POLAND Law and Practice Contributed by: Krystyna Szczepanowska-Kozłowska, Marcin Ziarkowski, Krzysztof Popławski and Kacper Sobolewski, A&O Shearman
• claims regarding customer protection; and • claims regarding bodily injury or health disorders. Claims for the protection of personal rights are not allowed in group proceedings, except for those arising from bodily injury or health disorders. However, pecu ‑ niary claims related to bodily injury or health disorders, including claims of the immediate family of an injured person who died, can only be pursued to establish the defendant’s liability. Each member of the group must have damages and causation clearly established. Any monetary claims should be standardised within the group as equal lump-sum compensation payments, though smaller subgroups can be created if needed. During the preliminary stage of group proceedings, the court determines the group claim’s admissibility and decides to pursue the case as a class action or reject the lawsuit. A decision to examine the case is followed by an announcement to commence group proceedings. Individuals who were not original claim holders can join the group, but the defendant can also file an objection to the inclusion of certain members. The merits of the claims are examined during the main stage of the group proceedings, which ends with the court issuing a judgment. Group proceedings in the life sciences and pharma sector are uncommon in Poland.
However, there have been cases in which the claim holders used a mechanism of collective redress. In November 2024, a class action lawsuit was filed by a group of Polish entrepreneurs regarding the establish ‑ ment of liability of the State Treasury for losses arising from regulations that have created significant barriers for pharmacies to enter and exit the pharmaceutical market.
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