There are no specific provisions that address presenting evidence in relation to domestic abuse or battered woman syndrome in Polish law. However, based on the general principles of the Code of Civil Procedure, all facts that are relevant for the resolution of the case are considered evidence in a civil proceeding.
Pursuant to the general principles of the Code of Criminal Procedure, evidence can be admitted unless an evidentiary motion is dismissed (for more information, see Section 5.1 above). Medical evidence concerning a victim of domestic violence will likely be considered as evidence in both criminal and civil proceedings.
In accordance with the DV Act, a person affected by domestic violence is granted assistance free of charge, in particular, in the form of a medical examination with the aim of determining the causes and type of injury sustained as a result of the use of domestic violence and the issuing of a certificate on this matter.
Polish law does not have a direct equivalent to departure from work "for good cause" because an employee in Poland does not have a duty to give reasons for leaving their workplace. According to the Labor Code, either party (employer or employee) may terminate an employment contract with notice and such contract will terminate on the day the period of notice expires. After one of the parties (employer or employee) serves notice of termination of the employment contract, the parties may agree upon an earlier date for the termination of the employment contract.
If a doctor, dentist, specialist or senior specialist diagnoses an insured victim of domestic violence with a medical condition, the insured victim of domestic violence could obtain care allowance. Pursuant to the Act on the Money Benefits from Social Insurance in case of Illness and Maternity, care allowance is payable to insured individuals who have been released from performing work duties due to the need to take personal care of themselves due to a medical condition.
Polish law does not specifically state that family members of domestic violence victims can take leave to help the victim to seek treatment or obtain help. However, family members of insured domestic violence victims who have been diagnosed with a medical condition may be granted care allowance, which effectively temporarily releases them from work.
The Act on the Money Benefits from Social Insurance in case of Illness and Maternity defines family members as spouses, parents, the child's parent, stepfather, stepmother, in-laws, grandparents, grandchildren, siblings and children over the age of 14. The family member must remain in a common household with the insured victim during the period of care and the care allowance can be no longer than 14 days in a calendar year.
Such provisions do exist in Polish law. First, there is the Extradition Treaty between the United States of America and the Republic of Poland, which aims to prevent US citizens from avoiding legal responsibility for crimes committed in the US. According to this treaty, Poland is obliged to deliver persons to the US who are sought for prosecution in the US or have been found guilty of an extraditable offense in the US. Such extricable offenses are defined in the treaty.
Second, if a foreign national commits a crime in Poland, that person will typically be prosecuted and charged in accordance with the provisions of Polish Civil and Criminal Codes.
Third, special immigration laws may apply. According to the Act on Foreigners, initiation of the proceedings on granting a temporary and permanent residence permit, as well as the long-term resident's EU residence permit, will be refused if the foreign national is serving a sentence of imprisonment or detention. Furthermore, a permanent residence permit granted to a foreign national will be revoked if they were convicted in Poland by a final judgment for an intentional offense and sentenced to a minimum of three years of imprisonment. The Head of the Office will keep a list of foreigners whose stay within the territory of the Republic of Poland is undesirable. The Head of the Office will be a high-level authority, within the meaning of the Code of Administrative Procedure, in relation to the commanding officer of a Polish Border Guard unit or the commanding officer of a Polish Border Guard outpost in the matters pertaining to the imposition of return obligation on a foreign national or extension of the deadline for voluntary return.
Fourth, Poland uses criteria for making a decision on imposing the return obligation to a foreign national to their respective country of origin, including if they have been convicted in Poland by a final decision for a custodial sentence subject to execution and there are grounds to conduct proceedings on their transfer abroad for the purpose of enforcing the penalty against them, unless there are other statutory provisions that preclude such a decision.
No, there is no such provision.
The Polish domestic violence law does not directly discuss asylum accessibility. However, according to other provisions included in national and international law, the victims of domestic violence can seek asylum, refugee status, a residence permit for humanitarian reasons and a permit for tolerated stay in Poland. The grounds on which such help can be granted are specified in the Act on Foreigners (residence permit for humanitarian reasons and permit for tolerated stay) and in the Act on Granting Protection to Aliens (refugee status, subsidiary protection and asylum). In 2008, the Supreme Administrative Court heard a case of a woman who was seeking asylum status as a domestic violence victim. It held that domestic violence might be considered persecution under the 1951 Geneva Refugee Convention as long as other requirements of the convention were met. Therefore, it is possible for domestic violence victims to obtain asylum.
In principle, the constitution sets forth an institution of special military courts competent to preside over cases related to militaries.
Initially, said courts were exclusively competent to issue rulings on all cases pertaining to militaries, especially concerning criminal offenses. However, under the 2008 Amendment of the Code of Criminal Procedure, the military courts' competence has been substantially limited so that, currently, it only encompasses offenses committed with relation to (or in connection with) the deployment of military duties.
In light of the aforementioned, according to the Code of Criminal Procedure, it will be the common (criminal) court that issues a protection order even if the abuser is in active military. For further information regarding protection orders in domestic violence cases, please refer to Sections 4.1 and 5.5 above.
