The Opole Studies in Administration and Law

The systemic and administrative position of the Financial Ombudsman among public administration bodies

Michał Arsoba, Łukasz Majka — Tue, 30 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This article aims to present the institutional position of the Polish Financial Ombudsman, taking into account the significance of its autonomy and the existing interinstitutional
dependencies. The point of departure is the thesis that independence constitutes a key element of the status of this body. The study outlines the ratio legis behind the establishment of the Financial Ombudsman and presents normative arguments supporting its placement outside the structure of government administration. The subsequent part of the analysis focuses on the controversies related to the extension of the Ombudsman’s tasks in the field of retail banking accessibility under the Act of 26 April 2024, including the supervisory relationship with the President of PFRON, which arise from these changes. In this context, a research question is formulated concerning the impact of the new institutional linkages on the Financial Ombudsman’s independence to date. The study, conducted with the use of the dogmatic-legal method, leads to the conclusion that, following the legislative amendments, the Financial Ombudsman is moving towards a hybrid model: it does retain
its distinctness from central government administration, while at the same time, remains in a relationship of supervisory subordination regarding the scope of its new competences,
which runs counter to the original idea underlying the establishment of this institution.

Relationships between Competence, Sanctioned, and Sanctioning Norms in the Context of Criminal Law

Michał Dębowski — Tue, 30 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The research presented in the article negatively verifies the thesis that the relationships between sanctioned, sanctioning and competency norms in criminal law are peculiar compared to other branches of law, and that these relationships can be described as a triad of legal norms. To this end, the article seeks to answer the research questions regarding the nature of the relationships between the concept of a competency norm and those of sanctioned norm and sanctioning norm, and whether these relationships are characterised by features
peculiar to criminal law. The research employed the method of normative analysis. The study is based on the analysis of a body of Polish legal theory. The findings show that, based on
the traditional understanding of the concepts of sanctioned, sanctioning and competency
norms, the concept of competency norms stands in the relationship of intersection with the concepts of sanctioned and sanctioning norms. On the basis of an alternative understanding of these concepts, it should be reserved that the concept of a competency norm stands in a relationship of superiority to the concept of a sanctioning norm. The study concludes that the relationships between the concepts of competency norms and those of sanctioned and sanctioning norms in criminal law do not differ from those in other branches of law. It is not possible to formulate a divisional criterion that would allow proposing a logical division in which the divisional members would be: sanctioned, sanctioning and competency norms. Provisions prohibiting certain acts under the threat of penalty contain three legal norms: the sanctioned norm, the sanctioning norm and the competency norm.

Legal aspects of the road noise management policy in Poland

Urszula Kałłaur — Tue, 30 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

As a result of an intensive urbanization process over the past several decades, noise pollution has become the second most significant environmental problem worldwide, after air pollution. In Poland, the principal threat to the acoustic climate is road traffic noise. Using a dogmatic-legal and formal-descriptive methodology, this article seeks to describe
and analyse Polish road noise management policy, which consists of numerous legal and planning instruments. Since the shape of this policy is not described in any single act, presenting it in a consolidated manner may be useful for a further discussion on effectiveness of current solutions aimed at limiting this type of emission. The central thesis of this paper is that, for the time being, the Polish noise management policy lacks biding instruments to reduce noise levels. The available analyses on particular competences of appointed public organs demonstrate that their actions are focused on monitoring and collecting data, but they are not empowered to take hard law actions. The most significant shortcomings of the current legal framework are permissible noise levels marked much lower than WHO recommendations, the absence of an enforcement mechanism ensuring compliance with the recommendations of regional noise protection programmes, and the lack of competence of municipalities to adopt binding noise protection programmes.
The paper concludes that the weaknesses of the Polish road traffic noise management policy reflect the broader limitations of European Union policy in this field, and that without amending Directive 2002/49/EC, it will be difficult for the EU to achieve the objectives of the European Green Deal concerning a 30% reduction in the noise levels compared to 2017 levels.

Requisitions and war burdens in the public law system

Marcin Jerzy Konarski — Tue, 30 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The article analyses war burdens and requisitions as specific instruments of public law designed to safeguard the state’s defence needs. It posits that even in times of war, mobilisation or other security threats, these institutions remain bound by the principles of the rule of law, in particular legality, proportionality and the requirement for judicial review.
Accordingly, an attempt is made to answer questions concerning the legal nature of war burdens, the relationship between them and requisitions, their place within the structure of emergency administration, and the impact of contemporary technological threats on the scope of their application. The study was based on a dogmatic-legal approach, utilising a linguistic, systemic and functional interpretation of provisions of national and international
law, supplemented by elements of comparative analysis. The analysis carried out has shown that war contributions constitute a specific form of public burden imposed by the state on citizens and economic operators, whereas requisitions operate primarily within the framework
of the law of armed conflicts and have a different basis for their legitimacy. It was also established that technological development and the digitalisation of state infrastructure
require a reinterpretation of traditional categories of property and may lead to the regulation of intangible assets and digital resources as well. Consequently, it was concluded that
maintaining the effectiveness of the institutions in question requires a clear statutory basis, the temporary nature of the intervention, adequate compensation mechanisms, and effective oversight of legality. Only such solutions allow maintaining a balance between the imperative
of state security and the protection of individual rights.

