prof. Irena Wiszniewska-Białecka | Wiszniewski Foundation

After completing her law studies at the University of Warsaw, Irena Wiszniewska-Białecka worked at the Institute of Law Studies of the Polish Academy of Sciences (1969–2004).

In 1976 she earned her doctorate in law with the dissertation Legal Means for Implementing Inventive Designs (her adviser was Prof. Ludwik Bar).

In 1980–1990 she held several research fellowships at the Max Planck Institute for Foreign and International Patent, Copyright and Competition Law in Munich.

In 1991 the Scientific Council of the Institute of Law Studies of the Polish Academy of Sciences awarded her a postdoctoral (habilitation) degree in law for her postdoctoral dissertation The Limits Under Antitrust Law of the Validity of Licence Agreements. In 1993 the work was awarded the Leon Petrażycki Prize by Division I of the Polish Academy of Sciences, and in 1995 second prize in the Państwo i Prawo competition.

By decree of 6 April 2001, the President of Poland named her a professor of legal studies, and in 2010 she was named a full professor.

Prof. Irena Wiszniewska-Białecka was a valued practitioner. She began her practice in the law office of Prof. Alois Troller in Lucerne. In 1992–2000 she was affiliated as an adwokat with the law firm Wardyński & Partners.

Her accomplishments as a scholar and practitioner led to her appointment as:

• Judge of the Supreme Administrative Court of Poland (twice: 22 February 2001 – 30 April 2004, and 12 January 2017 – 7 July 2017)
• Judge of the Court of First Instance of the European Communities (now the General Court, part of the Court of Justice of the European Union) (12 May 2004 – 19 September 2016).

During her two full terms in Luxembourg she had an opportunity to contribute to the development of European jurisprudence.

She ruled in such cases as Microsoft v Commission (T-201/04), and was the rapporteur in trademark cases including:

• Metso Paper Automation v OHlM (Paperlab) (T-19/04)
• L&D v OHIM—Sämann (Aire Limpio) (T-168/04)
• El Corte Inglés v OHIM—Bolaňos Sabri (PiraŇAM diseňo original Juan Bolaňos) (T-443/05).

She also ruled in interesting cases in other fields, including the compliance of EU law with provisions of international conventions, in:

• Stichting Natuur en Milieu and Pesticide Action Network Europe v Commission (T-338/08)
• Vereniging Milieudefensie and Stichting Stop Luchtverontreiniging Utrecht v Commission (T-396/09).

In July 2017 she retired as a judge of the Supreme Administrative Court.

She was among the leading experts in competition law and industrial property law in Poland. Her main field of interest was issues of industrial property law, particularly trademark law and the law of unfair competition.

The book Administrative Law Means of Impacting Implementation of Inventive Designs, based on her doctoral dissertation, was the first monograph in the Polish legal literature devoted to the issue of implementation of technological progress.

Her research on issues of antitrust law and its impact on contracts led to her postdoctoral dissertation, in which she sought a theoretical clarification of the relationship between patent law, protecting exclusive rights, and antitrust law, which opposes monopolization.

After obtaining her postdoctoral degree, she continued her research on antitrust law and its impact on contracts, which led to a monograph on the impact of antitrust law on exclusive sales and purchasing agreements, as well as several works on the reform of Polish antitrust law, its impact on patent licences, and changes to approximate national law to European law.

Taking up issues of trademark law, she favoured affording to unregistered trademarks a type of informal protection based on the regulations on combatting unfair competition. She also examined issues of trademark protection from the perspective of approximating Polish law to European law.

In later years the principal area of her inquiries was the law on combatting unfair competition, and particularly advertising law. She attempted a monographic approach to issues of Polish advertising law, to make a holistic assessment of the existing norms and their consistency with the relevant European regulations.

Her publications, including numerous articles in collective works and in Polish and foreign journals, brought Prof. Irena Wiszniewska-Białecka recognition among Polish and foreign experts in industrial property law and competition law.

