Openness of examination proceedings before the Warsaw’s Real Estate Reprivatisation Commission

Abstract

The article concerns the openness of examination proceedings before the Warsaw’s Real Estate Reprivatisation Commission, which constitute specific procedure in relation to general administrative proceedings governed by the provisions of the Polish Code of Administrative Procedure. Through a dogmatic analysis, I have proved that these proceedings are governed by rules corresponding not only to the internal openness – typical for administrative proceedings, but also external openness – which constitutes a sort of novum, creating a high standard of transparency in administrative proceedings. The external openness in examination proceedings before the Commission means the introduction of an open trial, the images and sounds of which, upon the chairperson’s consent, can be recorded by the mass media. Moreover, the legislator also ordered to publish decisions concluding proceedings in the Bulletin of Public Information on the website of the office supporting the Minister of Justice. In practice, a variety of information about the proceedings, including notifications, notices, resolutions and decisions, is published in the Bulletin.

Keywords

• administrative proceedings
• rules governing general administrative proceedings
• access to files
• transparency principle
• openness principle
• reprivatisation