The general investment and construction process and the preparation and implementation of road projects under the road investment authorization decision: a sequence-of-actions perspective

Jacek Kurek — Tue, 30 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This article aims to determine whether the preparation and implementation of a road investment project on the basis of a decision authorizing the implementation of such a project constitutes merely a limited modification of the general investment and construction process, or whether it forms a statutorily distinct and concentrated variant of that process.
The article adopts the hypothesis that the special regime for road investment projects does not operate outside the general investment and construction regime, but transforms its structure by concentrating a number of administrative determinations and legal effects in a single administrative decision. The research questions concern, first, the elements, stages and relationships constituting the general investment and construction process understood through the concept of a sequence of actions; second, the manner in which the special regime for the preparation and implementation of road investment projects modifies the general arrangement of actions characteristic of that process; and third, whether the scope of this modification justifies treating that regime as a special, concentrated variant of the investment and construction process rather than as a fully autonomous regime. The study examines the general investment and construction process in its administrative-law dimension, as well as the special legal regime governing the preparation and implementation of road investment projects. The concept of a sequence of actions is used as an analytical tool for examining
the functional links between acts, activities, competences and administrative determinations of public administration authorities, as well as those actions of other participants in
the process that remain functionally connected with the administrative action. The article employs the doctrinal legal analysis, supplemented by systemic and functional analysis and intra-systemic comparison. The analysis demonstrates that the general model is multi-stage and dispersed, whereas the regime based on the decision authorizing the implementation of a road investment project concentrates a number of administrative settlements and legal effects in a single administrative decision. Consequently, that regime should be understood as a special, concentrated organizational variant of the investment and construction process for public roads, rather than a regime operating outside the systemic framework of that process.

Institutional Frameworks of Sovereignty: The Constitutional Dichotomy of the Republic of Kosovo against the Background of the National Postulates of Kosovo Albanian

Szymon Mackiewicz — Tue, 30 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The purpose of this article is to analyze the political system of the Republic of Kosovo in light of the tension between the demands of the international community and local national aspirations. The research hypothesis centers on the question of whether Kosovo’s institutional weakness stems from the fact that international organizations are implementing
a vision of a multi-ethnic state that structurally conflicts with the will of the democratic Albanian majority. Consequently, research questions were formulated regarding the dichotomy
between the externally imposed formal and legal framework and the aspirations of Kosovo Albanians to build a homogeneous nation-state. From the perspective of legal studies, this subject is highly significant due to the unprecedented impact of international law on the
domestic legal order and the functioning of the state as a sui generis „international protectorate”. The study employs the historical method to discuss the evolution of statehood, the
legal-dogmatic method through an analysis of the 2008 Constitution and acts of international law, and a theoretical-legal approach based on Carl Schmitt’s concepts of the political and sovereignty, as well as Arend Lijphart’s consociational democracy. The research demonstrates
that the imposed concept of multi-ethnicity and “positive discrimination” leads to a chronic decision-making paralysis. In a Schmittian perspective, the Kosovan state has been deprived of genuine decision-making agency in favor of international entities. The conclusions indicate that the current crises and political resistance represent an attempt to restore full sovereignty and subjectivity against external legal frameworks.

Categorization of the universities offering the study major of law

Marek Rocki — Tue, 30 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The aim of this article is to compare the outcomes of grouping universities offering courses in law. These results were based on administrative data obtained from the national system designed for monitoring the economic stand of graduates, but were developed using different methods. Relevant data on the graduates completing their studies between 2014 and 2019 were used, as data concerning the fifth year after graduation are available for these study subjects. The results indicate a partial overlap, which may indicate the existence of a group of universities whose graduates are consistently better valued in the labor market than those completing other colleges of higher education.