For many years she cooperated with the Max Planck Institute for Foreign and International Patent, Copyright and Competition Law in Munich. This resulted in foreign-language publications, including works co-authored by staff of the institute.

She presented the results of her research in scholarly papers and reports at international conferences of lawyers involved in industrial property law and competition law (in Ringberg, Bamberg, Brussels, Berlin and Prague).

She took part in Polish/Czechoslovakian conferences on the role of law in the national economy, and held several research fellowships at the science academies of European countries (in Budapest, Berlin and Moscow) and China (in Beijing and Shanghai).

Prof. Irena Wiszniewska-Białecka lectured on the general portion of the law of obligations for the course of studies in law for bankers at the Institute of Law Studies of the Polish Academy of Sciences.

She was involved in the ELSA Moot Court Competition (European Law Students’ Association) (1999–2000).

She participated in conferences for lawyers:

• “Advertising: Legal Aspects,” Institute of Law Studies, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, 1999
• “New Aspects of Commercial Law in Europe,” European Association of Lawyers, Polish Bar Council, Warsaw, 1996
• “Organizational Issues of Commercial Associations,” Institute of Management and Training Organizations, Scientific Association of Organization and Management, Warsaw, 1983
• “Legal and Economic Aspects of Employee Inventions,” Central Technical Organization, Kielce Province Club of Technology and Rationalization, Kielce, 1978.

Prof. Irena Wiszniewska-Białecka took an active part in legislative work, including drafting of:

• Guidelines and draft of first Polish antitrust law (1982–1984)
• Draft of Unfair Competition Act (1992–2000)
• Draft of amendments to the Unfair Competition Act (amendment adopted 21 October 1999).

As a member of the team for enterprises and commercial associations of the Economic Reform Commission (1982–1989), she participated in drawing up the legal foundations for economic reform and prepared numerous opinions on drafts of various acts involving the functioning of the Polish economy, including acts on:

• The internal market
• Entrepreneurship
• Taking up economic activity
• Amendment of certain acts introducing the economic reform.

On many occasions she took part in legislative work, drafting (at the commission of the executive committee of the Polish Academy of Sciences, the Office of the Sejm, and other institutions) opinions on bills concerning industrial property and competition law.

She submitted expert reports on:

• Application of antitrust law to exclusive sales and purchasing agreements (1995, in the PHARE project, commissioned by the Antitrust Office—report published in book form)
• Harmonization of the Polish law on unfair competition with EC law (1998, in the project PHARESIERRA PL 91212/01/04/L001/045/95 “Competition law,” for the European Integration Commission)
• Protection of consumers against misleading advertising (1998, in the Fiesta II project for the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection).

She served as an expert in the Antitrust Office (adviser to the president of the office). She was a member of the commission drafting the new Unfair Competition Act (1991–1992).

She was the president of the Competition Law Association (1995–1998), the Polish branch of the International League of Competition Law.

She was also a member of the Polish branch of the International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (AIPPI) and an arbitrator at the Court of Arbitration at the Polish Chamber of Commerce (SAKIG).

Prof. Irena Wiszniewska-Białecka was awarded the Knight’s Cross (2003) and the Officer’s Cross (2011) of the Order of Polonia Restituta for outstanding achievements in scholarship and teaching and for contributions to the rule of law and civil society.

