Polish Constitutional Tribunal Declared Bank Enforcement Title Unconstitutional

On 14 April 2015 the Polish Constitutional Tribunal considered the joint questions referred to it by the District Court in Konin, concerning the provisions of Banking Law allowing the banks to issue bank enforcement titles (BET) adjudicating that Article 96 item 1 and Article 97 item 1 of the Banking Law Act of 29 August 1997 are inconsistent with the Polish Constitution. The provisions will lose their binding force on 1 August 2016.

Under Article 96 item 1 of the Banking Law, a bank may issue BET on the basis of its books or other documents related to conducting banking activities. The form and content of the bank enforcement title is set out in Article 96 item 2 of the Banking Law. Article 97 item 1 of the Banking Law states when BET can be the basis for commencing civil enforcement proceedings following an enforcement clause being granted by a court. The court examines the bank enforcement title only from the formal perspective, and it is not obliged to review the