REPRESENTATIONS OF POLISH REGIONS IN BRUSSELS WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO THE REGIONS OF NORTHERN POLAND. LEGAL STATUS AND FUNCTIONING

Abstract

Representation of the interests of Polish regions (voivodeships) in the European Union (Brussels) acquired significant importance in economic and political terms primarily in connection with Polands accession to this international organization in 2004 and the possibility of benefiting from EU funds. The legal and organizational challenge for Polish local government units was the correct legal compliance with the law of the establishment of a foreign representative office and its operation. The purpose of the article was to present the current legal status of the functioning foreign representative offices of Polish local government units in Brussels with particular emphasis on the regions of Western Poland. The article presents legal models for the creation of structures of regions in a situation where the provisions of national or public international law do not directly refer to this problem. The analysis of the problem was made primarily on the basis of the Polish provisions of constitutional acts concerning regions, internal normative acts, doctrine and the authors own research in the form of public information.