(Bloomberg) -- Poland’s rule-of-law standoff with the European Union is escalating with the country’s constitutional court openly defying a key pillar of the 27-nation bloc’s legal system.

The Warsaw-based Constitutional Tribunal ruled on Wednesday that interim orders from the EU’s top court over judicial matters weren’t compatible with Polish law and therefore not enforceable in the country. The decision comes as the EU Court of Justice told Poland to “immediately suspend” a key plank of its contested judicial reforms.

As soon as Thursday, the Luxembourg-based EU court will give its verdict on the legality of Poland’s new disciplinary regime for judges. Next month, the Polish court is due to rule on a wider issue of whether the nation’s constitution trumps EU law.

The EU’s Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders warned last month that attempts to challenge the primacy of the bloc’s legal system could destroy the union. The verdict doesn’t immediately endanger Poland’s ability to receive billions of euros in EU aid each year, but it adds to concerns that may result in attempts to curb such transfers.

Political Trajectory

The cases, including one brought by Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, highlight the extent of the nationalist government’s six-year drift away from the European mainstream, which have triggered battles with Brussels over everything from judicial independence to LGBTQ rights.

They also show the growing uncertainty about Poland’s ability to continue to abide by EU rules, a key factor for foreign investors in its $594 billion economy.

The legal disputes have rekindled a debate about Poland’s long-term political trajectory and whether its EU conflicts will lead it to eventually leave the club. The government has branded the idea of a Polexit as “political fiction” and cast itself as the protector of national rights.

Wednesday’s ruling “basically says that Poland won’t listen to the EU Court of Justice” and will “do as it pleases with judicial reforms,” the country’s human rights ombudsman Adam Bodnar said. “We’re on the road to a legal Polexit -- we’re heading there step by step.”

The EU could start punishing rule-of-law offenders this year with a new sanctions tool that could see countries lose out on billions of euros, said Vera Jourova, EU vice president in charge of values. One option will be to freeze funds from an EU’s 1.8 trillion-euro ($2.2 trillion) pandemic stimulus package before they’ve been disbursed.

Inside the EU Rule-of-Law Deal That Freed $2.2 Trillion in Cash

The commission, the EU’s executive authority, has questioned Poland’s failure to implement last year’s EU court order and earlier this year brought another lawsuit over the nation’s judicial reforms and the harm they pose to the the court’s independence and the EU legal order.

The biggest net recipient of EU aid, Poland has said it’s reforming an inefficient court system and that the bloc doesn’t have jurisdiction to vet its revamps.

Poland’s ruling party has been accused by international judicial watchdogs of unlawfully taking over the Constitutional Tribunal. Recent verdicts have largely towed the government’s line on issues that raised concern in Brussels. Bodnar, the ombudsman, said that five judges may effectively undo the results of Poland’s 2003 referendum to join the EU.

The EU has for years been battling against Poland and Hungary over numerous rule-of-law issues that have so far, led to little by way of concrete punishment. The pair are the only two EU nations subject to a so-called Article 7 procedure, which could lead to the suspension of their EU voting rights.

Poland also faces legal action from the EU as soon as on Thursday over its crackdown on sexual minorities after regions and towns implemented so-called “LGBTQ-free zones.”

The commission is poised to send the government a letter of formal notice, a preliminary step before a suit at the EU’s Court of Justice, according to people familiar with the matter.

©2021 Bloomberg L.P.