On 2 June, the European Commission (Commission) published a roadmap (Roadmap) that will pave the way for the Commission’s communication on the EU pharmaceutical strategy, which is now due in the last quarter of 2020. The Roadmap should be read together with the Commission’s proposal for a recovery of the EU’s economy (Next Generation EU), … Continue Reading
If they serve health care professionals (HCPs) in EU member states, manufacturers that provide personal protective equipment (PPE) or medical devices used by HCPs caring for known or suspected COVID-19 patients should familiarize themselves with a recent European Commission recommendation. This recommendation is designed to accelerate the time to market for these products, provided that … Continue Reading
Global life sciences companies have been carefully watching the European effort to launch a Unified Patent Court (UPC). As we discussed in a previous post, the UPC would have a profound effect on how life sciences companies set about their patent strategies – from filing through exploitation to enforcement. Efforts to implement the UPC, however, … Continue Reading
The Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI) was created in 2008 as a public-private partnership between the European Union and the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA).[1] Its overall goal is to increase the competitiveness of R&D in the European pharmaceutical sector by encouraging companies to work with each other and with the public sector. … Continue Reading
With the Unified Patent Court now stalled for at least the near future, U.S. life sciences companies will continue to face the question of where to bring patent infringement cases in Europe. The German courts offer a variety of potential advantages for such companies. Two-thirds of all patent infringement cases in Europe are brought to … Continue Reading
As we discussed in a prior post, the introduction of the Unified Patent Court (UPC) will be a significant change to the European patent landscape and will have a profound effect on how life sciences companies set about their patent strategies – from filing through exploitation to enforcement. Consequently, life sciences companies should take note … Continue Reading
The introduction of the Unified Patent Court (UPC) is undoubtedly the most significant change to the European patent landscape since the European Patent Convention of 1973. It will have a profound effect on how life sciences companies set about their patent strategies – from filing through exploitation to enforcement. Leaving aside the inevitable delays to … Continue Reading
The EU-U.S. Privacy Shield has been adopted by the European Commission. On July 12, 2016, following a positive vote from the member states (the Article 31 Committee) on July 8, the EU College of Commissioners formally adopted the Privacy Shield. The Privacy Shield enters into force immediately in the EU. In the U.S., the Privacy … Continue Reading
For global pharmaceutical and medical device companies handling personal data in the European Union (EU) or engaged in transatlantic data transfers, some of the many questions created by the Brexit vote include what its impact will be on the United Kingdom’s (UK) data protection laws. These questions also arise in the context of the EU’s … Continue Reading
The Reed Smith Information Technology, Privacy & Data Security Group will be hosting an upcoming webinar “The Biggest Shake Up of European Data Protection Law in 20 Years: What Your Organisation Needs to Do to Comply with the General Data Protection Regulation“ on June 7, 2016 at 11:00 a.m. ET, 16:00 p.m. BST and 17:00 … Continue Reading
The European Commission has published its draft adequacy decision on the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield, the proposed data transfer framework that would replace the defunct Safe Harbor program. The draft adequacy decision formally supports the view that the proposed EU-U.S. Privacy Shield will ensure an adequate level of protection for the transfer of personal data from … Continue Reading
President Obama signed the U.S. Judicial Redress Act (JRA) into law on 24 February 2016, giving European citizens the same right as U.S. citizens to bring actions against the U.S. government if their personal data are misused. While the JRA is not a formal prerequisite to finalizing the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield transatlantic data-sharing framework, it’s … Continue Reading
European Union and United States authorities have announced the “EU-U.S. Privacy Shield,” a new transatlantic data transfer framework to replace Safe Harbor, which was invalidated by the European Court of Justice in October in Maximillian Schrems v. Data Protection Commissioner (C-362-14). Since this issue has clear implications for our pharmaceutical and medical device clients, we’ve … Continue Reading
Last year, the European Court of Justice issued a judgment invalidating the safe harbor framework for US-EU data sharing, creating uncertainty and a number of questions about what is, and is not, permissible when sharing data involving personal information across borders. The Safe Harbor decision has clear implications for our pharmaceutical and medical device clients, … Continue Reading
Russia announced its plan to increase data localization audits in 2016 pledging to conduct around 1,000 data localization compliance audits and 2,000 monitoring procedures, under Russia’s data protection authority, the Roskomnadzor. This stems from Russia’s data localization law which came into effect September 1, 2015, requiring that all companies that collect or process personal data … Continue Reading
Exactly one month after the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) released its judgment in Maximillian Schrems v Data Protection Commissioner (C-362-14), the European Union released a Communication discussing the implications of their decision on data sharing involving personal information. This topic is no stranger to the blog, as we’ve posted about it … Continue Reading
Data privacy issues in the European Union seem to be a reoccurring theme here on the blog, following Court of Justice of the European Union’s judgment in Maximillian Schrems v Data Protection Commissioner (C-362-14) on October 6. We’ve posted about it here and also had a recent Reed Smith Client Alert here. Last week, European … Continue Reading
The Reed Smith Life Sciences Health Industry (LSHI) Group will be hosting an upcoming webinar “Cross-Border E-Discovery & New Ruling Regarding the US-EU Safe Harbor Framework” on November 24, 2015 from 9:00 a.m. PT, 12:00 p.m. ET, 5:00 p.m. GMT until 10:00 a.m. 1:00 p.m. ET, 6:00 p.m. GMT. Reed Smith presenters including London based … Continue Reading
As you know, data privacy issues in the European Union are still fresh in the news, given the recent changes outlined in the Safe Harbor decision; we’ve written about it here, here and here. A recent Reed Smith Client Alert outlines frequently asked questions on what businesses need to know now in lieu of the … Continue Reading
Data privacy in the European Union is a hot topic at the moment. In addition to the recent ruling regarding the “Safe Harbor Ruling” affecting data transferred between the EU and the US, a study was recently published criticizing several aspects of the EU’s development of its Digital Single Market (“DSM”) strategy. As defined by … Continue Reading
As previously discussed here and here the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) handed down its judgment in Maximillian Schrems v Data Protection Commissioner (Case C-362/14) that the Safe Harbor Decision no longer provides adequate protection for data transferred between the EU and the U.S. In light of this ruling, Reed Smith will be … Continue Reading
In a decision with significant potential ramifications for flows of personal data from the European Union to the United States, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) handed down its judgment in Maximillian Schrems v Data Protection Commissioner (Case C-362/14) that the Safe Harbor Decision no longer provides adequate protection for data transferred between … Continue Reading
The French government issued a bill on March 17 for the extension of class actions to health-related claims in France. Starting today, March 31, the text will be discussed at the French National Assembly, particularly to address the issue of compensation for personal injury within the framework of the proposed class action.… Continue Reading
Reed Smith’s Global Regulatory Enforcement Law Blog features a post on a recent decision by the French Supreme Administrative Court (Conseil d’Etat) that expands the scope of the French Sunshine Act. “French Supreme Administrative Court Decision Significantly Broadens the Scope of the French Sunshine Act,” written by Reed Smith attorneys Daniel Kadar and Caroline Gouraud, … Continue Reading