1. Administracyjnoprawne środki oddziaływania na wdrażanie projektów wynalazczych [Administrative law means for impacting implementation of inventive designs] (Warsaw: Wydawnictwo Prawnicze, 1980), 155 pp.
2. “Umowa o wdrożenie wyników prac naukowo-badawczych” [Contract for implementation of the results of research and development work], in L. Bar (ed.), Instytucje prawne w gospodarce narodowej [Legal institutions in the national economy] (Wrocław: Ossolineum, 1981), pp. 424–447
3. “Problem legislacji antymonopolowej w systemie zreformowanej gospodarki” [The issue of antitrust legislation in the system of the reformed economy], Przegląd Ustawodawstwa Gospodarczego 1982 no. 12, pp. 259–264 (co-author A. Kawecki)
4. “Zastosowanie obcego prawa kartelowego w szwajcarskim międzynarodowym prawie prywatnym” [Application of foreign antitrust law in Swiss private international law], Zeszyty Naukowe Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego – Prace z Wynalazczości i Ochrony Własności Intelektualnej 1983, pp. 99–120
5. “On the draft of antimonopoly legislation in Poland,” Swiss Review of International Antitrust Law 1984 no. 22, pp. 7–19
6. “Le projet de loi polonaise contre les pratiques monopolistiques” [Draft Polish law against monopolistic practices], C.U.E.R.P.I. 1986, pp. 123–127
7. “Praktyki monopolistyczne w świetle ustawy antymonopolowej” [Monopolistic practices under the Antitrust Act], Państwo i Prawo 1987 no. 7, pp. 31–45
8. “Das polnische Antimonopolgesetz von 1987” [The Polish Antitrust Act of 1987] GRUR Int. 1988, no. 5, pp. 395–402
9. “Przeciwdziałanie monopolizacji w reformowanej gospodarce” [Combatting monopolization in the reformed economy], in L. Bar (ed.), Instytucje prawne w reformowanej gospodarce [Legal institutions in the reformed economy] (Wrocław: Ossolineum, 1989), pp. 453–471
10. “Ekstraterytorialne stosowanie ustawodawstw antymonopolowych” [Extraterritorial application of antitrust laws], Prawne Problemy Handlu Zagranicznego 1990 no. 15, pp. 55–69
11. “Polska ustawa antymonopolowa z 1990 r.” [The Polish Antitrust Act of 1990], Przegląd Ustawodawstwa Gospodarczego 1990 no. 8–9, pp. 129–132
12. “Piąta nowela kartelowa w RFN” [The fifth antitrust amendment in the Federal Republic of Germany], Przegląd Ustawodawstwa Gospodarczego 1990 no. 8–9, pp. 132–136
13. Granice kartelowo-prawne ważności umów licencyjnych [The limits under antitrust law of the validity of licence agreements] (Wrocław: Ossolineum, 1991), 345 pp.
14. “Środki zapobiegania nieuczciwej reklamie w projekcie ustawy o zwalczaniu nieuczciwej konkurencji” [Means of preventing unfair advertising in the draft Unfair Competition Act], Państwo i Prawo 1992 no. 4, pp. 49–56 (co-author R. Skubisz)
15. “Przekształcenie znaku towarowego w nazwę rodzajową produktu” [Transformation of a trademark into a generic name for a product], Państwo i Prawo 1992 no. 10, pp. 53–61
16. “Kartellrecht in Polen” [Antitrust law in Poland], in F.K. Beier, E.M. Bastian and A. Kur (eds.), Wettbewerbsrecht und Verbraucherschutz in Mittel- und Osteuropa, 5. Ringberg-Symposium des Max-Planck-lnstituts für ausländisches und internationales Patent-, Urheber- und Wettbewerbsrecht [Competition law and consumer protection in Central and Eastern Europe, 5^th Ringberg Symposium of the Max Planck Institute for Foreign and International Patent, Copyright and Competition Law] (Köln: Carl Heymanns Verlag KG, 1992)
17. “Z problematyki ochrony znaków towarowych” [Issues of trademark protection], Przegląd Prawa Handlowego 1992 no. 2, pp. 1–5
18. Ustawa o zwalczaniu nieuczciwej konkurencji. Komentarz [Unfair Competition Act: Commentary], ed. J. Szwaja (Warsaw: Urząd Antymonopolowy, 1994) (commentary on art. 16, 28 and 29, co-author)