Similarly, regarding civil protection orders, the common (civil) court is competent to issue them.
The Code of Civil Procedure has a special chapter pertaining to child-parent relationships ("Cases within the Subject-Matter and Scope of Relationships between Parents and Children"). Moreover, a hearing must precede the issuance of a final decision in cases concerning parental authority and the right of access to a child. A community inquiry may be ordered to gather relevant information on the child's situation. Such inquiry relates, in particular, to the child's behavior, health and upbringing, including the living standards of their family, the minor's school record, etc.
Furthermore, if a child was placed in foster custody pursuant to the DV Act, the court, after having heard from the social worker who removed the child from their family, is obligated to issue a ruling — no more than 24 hours later — to place the child in foster custody or to return the child to their family. The court is obligated to periodically check, at least once every six months, on the situation and the child in foster custody to verify the possibility of the child's return to their family. If the child's welfare so requires, the court should institute proceedings to remove parental authority from the child's parents.
There is also a possibility of a prosecutor becoming involved. If the case concerns the removal of a person from parental authority or custody, the court should give notice to a prosecutor, along with a copy of an application and the dates scheduled for a hearing.
The matters of custody and visitation are also regulated in the Family and Guardianship Code. Both parents exercise parental authority. The court of protection, however, is competent to suspend, limit or deprive one or both parents of parental authority should the child's interests so require. Furthermore, the court is obligated to issue relevant orders if the child's interests are at risk.
Specifically, if there is an obstacle of a permanent nature or if the parents grossly abuse their parental authority or neglect their obligations toward the child, the court can deprive them of their parental authority.
Finally, the parents have the right and obligation to maintain contact with their child, irrespective of parental authority. However, should the child's interests so require, the court can limit or prohibit such contact. In its ruling concerning contact with a child, the court can oblige the parents to act in a certain manner, i.e., to seek help from institutions providing family therapy or consulting.
Under the general principles of civil procedure (especially the audiatur et altera pars principle), the judge should hear and consider the testimonies of both parties before passing judgment.
The special chapter on child-parent relationships of the Code of Civil Procedure provides further guidelines on said matter.
Before the issuance of a ruling on merits, the court is required to hear the legal representative of the person involved. Moreover, if the importance of the case so demands, the court should also hear close friends and relatives of the aforementioned person. When a given case concerns the person or property of a child, the court is required to hear the child, given their mental, health and maturity capabilities, and to take into account, to the furthest possible extent, the child's wishes. A child should be heard outside of a courtroom.
In cases concerning the right of access to a child, rulings on other important child issues on which the parents disagree may only be issued after the parents have been given a chance to present their explanations, unless it would be excessively difficult to hear the parents.
Moreover, in cases regarding the potential removal from parental authority, a ruling on the merits of such a case may only be issued following a hearing.
No, forcing a tenant to move out (eviction) is permissible only on the basis of a court ruling. In such a ruling, the court decides whether the evicted person is entitled to social housing.
In general, ordering eviction is not allowed in the protected period, i.e., between 1 November and 31 March. Furthermore, the Act on Tenants' Rights specifies protected categories of tenants that may not be evicted unless they are provided with social housing, such as pregnant women, juveniles and people who are bedridden or with an unemployed status. A victim of domestic violence, however, is not a protected category.
No, the law does not allow tenants to terminate their leases early due to domestic violence.
Generally, under the Act on Firearms and Ammunition, possession of firearms in Poland is subject to a license. The competent voivodeship police commander issues such license.
A license can only be issued if the motioning party does not present a risk to themselves, public order and security and if they give an important reason for the necessity to possess a firearm.
The Act on Firearms and Ammunition sets forth a catalog of subjects who should not be granted a license. Among the unauthorized subjects are persons convicted with a final judgment for an intentional criminal offense or an intentional fiscal offense.
Another possible route is the revocation of a previously granted license for the possession of firearms. The police authority revokes the license if there is a justified concern that the license holder can deploy it in a way that contravenes public policy or security, especially if the license holder is a person convicted with a final judgment for an indictable offense against life, health or property or if there are pending criminal proceedings against them for the commitment of any of the aforementioned offenses. Please note that such a revocation is not within the police authority's discretion; it is mandatory upon the fulfillment of any of the aforementioned premises.
Therefore, an abuser who has been convicted of domestic violence is effectively prevented from owning guns.Under Polish law, protection orders are usually issued in the course of either civil or criminal proceedings before the passing of the final judgment or even prior to the commencement of the main proceedings in a given case.
The Act on Firearms and Ammunition sets forth a procedure regarding the securing of firearms owned by persons against whom criminal proceedings are pending. The police (and, with regard to militaries, the military police) can seize firearms and ammunition, as well as any documents stating the legality of firearm possession, from a person against whom criminal proceedings are pending until the final conclusion of said proceedings, but for no longer than three years. It is within the police's discretion to decide whether the commencement of the aforementioned procedure is necessary in a given case.
Possession of guns without a license is prohibited under Polish law. Consequently, an aggressor against whom a protection order has been issued and whose license has been subsequently revoked will be obligated to relinquish the possessed firearms.