Assumptions and concept of codification of law in the Second Polish Republic

Abstract

The author presents the Codification Commission of the Second Polish Republic, which symbolized the idea of preparing Poland’s own legislation. The author focuses on the ideological and doctrinal foundations of the codification of private law (civil and commercial) and criminal law in Europe in the 19th and 20th centuries, representing a specific pattern, a manifestation of the pursuit of modernity, the progressiveness of codes of civil law,
commercial law, civil procedure, substantive criminal law, and criminal procedure. These codifications often reflected the opposing currents in the science of law, creating model approaches and serving as a certain legislative standard. On this basis, the author shows firstly, which models Polish codifiers took as a model. And secondly, whether and to what extent the legal acts prepared by them corresponded to development trends and brought original elements to the European codification of law. The author proves that considering the difficult political and social situation of Poland, and – above all – the necessity to build the entire
organizational structure of the state almost from basis, the economic situation, party struggles, and finally the deep particularism of the district legislatures, the achieved results should be assessed highly despite the failure to complete the process of unification and codification of the law.