• The chapters of the competition of the President of UOKiK for the best master's thesis on competition and consumer protection awarded 8 theses.
• A record number of works were submitted for the competition ― 49.
• The pool of awarded prizes is 25 thousand PLN.
• The competition partner is the Polish Competition Law Association and the patron is the Polish Economic Society.

The special, jubilee 10^th edition of the competition devoted to consumer protection is now over - as many as 32 master's theses were submitted. As regards the 12^th edition of the competition of the President of UOKiK for the best master's thesis on competition and consumer protection, 17 theses were submitted.

“The competition chapters faced a difficult choice as a record number of works were submitted and many of them were of a very high standard. Therefore, it is with even greater pleasure that I congratulate the winners and wish them further success in their work devoted to competition and consumer protection,” Tomasz Chróstny, the President of UOKiK, stresses.

The publications concerned antitrust law, such as anticompetitive agreements, merger control or forms of state aid, as well as consumer issues, such as consumer rights, misleading market practices or distance contracts.

The chapter assessed, inter alia, the content related quality of the submitted work, its form, innovative approach to the topic and editorial quality.

The authors of the best three works in each thematic category will be awarded PLN 5,000, 3,000 and 2,000 respectively, while the winner of the special mention by the Polish Competition Law Association will receive PLN 5,000.

Awarded master's theses - competition

The winner of the first prize is Anna Czuchryta, who defended her thesis "The standard of proof in EU competition law" under the supervision of Professor Robert Grzeszczak, Ph.D. at the University of Warsaw.

The second prize went to Natan Waśniowski, who defended his thesis "New challenges for competition of enterprises in the European Union in the context of Chinese acquisitions on the internal market - a proposal for a European model of champions" under the supervision of Monika Niedźwiedź, Ph.D. at the Jagiellonian University in Kraków.

The third prize went to Tomasz Rygus, who defended his thesis on "Algorithmic means of corporate behavior coordination in the light of European Union antitrust law" under the supervision of Prof. Krzysztof Oplustil, Ph.D.  at the Jagiellonian University. This work was additionally recognized with a honorable mention by the Polish Competition Law Association.

Awarded master's theses - consumers

The winner of the first prize is Klaudia Koman. She defended her thesis "Contracts for the provision of digital content and services and consumer protection in the internal market: Directive 2019/770 and prospects for its implementation in Polish law" under the supervision of Prof. Monika Namysłowska, Ph.D. at the University of Lodz.

The second prize went to Monika Koszek, who defended her thesis entitled "Withdrawal from a distance contract and off-premises contract" under the supervision of Prof. Bartosz Kucharski, PhD., also at the University of Lodz.

The third prize went to Katarzyna Wiśniewska, who defended her thesis entitled " Cloud data storage in the perspective of the Directive on certain aspects concerning contracts for the supply of digital content and digital services" under the supervision of Prof. Fryderyk Zoll, Ph.D., at the Jagiellonian University.

The chapter of the competition dedicated to consumer protection also awarded two honorable mentions: Aleksandra Pilch for the thesis "Passenger's rights in the case of non-performance or improper performance of an obligation by an air carrier", defended under the supervision of Prof. Ewa Rott-Pietrzyk, Ph.D., at the University of Silesia in Katowice, and Damian Dobosz for the thesis "Between the EU consumer protection system and the concept of autonomy of will. A study on selected issues", defended under the supervision of Prof. Fryderyk Zoll, Ph.D., at the Jagiellonian University in Kraków.

Composition of the Competition Juries

Members of the chapter of the competition for the best master’s thesis and doctoral thesis on competition protection:

• Tomasz Chróstny, the President of UOKiK, Chairperson
• Tomasz Bagdziński, Director of the Competition Protection Department, UOKiK
• Prof. Łukasz Grzybowski, Department of Economics and Social Sciences, Telecom ParisTech
• Prof. Elżbieta Mączyńska, Ph.D., President of Polish Economic Society, Professor at the Warsaw School of Economics
• Rudolf Ostrihansky, Ph.D., Senior Partner and attorney-in-law at Sołtysiński Kawecki & Szlęzak law firm
• Anna Sekinda-Maicka, Deputy Director of the Competition Protection Department, UOKiK
• Marta Sendrowicz, Ph.D., member of the board of the Polish Competition Law Association, partner at Allen & Overy law firm
• Dariusz Szafrański, Ph.D., university lecturer at the Faculty of Law and Administration of the University of Warsaw
• Małgorzata Szwaj, member of the board of the Polish Competition Law Association, partner and attorney-in-law at Linklaters law firm

Members of the chapter of the competition for the best master's thesis and doctoral thesis on consumer protection:

• Tomasz Chróstny, the President of UOKiK, Chairperson
• UW Prof. Robert Grzeszczak, Ph.D., university lecturer at the Faculty of Law and Administration of the University of Warsaw
• US Prof. Monika Jagielska, Ph.D., Lecturer at the Faculty of Law and Administration of the University of Silesia in Katowice
• Norbert Jeziolowicz, Director of the Team for Retail Banking and Financial Markets of the Polish Bank Association,
• Katarzyna Karasiewicz, Ph.D., university lecturer at the Faculty of Law and Administration of the University of Warsaw, partner and attorney-in-law at MJH Moskwa, Jarmul, Haladyj i Partnerzy law firm
• Krzysztof Lehmann, Deputy Director of the UOKiK Branch Office in Bydgoszcz.
• Prof. Monika Namysłowska, Ph.D., associate professor at the Faculty of Law and Administration, University of Lodz, partner at the Lubasz & Partners – an Attorney-in-Law's Office
• Prof. Jerzy Pisuliński, Ph.D, Dean of the Faculty of Law and Administration, Jagiellonian University
• UWr Prof. Edyta Rutkowska-Tomaszewska, Ph.D., university lecturer at the Faculty of Law, Administration and Economics of the University of Wrocław
• Izabela Szewczyk-Krzyżanowska, Director of the Department for Protection of Collective Consumer Interests, UOKiK
• Prof. Fryderyk Zoll, Ph.D., university lecturer at the Faculty of Law and Administration of the Jagiellonian University and the University of Osnabrück.

You are most welcome to participate in the next edition

Students completing their final year of studies in law and economics, as well as in management or administration are most welcome to take part in the next edition of the competition for the best master's thesis - details will be available soon on the UOKiK website.

Meanwhile, we would like to remind you that the third edition of the competition for the best doctoral thesis on antitrust law and consumer protection is still open. The main prize is PLN 8,000.

Theses defended between 16^th October 2018 and 15^th October 2021 are due by 29^th October 2021 at 4.15 pm (date of receipt shall prevail). For more details, please visit https://uokik.gov.pl/konkurs_prace_dyplomowe.php#faq3421.