. Mr. Jacek Bilewicz deemed illegal in the light of the rulings of the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Tribunal in the period from January 12, 2024 to March 12, 2024 as The National Prosecutor appointed Mr. Krzysztof Karsznicki, i.e. the chairman of the competition commission, to the position of deputy director of the Presidential Office.
The factual and legal situation described above raises our utmost concern, as it clearly indicates that candidates for the position of delegated European prosecutor were selected based on a law that is inconsistent with both EU law and the Constitution of the Republic of Poland and based on a competition procedure defined in an order of the Prosecutor General that has not been published anywhere. The candidates for the position of delegated European prosecutor were selected by a commission that did not include any external expert and which, for an outside observer, does not appear to be an objective or independent body in relation to the winner of the competition. The resolution of this commission does not contain substantive justification and is not subject to judicial review.
In this regard, the Ad Vocem Association reminds that, according to Article 19(1) second sentence of the Treaty on European Union, Member States establish remedies necessary to ensure effective judicial protection in areas covered by EU law. We have no doubt that enhanced cooperation regarding the establishment of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office is such an area. In this context, we recall the judgment of the CJEU of March 26, 2020, Erik Simpson and HG against the Council of the European Union and the European Commission, in which the Court had the opportunity to comment on the standards of competition procedures for judicial offices within European structures and how the correctness of such a procedure translates into the status of the selected individuals. Furthermore, we also recall the standards of the Council of Europe regarding prosecutors, which clearly state that “States should take measures to ensure that (…) the recruitment, the promotion and the transfer of public prosecutors are carried out according to fair and impartial procedures embodying safeguards against any approach which favours the interests of specific groups, and excluding discrimination on any ground” (The Role of Public Prosecution in the Criminal Justice System, Recommendation Rec(2000)19 Adopted by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on 6 October 2000, Article 5).
Not only for our association members but also for majority of Polish prosecutors, you remain, Honourable Madam Prosecutor, a symbol of the fight for the independence of the prosecution. Your entire career demonstrates that to uphold the rule of law, the prosecution must itself adhere to the highest standards of the rule of law. Therefore, we deeply believe that you will fully understand the concerns expressed in this letter, so that the bad practices that unfortunately still persist in the prosecution services of post-communist states do not permeate the European Public Prosecutor’s Office under your leadership. Therefore, we wish to express our hope that you will not hesitate, Honourable Madam Prosecutor, to take the necessary steps to enforce the highest European standards in the matter we have outlined.
Please accept our deepest respect.
Yours faithfully,
Andrzej Golec
Public Prosecutor
President of the Independent Association of Prosecutors Ad Vocem