Przegląd orzecznictwa Sądu Najwyższego
Overview of the decisions of the Polish Supreme Court

Summary/Abstract: Pursuant to the resolution of the panel of seven judges of the Polish Supreme Court of May 7, 2021, case file no. III CZP 6/21, which became a legal principle, an illegal contract term (Article 3851 § 1 of the Polish Civil Code) is from the beginning, by virtue of the law itself, ineffective for the benefit of the consumer who may give free and informed consent to this provision and thus restore its retroactive effect. If the loan agreement cannot be binding without an ineffective provision, the consumer and the lender are entitled to separate claims for the reimbursement of cash benefits provided in the performance of the agreement (Article 410 § 1 in conjunction with Article 405 of the Polish Civil Code). The lender may request the return of the benefit from the moment the loan agreement becomes permanently ineffective. The resolution of the Polish Supreme Court of May 28, 2021, case file no. III CZP 27/20, is of exceptional importance, as according to it the right to live in a clean environment is not a personal good. Protection of personal rights (Article 23 of the Polish Civil Code in conjunction with Article 24 of the Polish Civil Code and Article 448 of the Polish Civil Code) covers health, freedom, privacy, which may be breached (threatened) by an inadequate air quality, which does not meet the standards specified in legal provisions. However, according to the resolution of the Polish Supreme Court of March 31, 2021, case file no. I KZP 7/20 – a violent crime within the meaning of Art. 41a § 1 of the Polish Criminal Code is any crime that was actually committed with the use of violence, and the word “violence” used in this legal provision includes both physical and mental violence.

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