FAMILY RESPONSIBILITY IN POLISH LAW

Abstract

In Polish law, family members may in certain cases bear and do bear legal responsibility for their relative. First of all, parents have a legal obligation to raise and support their minor children. It is also worth mentioning that when analysing who can be the guardian of an incapacitated person, courts take into account primarily the relatives of such a person. There is an obligation to pay maintenance, which may be imposed on various people in the family, e.g. an adult, independent child towards his parent who requires financial assistance in old age. Other cases of legal responsibility of the family are limited to property responsibility, i.e. they concern the debts of a relative. Heirs who acquire an inheritance may also take over the debts of the deceased. In addition, family responsibility may also occur during the debtor's lifetime. Enforcement of obligations often also covers the joint property of the debtor and his spouse. Co-ownership of the property of spouses is the basic property regime in Polish law. In certain cases defined by law, family members may be required to pay tax arrears on behalf of a taxpayer who is their relative and no longer has any assets. It is similar in fiscal criminal law (this is the so-called subsidiary liability). In Poland, there is no legal liability of the family for crimes or torts committed by their relative. Nevertheless, one can observe the tendency of some in society to attribute moral responsibility for prohibited acts. Some people make claims, without any evidence, that the closest relatives of a criminal always have the same character and are prone to such acts. This approach is officially wrong. Nevertheless, some people even in public officially express such views.