May newsletter

It’s hard to believe it’s the second Monday in May already, and that means it’s time for another roundup. Why not take a read of some of our A&M commentary over the past few months to ensure you're up to speed with all the news here.

Phil Beckett - Cyberattacks Concern Execs More Than Regulatory Risks.

Interesting story here on Law360 from the team at Willis Towers Watson PLC and Clyde & Co.LLP It seems that company directors are most concerned about cyberattacks and data loss issues according to this joint study by the insurance giant and... Read more.

Phil Beckett - Highlights from the AAA’s New Publication on Discovery Best Practices.

This is a useful blog from David Fitzpatrick & R. Thomas Dunn looking at recent recommendations by the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”) in respect of AAA Construction Advocates and Arbitrators with regard to best discovery practices... Read more.

Phil Beckett - The Disclosure Pilot Scheme: change on the horizon.

This is an interesting article and update on the Disclosure Pilot Scheme by Penrose Foss from Clyde & co. It’s good to see this is still on the agenda and people are continuing to think about how to improve and make the system work – something... Read more.

Phil Beckett - A Lack of List of Issues for Disclosure is not a bar to specific disclosure under the Disclosure Pilot Scheme.

This is a good write up of the HMRC v IGE USA Investments Ltd and Ors [2020] EWHC 1716 (Ch) by Parham Kouchikali and Sinead Westaway from RPC. Now I won’t repeat the details of the case which are covered very well in the article, but in... Read more.

Phil Beckett - Off the edge of the E-Discovery map, there be monsters!

What happens when things go wrong in ediscovery? This is certainly an interesting piece by Jon Del Barrio and John Davis from Crowell & Moring looking at a January 2021 case in the US: DR Distributors, LLC v. 21 Century Smoking, Inc. (N.D.... Read more

Schellion Horn - Barriers to Biosimilars Growth.

Biosimilar new entry was expected to shake up the pharmaceuticals market, leading to lower prices and increased access to drugs. However, market access has been slower than many predicted, with some citing concerns around anti-competitive... Read more.

Phil Beckett - Mediation. Discovery. District court denies motion to compel...

This is another interesting case, which is subject to a thoughtful article by Katelyn Sprague at Baker McKenzie. The case, Accent Delight Int'l Ltd. v. Sotheby's, No. 18-cv-09011 (S.D.N.Y. Dec. 8, 2020), revolved around Sotheby's involvement in an... Read more

Phil Beckett - A mirror reveals all - Imaging orders in litigation.

This piece by the team at DLA Piper talk about imaging orders being one of the most draconian tools in the English court’s armoury. A respondent to such an order can be required to hand over a complete mirror image of all of their data (regardless... Read more.

Phil Beckett - DAR; A sharper sword than Discovery?

This article by Brendan O’Connell from Ronan Daly Jermyn is a good one to read if you take an interest in data protection issues. This piece covers an Irish matter where there was both a discovery request and also a guidance note from The Office... Read more

Christopher Woodhead - European Commission announces draft adequacy decision for the Republic of Korea.

EU – Republic of Korea Draft Adequacy Decision The European Commission (EC) has signalled its intent to adopt a draft adequacy decision between the European Union (EU) and the Republic of Korea (Korea), thereby enabling data to flow freely from... Read more.

Matthew Negus - Data Transfers Solution Reached Between SEC and UK.

There was little fanfare when the agreement was reached, however, an understanding between the SEC and UK Information Commissioner's Office has unlocked a solution which enables UK-based financial services firms to share personal data more freely... Read more.

Robert Grosvenor - UK's new digital watchdog starts work looking into tech platforms.

The UK government yesterday announced the launch of the Digital Markets Unit, which has been created as part of the Competition and Markets Authority, to investigate market abuse by giant technology companies and promote competition in digital... Read more.

Jaclyn Malone - Rutgers University will require the COVID-19 vaccine for students.

Faculty and students are ready to resume normal campus activity, but will mandatory vaccinations draw in students or push them away? It will be interesting to 1) see students and parents reaction to Rutgers' decision, and 2) see if other... Read more.

Phil Beckett - SEC Data transfer safe habor raises questions for UK Cos.

Law 360 shared this piece recently about how the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission recently announced that U.K. authorities will permit U.K.-based companies to transfer personal data of U.K. data subjects to the SEC to facilitate its... Read more.

Schellion Horn - CMA Publishes Final Determination on Water Company Appeals - Significantly Moving Away from Ofwat's Initial Position.

The CMA has today published its findings on the price controls for 4 water companies for 2020-2025. This follows an appeal by Anglian, Bristol, Northumbrian and Yorkshire following Ofwat's determination in December 2019. The CMA notes that the... Read more.

Schellion Horn - UK's Latest Spectrum Auction Nets at Least ￡1.36bn for Treasury - But Its Still a Bargain!

Ofcom has announced that the principal stage of the 3.6-3.8 GHz and 700 MHz has ended with 200 MHz of spectrum being awarded across all 4 mobile operators at a total price of ￡1.36bn. Whilst this might sound like an incredible amount of money (and... Read more

Phil Beckett - People First, Tech Forward: E-Discovery in 2021.

How can attorneys and the legal industry incorporate the lessons learned from last year into their work? This piece on Law.com was a good read by Samantha Kepler, Helen Stocklin-Enright and Jessica Tseng Hasen from Perkins Coie My takeaways... Read more.

Phil Beckett - GDPR and discovery in the United States - two legal systems separated by a common language.

Short but snappy post here on the Bristows blog by Anna Cook directing people to read a longer article on IADC here. The original article by Michael Gladstone is well worth a read if you have time too as well as Anna’s overview and commentary.... Read more.

Jaclyn Malone - A New Health Care Paradigm Reshapes Senior Living.

All sectors of real estate have been impacted by the pandemic in various ways, but the effect on senior housing is unique as our seniors are particularly susceptible to Covid-19. With numerous senior housing corona virus outbreaks, the... Read more.

Phil Beckett - Effective E-Discovery Of Chat Apps In Gov't Investigations.

This is an interesting piece by Jason Weinstein and Katie Dubyak at Steptoe & Johnson looking at how chat, and related applications, are so important in government investigations. Whilst I agree with the main sentiment of the piece here, I... Read more.