PL SA at the international conference "Axiology of the Legal System: Theory and Practice"

The Personal Data Protection Office participated in the international scientific conference “Axiology of the Legal System: Theory and Practice,” which took place on November 25 and 26 at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. The Personal Data Protection Office was represented at the event by Jakub Groszkowski, Chief Coordinator at the Personal Data Protection Office for data protection in churches and religious associations.

During his speech, Jakub Groszkowski presented the structure, legal basis, and objectives of cooperation between the President of the Personal Data Protection Office, as the Polish supervisory authority for personal data protection, and the Church Data Protection Officer.

Church Data Protection Officer is an independent body in Poland that monitors and ensures compliance with personal data protection regulations within and in accordance with the activities of the Catholic Church. Its activities are based on the General Decree on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data in the Catholic Church, issued by the Polish Episcopal Conference. However, KIOD is an office within the meaning of canon law," noted Jakub Groszkowski, advisor at the Personal Data Protection Office.

Personal Data Protection Office and Church Data Protection Officer, as emphasised by Jakub Groszkowski, is Article 59 of the Act of 10 May 2018 on the Protection of Personal Data, which stipulates that the President of the Office is obliged to cooperate with supervisory authorities appointed by the Church or other religious associations on the basis of Article 91 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This cooperation aims to strengthen the guarantees of the rights and freedoms of individuals whose personal data are processed by churches and religious associations. For both the President of the Personal Data Protection Office and the Church Data Protection Officer, this type of cooperation is essential in the context of personal data protection and citizens' right to privacy.

Furthermore, in order to strengthen and coordinate data protection activities, as Jakub Groszkowski pointed out in his speech, a cooperation agreement between the President of the Personal Data Protection Office and the Church Data Protection Officer was signed in Warsaw on May 10, 2019.

The chief coordinator at the Personal Data Protection Office also presented the key areas of cooperation between the President of the Office and the Church Data Protection Officer in 2024–2025 (educational, scientific, and training activities) and outlined their practical dimension in recent months (exchange of information on administrative court judgments and case law, division of competences in supervisory activities).

The conference was organized by the Faculty of Canon Law of the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. The meeting, attended by specialists in international law representing academic centers in Europe, provided an opportunity to exchange views on the axiological foundations of legal systems.

Photos courtesy of the University of Warmia and Mazury; Fillia in Ełk