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Data controllers must...

1. Obtain and process personal information fairly

2. Keep personal information only for the lawful purposes that have been explicitly notified to the end user;

3. Use and disclose personal information only in ways compatible with these purposes

4. Keep all personal information safe and secure

5. Keep all personal information accurate, complete and up-to-date

6. Ensure...

The primary guiding principle for direct marketing is that you need the consent of the individual to use their personal data for direct marketing purposes.   As a minimum, an individual must be given a right to refuse such use of their personal data both at the time the data is collected (an “opt-out”) and, in the case of direct marketing by electronic means, on every...

Under the data protection regulations, personal information cannot be transferred outside of the EU unless certain criteria are met. These criteria are the following:

1.   Information can be transferred either to countries which have been approved by the EU Commission as having sufficient statutory protections in place. At the moment, these countries are limited to Switzerland,...

Data protection is an area of law that is unfortunately rife with technical definitions, and accordingly it can be off putting for many businesses to try understand in detail. However, given its importance, we set out below the core rationale and definitions of data protection of which all businesses should be aware.

Core rationale: Data protection restricts the collection,...

ICT Law - Acting for Investor in drafting and negotiating investment agreement of in excess of €5m in Technology Company.

ICT Law - Drafted software license with annualized turnover of €100,000.00 and service level agreements.

Introduction

When investing in a private company, most experienced investors will insist that some form of investment agreement be put in place. The purpose of such agreements is to secure and protect their investment, and the scope and complexity of the agreement will typically depend on a number of factors, including:

• the amount being invested;
• the percentage of the shares in...

1. Tidy up commercial issues in advance

Before entering into negotiations, make sure that all potential commercial issues have been identified and, where possible, dealt with. This includes issues such as making sure that all intellectual property rights are actually held by the company; that all customers have license agreements in place; that key suppliers are contractually bound, etc....

• Acting for Investor in drafting and negotiating investment agreement of in excess of €5m in Technology Company.

• Drafted software license with annualized turnover of €100,000.00 and service level agreements.

• Advised on Enterprise Ireland Investment  and matching funding of €600,000.00

• Advising on identification and protection of intellectual...

1.  Document and keep copies of all the software, including all preparatory documents, to establish copyright.

2.  Make sure that all employees and contractors sign written agreements transferring all copyright to the employer to ensure ownership of copyright.

3.  Put in place comprehensive license agreements and expressly and clearly claim...

What is copyright?

It is an internationally recognised legal principle that is broadly applied for the protection of original literary, artistic and other works. It grants the copyright holder exclusive rights in respect of the protected works for a limited (but generally quite long) period.

In the EU and the US, original computer programs are protected as “literary works”....

Fundamental changes to the principles governing cookies have now been implemented by the Government, with effect from 1 July 2011. Websites will now need the express consent of users to use cookies, or face prosecution by the Data Protection Commission.

From 1 July 2011, information may not be stored on or retrieved from a person’s terminal equipment unless the individual: (a) has been...

The deadline for the submissions to the Copyright Review Committee, set up by Richard Bruton T.D., Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation last month to review areas of Irish copyright legislation that may form barriers to innovation, has been extended to 14 July 2011. In light of the recent radical suggestions set out in the Hargreaves report in the UK (which examined similar issues but...