19. Reguły konkurencji a transakcje wyłączne [Rules of competition and exclusive transactions] (Warsaw: Urząd Antymonopolowy, 1995), 277 pp.
20. “Reform des polnischen Rechts des gewerblichen Rechtsschutzes im Zusammenhang mit dem Assoziierungsabkommen” [Reform of Polish industrial property law in the context of the Association Agreement], in C. Tomuschat, H. Kötz and B. von Maydell (eds.), Europäische Integration und nationale Rechtskulturen [European integration and national legal cultures] (Köln: Carl Heymanns Verlag KG, 1995), pp. 87–97
21. “Licencje patentowe w świetle zmian prawa antymonopolowego” [Patent licences in light of changes in antitrust law], Studia Prawnicze 1995 no. 1–4, pp. 45–60
22. “Industrial and intellectual property,” in Business law guide to Poland (CCH Europe 1996), pp. 315–350 (co-author M. Czajkowska-Dąbrowska)
23. “Patentlizenzvertröge im Licht der neuen Entwicklungen im polnischen Kartellrecht” [Patent licensing rights in the light of new developments in Polish antitrust law], GRUR Int. 1996, pp. 568–576
24. “Europeizacja polskiego prawa znaków towarowych” [The Europeanization of Polish trademark law], Przegląd Prawa Handlowego 1996 no. 9, pp. 7–17
25. “Dostosowanie polskiego prawa antymonopolowego do prawa europejskiego” [Approximation of Polish antitrust law to European law], Studia Prawnicze 1996 no. 1–4, pp. 129–152
26. “Ochrona oznaczeń odróżniających” [Protection of distinguishing designations], Przegląd Prawa Handlowego 1997 no. 3, pp. 14–22, and no. 4, pp. 8–13
27. “Die polnischen Vorschriften zum Schutz von geographischen Angaben und der Novellierungsbedarf durch TRIPS und das EG-Gemeinschaftsrecht” [Polish provisions on protection of geographical indications and the need for amendment via TRIPS and EC law], International Review of Competition Law 1997 no. 3, pp. 37–46 (co-author R. Knaak)
28. Polskie prawo reklamy [Polish advertising law] (Warsaw: Wydawnictwo Naukowe Scholar, 1998), 264 pp.
29. “Approximation of the Polish law on trade marks to European standards,” IIC 1998 no. 2, pp. 152–172
30. “Unormowanie ochrony oznaczeń geograficznych i potrzeba jego modyfikacji” [Regulation of protection of geographical indications and the need for change], Przegląd Prawa Handlowego 1998 no. 1, pp. 1–10 (co-author R. Knaak)
31. “Merchandising – czyli komercjalizacja popularnych symboli” [Merchandising—commercialization of popular symbols], Przegląd Prawa Handlowego 1998 no. 10, pp. 1–9 (co-author M. Czajkowska-Dąbrowska)
32. Polen [Poland], in G. Schricker (ed.), Recht der Werbung in Europa [Advertising law in Europe] (Baden-Baden: Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft, 1999), p. 245
33. “Nowelizacja ustawy o zwalczaniu nieuczciwej konkurencji” [Amendment of the Unfair Competition Act], Przegląd Prawa Handlowego 1999 no. 12, pp. 1–6
34. “Używanie znaków towarowych w reklamie porównawczej” [Use of trademarks in comparative advertising], Przegląd Prawa Handlowego 2000 no. 2, pp. 1–6
35. Ustawa o zwalczaniu nieuczciwej konkurencji. Komentarz [Unfair Competition Act: Commentary], ed. J. Szwaja (Warsaw: Wydawnictwo C.H. Beck, 2000) (commentary to art. 10, 16, 28 and 29, co-author)
36. “Novellierung des polnischen Gesetzes über die Bekimpfung des unlauteren Wettbewerbes” [Amendment of the Polish Unfair Competition Act], GR JR Int. 2001 no. 3, pp. 213–219
37. “Prawo reklamy” [Advertising law], in W. Czapliński (ed.), Prawo Wspólnot Europejskich [Law of the European Communities] (Warsaw 2001), pp. 959–993
38. “Znaki towarowe w prawie własności przemysłowej” [Trademarks in industrial property law], Przegląd Prawa Handlowego 2001 no. 12, pp. 1–18