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
On 23 April 2018, the European Commission published a proposal for a Directive on the protection of whistleblowers reporting on breaches of EU law, accompanied by an explanatory memorandum. The Directive The intention behind the proposal is to harmonise the minimum level of protection available to whistleblowers across the EU. It reflects the Commission’s view … Continue Reading
In anticipation of the implementation of the Trade Secrets Directive, the topic of know-how protection has been widely discussed. Dr Anette Gärtner, along with Sabrina Gossler, has written an article which explores the current legal situation in Germany, analyses the relevant provisions of the Directive and explains the immediate next steps for companies operating in … Continue Reading
On 23 February 2018, the Article 29 Working Party (WP29) sent a letter to Alban Schmutz, President of Cloud Infrastructure Services Providers in Europe (CISPE), in response to the organisation’s submission of a draft Code of Conduct for Cloud Infrastructure Service Providers. In conducting its review, the aim of WP29 was to ensure that the … Continue Reading
According to the opinion of the Advocate General Pedro Cruz Villalón, published 12 December 2013, the Directive 2006/24/EC is as a whole incompatible with the requirement, laid down in the Charter of Fundamental Rights, that every limitation on the exercise of a fundamental right must be provided for by law. The Directive itself should already … Continue Reading
This post was written by Cynthia O’Donoghue. In early July, the European Parliament adopted a new directive harmonizing the criminal laws relating to cyberattacks (Directive). It will replace the current nonbinding agreement between EU countries from 2005 (Framework Decision 2005/222/JHA). The Directive aims to harmonise the approach to cybercrime, by requiring all Member States to … Continue Reading
This post was written by Cynthia O’Donoghue. The UK Court of Appeal, R v Martin [2013] EWCA Crim 1420, dismissed an appeal against a two-year prison sentence for various cybercrimes by the appellant, Lewys Martin. Martin previously pleaded guilty to various breaches of the Computer Misuse Act 1990. Martin was then convicted and sentenced to … Continue Reading
This post was written by Cynthia O’Donoghue. On 23 and 24 February 2012, the General Secretariat to the EU presented the proposed Data Protection Regulation to the EU Working Party on Information Exchange and Data Protection (DAPIX), stating that the new proposals were motivated by the European Commission’s (EC) desire to stimulate growth across the … Continue Reading
This post was also written by Nick Tyler. The UK Minister responsible for government policy on data protection has raised concerns about any proposed “radical rewrite” of the EU Data Protection Directive. Kenneth Clarke, Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, called for both flexibility and a common-sense solution to modernising data protection law. He … Continue Reading
