Position of data protection authority on the example of Poland

Independent data protection authorities are of critical importance to the effective protection of personal data. Even under the previous Directive EU Member States were obligated to provide a designated supervisory authority. The fundamental reform of EU data protection law and adoption of General Data Protection Regulation has introduced a number of changes in the data protection law area. It also affected the provisions on national data protection authorities. To adapt to the new regulatory regime Polish legislator has decided to establish a new supervisory authority. The President of Personal Data Protection Office has replaced the previous Inspector General for Personal Data Protection. However it needs to be noted that current provisions raised questions about the position of The President in the whole regulatory framework. Therefore the aim of this paper is to review current law and to define the legal position of Polish data protection authority.