Nov. 21 (UPI) -- Poland's government reinstated its Supreme Court on Wednesday after the European Court of Justice demanded it stop removing judges.
The ECJ ordered in October that Poland's ruling Law and Justice party end the practice of forcing judges into retirement. The order came after street protests in Poland over the government's decision in July to lower the judges' retirement age from 70 to 65, forcing many from their positions. The government said the reforms were necessary to make courts more efficient and to remove judges from Poland's Communist era. Critics see the changes as a purge, and a way for the ruling party to expand its power and take political control of the Supreme Court.