Data export: EU provides more clarity after Schrems II

In documents published last week, the EU provided some welcome clarity on how organisations should address the invalidation of Privacy Shield as a basis for exporting personal data from the EU. On 10 November 2020, the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) adopted recommendations on ‘supplemental measures’, which can be considered to ensure compliance with the …

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EDPB guidance on ‘supplemental measures’ for data export

On 10 November, the European Data Protection Board adopted a recommendation on supplemental measures which might be used to ensure compliance with the EU level of protection of personal data when exported to third countries with an insufficient level of protection. The recommendation both sets out a process to be followed by data exporters and, …

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EU and US start work on enhanced Privacy Shield: Mr Schrems to be persuaded…

On 10 August 2020, Following the European Court’s Schrems II judgment invalidating the US Privacy Shield (and calling into question the legal basis for other transatlantic data transfers), the EU Commission and US Department of commerce issued a short, joint statement: “The U.S. Department of Commerce and the European Commission have initiated discussions to evaluate …

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Exporting data from the EU after Schrems II: what to do now

As previously discussed, the European Court of Justice’s recent Schrems II decision both (i) invalidated the US privacy shield; and (ii) threw into question alternative justifications for the export of personal data from the EU to the US. Whilst there is yet to be a substantive response from the European Commission, initial reactions from the …

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European Court invalidates US Privacy Shield and questions blanket use of Standard Contractual Clauses

Schrems II disrupts data export from EU: on 16 July 2020, the European Court of Justice decided, overturning the 2016 Privacy Shield Decision of the European Commission, that the US Privacy Shield did not, and does not, provide an adequate level of protection for the transfer of personal data from the EU to the US.

ECJ finds Data Retention Directive invalid. What next?

On 8 April 2014 the European Court of Justice ruled that the Data Retention Directive 2006/24/EC interferes in a particularly serious manner with the fundamental rights to respect for private life and to the protection of personal data. The Directive is declared invalid. Today’s post by Sylvie Rousseau and Matthias Vierstraete explains what the court decided and …

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How serious is India about foreign investment as an engine for growth?

I will be spending next week in Mumbai and Delhi (with @singarbitration), and in preparation have been contemplating the impact of the recent budget proposals on foreign investment, and in turn the implications for the Indian economy. Before going on any trip, I like to remind myself of some basic economic facts, so my trusty EIU ‘World …

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Indian Supreme Court decision in Vodafone tax case good news for international investors in India

The judgement of India’s Supreme Court on 20 Jan in the Vodafone tax case, removes (at least for now) some of country-specific risk that has been holding back investment by multi-national companies in India. Reduction in perceived risk is likely to encourage more investment in India by multi-national companies, particularly as Indian growth is driven to a …

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Patent power (part 2) – Google buys Motorola Mobility

Today’s big news is Google’s acquisition of Motorola Mobility. What is fascinating is the logic for the deal. This is not a deal driven by customers or operating synergies – it is all about Motorola’s patents. The give-away is the final paragraph of Google’s announcement: “We recently explained how companies including Microsoft and Apple are banding …

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