EU top court again rules against Poland in rule-of-law case

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union’s highest court has ruled that Poland’s government has too much influence over judges. Ruling on the Polish justice minister’s powers to endorse judges for high criminal courts and to end their terms, the European Court of Justice said that “EU law precludes the regime in force.” The court said the system whereby the justice minister is also the public prosecutor general and may terminate at any time a judge’s term without stating a reason impedes the independence of the judiciary and gives reasonable doubt about judicial impartiality. EU headquarters and Poland have been in a long-running standoff over the Polish government’s efforts to control the judiciary.