The ruling Law and Justice Party (PiS) has pushed through a series of controversial judicial reforms since coming to power in 2015, which have been persistently challenged by the institutions of the European Union. Throughout this process, Poland has found itself the subject of unprecedented measures which aim to preserve the maintenance of the rule of law and protect EU values. To discuss the latest developments and to assess how these issues have developed over time, the IIEA welcomed Mr Richard Barrett, Ireland’s Representative to the Venice Commission and Dr Adam Bodnar, Commissioner for Human Rights of Poland. About the Speakers:
Richard Barrett is an Irish barrister, member of the Venice Commission and was the Deputy Secretary General in the Office of the Attorney General. Prior to his retirement from the Office of the Attorney General, Mr Barrett was Head of the Legal and Human Rights Office at the EULEX Rule of Law mission in Kosovo. From 2003 to 2006, he was the Bureau Legal Officer at the Criminal Assets Bureau in Dublin and from 2000 to 2002 he was the Head of Public Law at the Office of the High Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Since 2015, Adam Bodnar has been the Polish Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsman). Before his service as the Ombudsman, he worked as vice-president of the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights and was the member of the Board of Trustees of the United Nations Voluntary Trust for Victims of Torture. Dr Bodnar is a professor of law affiliated with the Warsaw University and graduated from the Warsaw University and the Central European University in Budapest (LL.M.)
Filmed on the 2nd of March 2020
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