Open Banking Payment Initiation as a Prerequisite for European Strategic Autonomy: API Obstacles under PSD2 and the PSR

Johan Schweigl — Tue, 30 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This article examines the legal framework governing the Open Banking payment initiation under PSD2 in relation to European strategic autonomy in payments. The central
thesis is that the persistent failure of dedicated bank APIs to comply with Article 32(3) RTS SCA represents not merely a regulatory compliance problem but a structural impediment to the third pillar of European payment sovereignty. The article connects two strands of scholarship that have developed in parallel: PSD2 enforcement and European payment sovereignty. The methodology is doctrinal legal analysis; enforcement actions of the Czech and Slovak national banks serve as case studies. The analysis establishes that the legal standard has been clear since 2019 and that non-compliant API practices reflect an enforcement deficit
rather than regulatory ambiguity. The PSR consolidates existing obligations into directly applicable law. The article identifies three areas of further regulatory development to close remaining gaps.

Recognition of the legal personality of the Mar Menor and its basin as an example of implementation of the concept of Rights of Nature in Europe

Aleksandra Sokołowska — Tue, 30 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Law 19/2022 of September 30, granting legal personality to the Mar Menor and its basin, provides the given ecosystem with three fundamental guarantees of legal personality
in legal and operational terms, as formulated by C. Stone in his essay “Should Trees Have Standing?”, and also serves as an example of practical application of the concept of
Rights of Nature, which goes beyond traditional models of environmental protection within
the European legal order. The text provides basic introductory information on the concept of the Rights of Nature, describes the unique ecological conditions of the lagoon and the
threats posed by human activity to the fragile Mar Menor ecosystem, as well as outlines and analyses two legal acts that are central to the topic of this paper. The Mar Menor Act
partially implements the principles of legal personhood as defined by Stone. The concept of the Rights of Nature goes beyond the traditional approach to environmental protection, and the Act itself serves as a practical example of its implementation within the European legal system. The study primarily employed historical-legal and empirical-legal research methods.

Report on the scientific conference „The model of presidency – where we are, where we are heading for”, Opole, April 13–14, 2026

Monika Haczkowska — Tue, 30 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

On 13 and 14 April, the Faculty of Law and Administration of the University of Opole hosted the academic conference “The Model of Presidency – Where We Are, Where We Are Heading For”. December 2025 marks the 35th anniversary of the first free, equal, universal, and secret ballot election for the office of the President of the Republic of Poland. This milestone anniversary provided a pretext for holding a debate on the functioning of the institution of the President under Polish law, as well as for reflections on how the model of
presidency enshrined in the 1997 Constitution of the RP works in practice. The conference focused on four research areas: the experience of the presidential elections over the past
35 years, the model of executive dualism in cohabitation, personal powers of the president, and an attempt to answer the question concerning the direction in which the model of
presidency is evolving in light of systemic challenges related to the functioning and competences of public authorities against the backdrop of the principle of separation of powers.

Criminal law aspects of the activities of so-called naturopaths. Gloss to the Supreme Court decision of 24 August 2023, file no. III KK 461/22

Anna Marcinkowska — Tue, 30 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

In the commented judgement, the Supreme Court expressed its opinion on the causal relationship between a perpetrator’s actions and the effect when the victim, exercising the right to decide for oneself, voluntarily resigned from an oncological treatment. The ruling detailed the issue of self-exposure of the victim and consequences regarding criminal liability. The Supreme Court rightly found that the injured party consciously and voluntarily rejected a conventional treatment and therefore the thus expressed will ought to make
the basis for the criminal law assessment by the courts adjudicating the case regarding the objective attribution of consequences. The commentary on this judgment includes scholars’ views concerning the injured party’s conscious self-exposure. The issue of the latter in case law and the views present in criminal law are then analyzed. Activities of the so-called naturopaths have been assessed from a legal and criminal law perspective, and legislative solutions have been proposed that could curtail the practice of providing by them medical advice that is harmful to health and life.

National Scientific Conference entitled “The Significance of Historical and Legal Studies in Contemporary Legal Science”, 5 December 2025, Opole–Lublin

Lena Zelmanowicz — Tue, 30 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

On 5 December 2025, the national academic conference entitled “The Significance of Historical and Legal Studies in Contemporary Legal Science” was held online. The event
brought together representatives of thirteen academic institutions from across Poland and aimed to reflect on the place and role of legal-historical studies in legal science, academic teaching, and the interpretation of contemporary legal institutions. The proceedings comprised two plenary sessions and three parallel student-doctoral panels, during which papers were presented addressing both classical issues of legal history and current challenges, such as the impact of artificial intelligence on legal education, historical interpretation of indeterminate legal concepts, interdisciplinary links between law and environmental engineering, and the significance of legal tradition for criminal, family, and inheritance law. An important element
of the conference was a discussion panel devoted to the teaching of legal-historical subjects, their position within law curricula, and the possibilities of using modern technological tools in the educational process. The course of the debates confirmed that legal-historical studies remain an indispensable component of reflection on law, enabling an understanding of its genesis, functions, and axiological foundations, while also fostering the development of
a critical and informed legal mindset.