Most privacy professionals are familiar with the European Court of Justice’s 2015 Schrems decision, which struck down the US-EU Safe Harbor mechanism. One lesser-discussed aspect of the ECJ’s decision related to the powers of Data Protection Authorities (DPAs) within the EU’s Member States. In the Schrems proceedings, the Irish Data Protection Commission argued that it […]
Privacy
German DPAs to Survey Transfers in 500 Companies – with English Translation of DPA Questionnaire
Late last week, 10 of Germany’s 17 Data Protection Authorities (DPAs) announced they are planning to send written questionnaires to approximately 500 different companies regarding international data transfers. The following provides a brief overview of the situation, as well as an English translation of the questionnaire, for companies who are potentially affected. This summary refers […]
EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Faces Judicial Attack
The EU-U.S. Privacy Shield (“Privacy Shield”) is already under challenge before the European courts, after having been approved only some months ago by the European Commission (“EU Commission”). The European courts’ website records that an action for annulment has been brought by Digital Rights Ireland, the privacy and digital rights advocacy organization, before the General […]
Eighth Circuit Decision Interpreting Spokeo Shows Impact of Supreme Court Decision on Privacy Actions
In issuing its decision in Braitberg v. Charter Communications, the Eighth Circuit recently became the first federal appellate court to issue a published opinion interpreting Spokeo and, as predicted, shows that the Supreme Court’s ruling will have a significant impact on the viability of privacy-related claims. In Braitberg, the plaintiff alleged that Charter indefinitely retained […]
Austrian Supreme Court Refers Schrems Consumer Class Action to ECJ
Just under a year ago today, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) issued its Schrems decision, which invalidated Safe Harbor and led to substantial developments in US-EU data-transfer mechanisms. In parallel to the ECJ Safe Harbor litigation, Mr. Schrems has maintained two further legal proceedings in the EU: (1) a challenge in the Irish courts […]