Today, the Polish competition authority held an awards ceremony for the best master's and doctoral theses in competition protection and consumer rights. This marks the 16th edition of the competition for master's theses and the 14th for consumer protection, alongside the fourth for doctoral dissertations. A record number of submissions were received, with 60 entries leading to the selection of 10 winners, primarily from the University of Warsaw.

The awarded topics included influencer marketing, energy sector regulations, collusive agreements, and anti-competitive practices within corporate governance. The President of the Polish competition authority, Tomasz Chróstny, expressed his satisfaction with the high level of interest in the competitions and workshops, emphasizing the real-world impact these initiatives have on market protection and consumer welfare.

The competition was partnered with the Competition Law Association and supported by the Polish Economic Society. The judging panels, composed of distinguished academics and practitioners in competition and consumer law, particularly valued originality, bold theses, logical argumentation, quality of analysis, and methodology in the submissions.

Among the winners, Zofia Zborowska received the first prize for her thesis on competition restrictions in the context of sustainable development, while Małgorzata Krzemińska won for her work on consumer protection against unfair influencer marketing practices. In the doctoral category, Adrian Bielecki was awarded for his research on combating anti-competitive personal unions in corporate governance.

Looking ahead, the Polish competition authority is set to launch new editions of the competitions for the best master's and doctoral theses, with a total prize pool of 84,000 PLN, along with opportunities for internships and publication in the UOKiK Library. Additionally, students are invited to apply for the Summer Camp workshops focused on antitrust law.