Polish judicial retirement rules violate EU law - EU top court

The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled on Monday that the new retirement rules for Polish judges run "contrary to EU law," upholding an opinion on the matter issued last week by CJEU advocate general, Evgeni Tanchev. In July 2017, Poland reduced the retirement age for judges to 60 for women and 65 for men, from 67 for both sexes. According to the European Commission, which brought a case against Poland before the EU's top court, the regulations that give the justice minister the right to decide whether to prolong a judge's period of professional activity violate the principle of judicial independence. Poland has since amended the relevant provisions, but the EC decided to sustain its objections, as it claims that not all concerns have been resolved.