The European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled on 6 October 2021 in Top System SA v. Belgian State (Case C‑13/20) EU:C:2021:811 that, under article 5(1) of the Software Directive (Council Directive 91/250/EEC) (the Directive), lawful purchasers of software are permitted to decompile programs (in whole or in part) in order to correct errors affecting the … Continue Reading
AI is a hot topic, particularly in the area of patent law and inventorship. On Tuesday 21 September 2021, the UK Court of Appeal ruled that artificial intelligence (AI) cannot be listed as an inventor on a patent application (Thaler v Comptroller General of Patents Trade Marks and Designs [2021] EWCA Civ 1374). Background The present … Continue Reading
On September 17, 2021, the Illinois Court of Appeals for the First District ruled that some BIPA claims are subject to a five year statute of limitations, while others must be brought within one year. In Tims v. Black Horse Carriers, Inc., 2021 IL App (1st) 200563, the appellate court accepted a certified question from … Continue Reading
The Summer 2021 Edition of the quarterly IT & Data Protection Newsletter by Reed Smith Germany has just been released: English version German version In this edition we cover the following topics: Update on international data transfers State Labour Court of Baden-Württemberg: No claim for damages for transferring personal data to the United States on … Continue Reading
The Spring 2021 Edition of the quarterly IT & Data Protection Newsletter by Reed Smith Germany has just been released: English version German version In this edition we cover the following topics: New cookie rules in Germany will apply as of December 1, 2021 German data protection authorities conduct coordinated audits on international data transfers … Continue Reading
In Bellingham, Alex v. Reed, Michael [2021] SGHC 125 (Alex v. Reed) The Singapore High Court considered the loss or damage needed for a private action to be brought against an organisation for a breach of the PDPA. In particular, the court found that a mere loss of control over personal data, or emotional distress over such loss of control, was insufficient. Our recent client alert details the case and … Continue Reading
The Winter 2021 Edition of the quarterly IT & Data Protection Newsletter by Reed Smith Germany has just been released: English version German version In this edition we cover the following topics: Strengthening fair competition – changes to the law against unfair competition Cologne Regional Court on the broad concept of the right to access … Continue Reading
The Fall 2020 Edition of the quarterly IT & Data Protection Newsletter by Reed Smith Germany has just been released: English version German version In this edition we cover the following topics: 1. Data transfers following Schrems II 2. German Supreme Court: Relationship between the GDPR and the German Act on the Protection of Copyrights … Continue Reading
On 11 November 2020, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in Orange România SA v Autoritatea Naţională de Supraveghere a Prelucrării Datelor cu Caracter Personal (ANSPDCP) (Case C-61/19) delivered its preliminary ruling on the issue of valid consent under the General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679/EU (GDPR) and Directive 95/46/EC. You can read … Continue Reading
Class actions are widely known for their popularity in the United States. These types of actions are now developing in the UK because of recent data breach litigations. In the UK, group litigation can arise in two different scenarios: Group Litigation Order (“GLO”) or representative actions. GLOs are orders given by the Courts to manage … Continue Reading
Unlike other countries, such as the US, France has a conservative approach of when and how IP right holders are entitled to disclose a pending infringement dispute to their clients and investors, under the legal concept of “disparagement”. France takes this step in order to limit the negative impact on the competitor resulting from disclosure … Continue Reading
On 11 August 2020, the Court of Appeal published its decision challenging the High Court’s approval of South Wales Police’s (‘SWP’) use of CCTV facial recognition. We wrote about the High Court’s judgment in September last year, which can be viewed here. As a quick recap of the case, SWP used CCTV automated facial recognition … Continue Reading
On May 27, 2020, the German Federal Constitutional Court invalidated section 113 of the German Telecommunications Act (TKG) and several accompanying federal law provisions for non-compliance with the German Constitution (case nos. 1 BvR 1873/13 and 1 BvR 2618/13). On July 17, 2020, the Federal Constitutional Court published the fully reasoned judgment as well as a press release outlining the … Continue Reading
Recently in a landmark decision, United States PTO v. Booking.com B.V. the U.S. Supreme Court clarified certain trademark rights for “.com.” There, the High Court ruled 8-1 that Booking.com, a popular online travel reservation agency, could register its company name – BOOKING.COM – as a trademark. In doing so, the Supreme Court struck down the … Continue Reading
The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) handed down its judgment on a case brought by privacy rights activist, Max Schrems (C-311/18, Data Protection Commissioner v. Facebook Ireland Limited, Maximillian Schrems) (Schrems II) yesterday, July 16, 2020. The case concerned the transfer of personal data to recipients in the United States via the EU … Continue Reading
The Summer 2020 Edition of the quarterly IT & Data Protection Newsletter by Reed Smith Germany has just been released: English version German version In this edition we cover the following topics: Access rights vs. data backup Cookie update: Planet49 and cookie walls Double opt-in required under GDPR Update on influencer advertisement German Supreme Court: … Continue Reading
By Katalina Bateman and Karen Lee Lust on Posted in In the Courts
Recent cases have highlighted the continued tensions between the GDPR and U.S. demands for discovery in the context of U.S. litigation and investigations. This issue can present a real concern for companies operating on both sides of the pond seeking to comply with obligations on either side. Whilst the GDPR provides EU citizens with valuable … Continue Reading
The Commercial Court held in AA v. Person Unknown [2019] EWHC 2556 (Comm) that a cryptocurrency such as bitcoin is a form of property capable of forming the subject of a proprietary injunction, in January. This is the first time the courts have applied the analysis set out in the UK Jurisdiction Taskforce’s legal statement … Continue Reading
Although the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) specifically precludes private lawsuits except for those resulting from certain data breaches, that has not stopped at least one plaintiff from bringing a putative class action based on an alleged CCPA violation. A proposed class action was filed on February 27, 2020, in the Southern District of California … Continue Reading
By Kimberly Gold, Samuel F. Cullari, Alexis Cocco and Raagini Shah on Posted in In the Courts,Regulatory
A federal court in Missouri recently held that a restaurant’s promotional text messages did not violate the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) because the messaging equipment used by the restaurant did not qualify as an automatic telephone dialing system (ATDS) as defined by the statute. The district court noted a split between the circuit courts … Continue Reading
On February 6, 2020 the case management judge of the Paris High Court (Tribunal Judiciaire) made a decision that is of great importance in terms of both the legal qualification of the undertaking of the owner of patents essential to the implementation of standards to grant to anyone a fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory (FRAND) license, … Continue Reading
Today, the Advocate General Henrik Saugmandsgaard Øe (AG) published his opinion on a case brought by privacy rights activist, Max Schrems (C-311/18, Data Protection Commissioner v. Facebook Ireland Limited, Maximillian Schrems) (Schrems II). The case concerns the validity of the standard contractual clauses (SCCs). The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) press release … Continue Reading
The Winter 2019 Edition of the quarterly IT & Data Protection Newsletter by Reed Smith Germany has just been released: English version German version In this edition we cover the following topics: ECJ decision on the use of cookies (“Planet49”) does not provide clarity ECJ: Global take-down duties of hosting providers ECJ on the territorial … Continue Reading
The Fourth Amendment has received significant attention in recent court rulings involving surveillance, electronic data retrieval, and other types of technology. Two rulings issued on October 21, 2019 demonstrate how difficult it can be to anticipate the outcome of Fourth Amendment disputes relating to technology. In one, the Georgia Supreme Court found the warrantless search … Continue Reading
