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FAQ

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How long do proceedings last?

It is very difficult to indicate any time frames for court proceedings in Poland. They vary depending on the complexity of a particular case, the number of applications concerning admission of evidence made by the parties and the number of hearings.

As a rule, before the date of the first hearing is fixed, the parties exchange pleadings. Further exchange of pleadings depends on the need or the decision of the court. In commercial proceedings, due to the limitations concerning evidence submission and presentation of facts, the number of pleadings and arguments raised therein is limited. After that the court only considers evidence. In ordinary proceedings, on the other hand, such exchange of pleadings and new facts and evidence may be endless and the court considers all new evidence submitted by the parties at any stage of proceedings. It is worth noting that in ordinary proceedings a court may oblige the parties to submit all evidence until a specified date. Such decision, however, belongs to the court’s discretion.

Evidence is considered during the hearings. Dates of hearings are set within a period of at least one to two months. If the number of witnesses requires several hearings, proceedings lengthen automatically. The procedure of taking evidence from experts lasts three to four months in less complicated cases where no objections are made and there is no need to supplement the opinion. In complex cases, however, it may take up to a year or more.

The length of proceedings also depends largely on the type of procedure that is employed. It should be noted that one of the most time-consuming factors in proceedings is the process of serving the pleadings and other correspondence by the court on the parties. In all proceedings, except for commercial, the pleadings are delivered to the court with copies and then served by the court on the adversaries. Often the court will not take any action before it receives confirmation of receipt of a pleading.

Moreover, according to Polish law, parties, witnesses, experts, etc., must receive a summons for the hearing at least one week before the set date. Departures from this principle are possible only in extraordinary situations and are very rare.
The duration of proceedings is also dependant on the region and even the court considering the case (courts in Warsaw are the slowest due to the number of cases they handle).

The duration of proceedings is also dependant on the region and even the court considering the case (courts in Warsaw are the slowest due to the number of cases they handle).