Poland won't get its money back after a previous, conservative government was hit by a record-breaking fine by the European Union for ignoring a court order to undo changes to its judicial system, an EU high court said Wednesday.

The European Union's General Court on Wednesday dismissed complaints by Poland over 320 million euros ($333 million) in fines it had to pay the EU in 2022 and 2023 in a dispute over judicial reforms.

The EU General Court Wednesday upheld European Commission penalties of €320 million against Poland. The ruling related to daily fines imposed on Poland over its Supreme Court disciplinary chamber, which allowed judges to be punished for their rulings. The chamber has since been disbanded.

Poland will not be reimbursed the €320 million in EU funds that it lost during its protracted dispute with Brussels over judicial independence. #EuropeNews

Poland has to pay a total of about 320 million euros as a penalty imposed by the European Court during the proceedings in the case of violation of rights, according to a press release from the Court of the European Union.

The General Court of the European Union has dismissed an action brought by Poland against the enforcement of EU penalty payments for violations of the rule of law. An amount totalling around €320 million ($333 million) was rightly offset against various Polish claims from EU funds,

Across Europe, the tension between national sovereignty and EU legal oversight has been a recurring issue, especially in matters related to judicial independence and democratic standards. Several countries have faced financial penalties for policies deemed incompatible with EU law,