EU’s New Data Protection Rules

On January 25, the European Commission proposed new data protection legislation. The rules include the "right to be forgotten," under which individuals will be able to delete uploaded personal data if there are no legitimate grounds for retaining them.

The rules would apply if data are handled abroad by companies that offer their services to EU citizens (e.g., Google Inc., Apple Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Facebook). Breaching the rules would be fined by €1 million or up to 2% of the company’s global annual turnover. According to Viviane Reding, the The EU's justice commissioner, the new rules would save businesses about around €2.3 billion ($3 billion) a year.

"My proposals will help build trust in online services because people will be better informed about their rights and in more control of their information," she said in a statement. "A strong, clear and uniform legal framework at EU level will help to unleash the potential of the Digital Single Market and foster economic growth, innovation and job creation."

Needless to say, many are not happy.

"The latest draft still includes a number of draconian requirements for businesses that will be difficult to implement for many," said Jane Finlayson-Brown, a partner in London-based law firm Allen & Overy's data protection team.

“The real concern is that many of the proposed rules will inhibit the free flow of information globally and make it difficult for global businesses to operate and invest in Europe due to greater legal uncertainty, increased administrative burdens and the risk of fines," said James Lovegrove, managing director of TechAmerica Europe, a not-for-profit association representing U.S.-based technology firms in Europe.

If the changes are adopted, companies will deal with a single national data protection authority in the EU country in which they have their main base. Meanwhile, individuals can refer to the data protection authority in their own country even when their data are processed by a company based outside the EU.

Ronald Zink, Microsoft's Chief Operating Officer with responsibility for EU Affairs and Associate General Counsel commented:"The question [is] how do you future proof this; the European Commission is trying to create a regime that will have some staying power. The goal of [the] new proposal is to reduce the burden while increasing privacy protection; I'm optimistic this can be done."

Google reacted on its official blog, announcing that it will streamline its privacy policy from 70 documents to a single main privacy policy. "Regulators globally have been calling for shorter, simpler privacy policies—and having one policy covering many different products is now fairly standard across the web," Google's blog said. "We believe this new, simpler policy will make it easier for people to understand our privacy practices."

The proposals will now be passed on to the European Parliament and EU member states when they meet at EU councils and will take effect two years after they have been adopted.

Community-Based Gang Reducation

Based on the development of a three-year, nation-wide anti-gang strategy for Jamaica, Lieutenant Raymond E. Foster, LAPD (ret.) and international criminologist Michel Amiot developed a Community-Based Gang Reduction Model.

A Community-Based Gang Reduction Model has five key Components:

Building on Community Based Policing Practices;

Building on Intelligence Driven Policing;

Creating Public Safety Threat Assessment Gang Enforcement;

Incorporating Community Driven Problem Solving; and,

Facilitating Community/Stakeholder Involvement

To learn more, please download the folowing file:

Download the 3 Year Anti-Gang Strategy (PDF)

League Tables as a Marketing Tool for Dutch Lawyers

League tables are ranking lists of law firms involved in mergers and takeovers. When pitching for a job, law firms like to refer to their own ranking. It helps with marketing themselves as a major player. Ranking lists that Dutch lawyers like to use are those of the British Chambers and Legal 500.

To be included in these lists, law firms are being investigated, including interviewing clients about their experiences with the firm. The lists mainly serve as indicators of the “health” of the law office. Especially the number and value of the transactions that the firm was involved are great marketing tools. According to Gaike Dalenoord of the law firm Nauta Dutilh: “If you have a high score on both fronts, you are perceived as a serious and influential firm.”

Other league tables that are popular are those of the Nederlandse Overfusies (purely focusing on The Netherlands) and the British Mergermarket (includes all transactions in de Benelux. Both provide the value as well as the amount of deals. Most large international firms prefer scoring high on the value of the deals. They perceive being involved in really big deals as a way to move ahead of competition.

"We are making fun of them, but we still perceive them as an indicator for success”, said Jan Willem de Boer, partner at the Dutch office of Linklaters. “We all provide data about deals to the compilers of the ranking lists.”

Of course – the league tables and ranking lists are great for marketing!

Apple wants to patent and trademark its Thunderbolt trademark and technology

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) started the year with submitting three new patent applications. The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) detailed various aspects of Apple's revolutionary I/O technology called Thunderbolt. Apple already filed a slew of Thunderbolt trademarks in 2011.

But many experts (and lawyers) wonder: does Apple really own the trademark and technology? Many believe that Thunderbolt was developed by Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) and brought to market with technical collaboration from Apple Inc.

However, it seems that savvy Apple goes out of its way to secure Thunderbolt related patents. Already filed Thunderbolt trademarks include multiple and detailed patents. It looks like Apple abandoned its previous (legal) position that its involvement in the development of Thunderbolt was limited to "technical collaboration." Is pulling Apple a fast one on Intel, or is this a classic case of unclear expectations? Intel did not react (yet).

The good news is that Apple seems to be focused on bringing Thunderbolt to iOS devices in the near future. This would mean faster data transfers and faster recharging, which is something users have been looking for.