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Through the Kaleidoscope : Diverging Interpretations of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Wiertz, Milan

Abstract

Since coming into force in 2018, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has proven to be an Act of lofty ambitions but challenging implementation. With enforcement being up to regulators at the national and subnational level, accusations have been levied that the GDPR falls short of its promise to achieve harmonization among national data protection practices. This study tests such claims and endeavors to identify the motivations for divergence. It finds significant divergence between national regulators, which have led to different norms being imposed on organizations depending on their national belonging. Such heterogeneity is found to be insufficiently explained by differences in regulatory culture. Rather, the most egregious transgressions appear to be motivated by regulatory capture. The study contributes to the literature by focusing on legal interpretation, as opposed to regulatory strategy, an otherwise unaddressed aspect of regulatory differentiation in GDPR enforcement.

Item Metadata

Title
Through the Kaleidoscope : Diverging Interpretations of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
Creator
Wiertz, Milan
Date Issued
2025-04-18
Description
Since coming into force in 2018, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has proven to be an Act of lofty ambitions but challenging implementation. With enforcement being up to regulators at the national and subnational level, accusations have been levied that the GDPR falls short of its promise to achieve harmonization among national data protection practices. This study tests such claims and endeavors to identify the motivations for divergence. It finds significant divergence between national regulators, which have led to different norms being imposed on organizations depending on their national belonging. Such heterogeneity is found to be insufficiently explained by differences in regulatory culture. Rather, the most egregious transgressions appear to be motivated by regulatory capture. The study contributes to the literature by focusing on legal interpretation, as opposed to regulatory strategy, an otherwise unaddressed aspect of regulatory differentiation in GDPR enforcement.
Subject
European Union; Online Privacy Rights; General Data Protection Regulation; Divergence; Regulatory Culture; Agency Capture; Data Protection Authority
Genre
Graduating Project
Type
Text
Language
eng
Series
University of British Columbia. POLI_V 492
Date Available
2025-06-18
Provider
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
Rights
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
DOI
10.14288/1.0449128
URI
http://hdl.handle.net/2429/91367
Affiliation
Arts, Faculty of; Political Science, Department of
Peer Review Status
Unreviewed
Scholarly Level
Undergraduate
Rights URI
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Aggregated Source Repository
DSpace

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Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International