8 April 2025
The subject of my speech was a presentation principles governing administrative proceedings conducted by consuls under the Act of June 25, 2015 – Consular Law. These principles are derived from the dispersed provisions of the act, supplemented where necessary by relevant constitutional provisions. Unlike the Code of Administrative Procedure, the Consular Law does not explicitly codify these principles.
The distinctiveness of the Consular Law lies in its adoption of different procedural mechanisms for handling administrative matters assigned to the consul, even when those matters correspond to cases that, within the territory of the Republic of Poland, are adjudicated under the Code of Administrative Procedure. This distinctiveness is further reflected in the divergence of various procedural details and the absence, in the Consular Law, of provisions equivalent to the general part of the Code of Administrative Procedure.
Unlike the Code of Administrative Procedure, consular administrative proceedings lack explicit legal principles enshrined in specific statutory norms. However, these principles can be inferred from the overall framework of procedural regulations. The objective of this speech was to examine the role of legal principles in the consul’s application of law in administrative proceedings and, through an analysis of case-specific procedural solutions, to identify the fundamental procedural principles governing administrative consular proceedings.
The legal framework of the Consular Law is structured around the principle of legalism, the principle of officialdom, the principle of material truth, and the principle of conducting proceedings in a manner that inspires confidence. Two additional principles – flexibility and simplicity – are particularly characteristic of consular procedures. The former is reflected in the availability of supplementary legal mechanisms that deviate from standard procedural rules when circumstances arise that could obstruct the proceedings. The simplicity of consular proceedings is ensured through the implementation of clear and straightforward procedural rules designed to enhance efficiency and effectiveness. The remaining principles align with those established in the Code of Administrative Procedure, without manifesting any distinctive features specific to consular proceedings.
I finally came to the conclusion that the Consular Law does not expressly enumerate the principles governing administrative proceedings conducted by the consul in the application of substantive law sensu stricto. However, an analysis of the detailed procedural provisions allows for the identification of these principles. Despite significant distinctions, consular proceedings are fundamentally based on the same core principles as general jurisdictional proceedings, namely: the principle of legalism, the principle of the officialdom of the consul’s actions, the principle of objective truth, and the principle of fostering citizens’ trust. These principles form the foundation of consular administrative proceedings.
A distinctive legal feature of consular proceedings is the set of rules that enable the consul to optimize procedural activities, thereby justifying the recognition of the principle of flexibility and procedural simplicity. Other principles – such as the duty to inform parties, the consul’s cooperation with bodies of the Republic of Poland or the receiving state, the active participation of parties in the proceedings, writtenness, procedural efficiency, and the two-instance nature of proceedings – while subject to specific legal modifications, largely align with the standards of the Code of Administrative Procedure. These principles complement the legal framework of consular proceedings, ensuring their adaptability to contemporary rule-of-law requirements.
The most fundamental principles – legalism, officialdom, and objective truth – are common to all administrative proceedings due to their shared axiological foundation within the legal system. However, the principle of flexibility and procedural simplicity is particularly characteristic of consular proceedings, highlighting their distinctiveness. The specificity of consular procedural law is evident in the simultaneous and harmonious application of both the principle of legalism and the principle of flexibility. The identification of these principles allows for the balanced and optimized application of individual provisions, ensuring the concurrent implementation of two seemingly divergent principles.
The identification of procedural principles plays a crucial role in the interpretation of procedural norms. These principles interact to a limited extent with validation and evidentiary decisions. Moreover, the application of procedural law as a whole indirectly influences the application of substantive law, including subsumption decisions and decisions regarding the selection of legal consequences.
