The Court of Justice Upholds a Relative Approach to EU Data Protection Law

This case note analyses the judgment of the First Chamber of the EU Court of Justice rendered in an appeal, whereby the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) asked the Court to set aside the judgment of the General Court of the European Union of 26 April 2023, SRB v EDPS (T‑557/20, EU:T:2023:219). In the earlier judgment, the General Court annulled the revised decision of the EDPS of 24 November 2020, adopted following the request from the Single Resolution Board (SRB) for review of an EDPS decision concerning five complaints from several complainants. The note discusses the background of the dispute and the findings of the CJEU. It particularly focuses on two key points: first, the ‘relative approach’ confirmed by the CJEU for determining whether data is considered ‘personal’; and second, the practical implications of this approach. It finally sheds light on legislative efforts (ie, Digital Omnibus proposal) to codify recent CJEU case law, particularly with regard to SRB, on the definition of personal data.