The paper is focused on the principles of partnership and participation in rural areas in contemporary Poland. The studied case involves local action groups (LAGs) established in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship in the period 2007-2013. Based on national and European legal frameworks that regulate the establishment and functioning of the LAGs, these organizations are required to implement the principles of partnership and participation as far as their structures and functions are concerned. The principle of partnership is premised, inter alia, on a specific obligation to include representatives of three sectors – public, economic and social – in the LAGs’ membership. The principle of participation means, among others, that the LAGs are expected to engage in the active recruitment of new members. In the paper the implementation of both of the principles is evaluated by analyzing the LAGs’ membership structures and their criteria of access to membership.