Judge Stanisław Biernat was born on 2 August 1949 in Tarnów. Graduated with distinction from the Faculty of Law of the Jagiellonian University in 1971. Awarded his juris doctor's degree in 1976 and a habilitated doctor's degree in 1985. His habilitation thesis won the contest organised by "Państwo i Prawo" [The State and the Law] journal. A professor of legal sciences since 1995, and full professor at the Jagiellonian University since 2000. Between 1971 and 1973 attended a court training in the Voivodship Court in Cracow.

From 1994 to 1998 Head of Doctoral Studies at the Faculty of Law and Administration of the Jagiellonian University. Head of the Chair of European Law of the Jagiellonian University since 1995. Lecturer at theNational School of Public Administration in Warsaw between 1991 and 2004.

In the years 2001-2008 judge of the Supreme Administrative Court and head of the European Law Department of the Judicial Decisions Office at that Court in 2005-2008.
In the years 1989-1992 and 1998-2001 member of the Legislative Council of the Prime Minister.

Member of the Legal Studies Committee of the Polish Academy of Sciences since 2004, and its Vice-president since 2007. President of the Polish Association of European Law and member of the Executive Committee of the Societas Iuris Publici Europaei. Member of the Polish European Community Studies Association (PECSA), Societas Humboldtiana Polonorum, European Constitutional Network and the European Group of Public Law.
In 2001 appointed Jean Monet Professor of European Law by the European Commission. Awarded the Commander's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta.

Author of numerous books and other publications on public and European law.

In June 2008 the Sejm of the Republic of Poland appointed him judge of the Constitutional Tribunal.