Tech & Sourcing @ Morgan Lewis

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) published a report on January 27 outlining various industry practices and approaches to managing and combating cybersecurity risks and maintaining operation resiliency. The OCIE observed these practices through conducting thousands of examinations, and hopes that organizations can use the report to enhance their own cybersecurity preparedness and operational resiliency.

Washington may be the next state to enact its own data privacy law after a bill was introduced into the Washington State Senate earlier this month. Known as the Washington Privacy Act, the bill’s sponsor, Sen. Reuven Carlyle, stated at a press conference that lawmakers had reached “95 percent agreement in principle on the core elements of the bill.”

The US–China trade deal signed on January 15 aims to strengthen intellectual property protection for US intellectual property holders.

In a recent Wall Street Journal article, cybersecurity journalist Catherine Stupp drew attention to the massive surge in internet-connected devices expected to be in use by the end of 2020.

The terms “reseller” and “distributor” are often used interchangeably to describe entities that purchase goods or services from a manufacturer and then distribute or resell such goods or services to retailers and consumers. However, there are some key differences between a distributor and a reseller and important issues to consider in agreements with resellers and distributors.

The United States and the United Kingdom entered into the world’s first ever Clarifying Lawful Overseas Use of Data Act (CLOUD Act) agreement on October 3, 2019 (the Agreement). The Agreement, which will enter into force later this year after review by lawmakers in both countries, allows each country’s law enforcement agencies to demand, with proper authorization, electronic data regarding serious crime (defined in Article 1 of the Agreement as an offense punishable by a maximum term of imprisonment of at least three years) directly from technology companies based in the other country.

You signed a long-term deal. It would be embarrassing if, in a few years after signing, the pricing is significantly higher or your service levels are significantly lower than market. Benchmarking provisions are intended to provide a mechanism for ensuring that your pricing and/or service levels are within market (taking into consideration the unique factors applicable to your deal). Set out below are some of the key components of a meaningful benchmarking provision.

Open Banking is an initiative mandated by the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) in 2017. It is intended to facilitate better competition in the banking sector by mandating protocols that facilitate the secure sharing of customer-related data of the nine largest banks in the United Kingdom (CMA9) with third-party providers (TPPs).

In this contract corner, we consider the concepts of “good faith” in commercial contracts under English law.

Set out below are 10 contractual mechanisms for providing meaningful performance commitments and consequences if the commitments are not met. Maybe you will not need to invoke these mechanisms, but having firm rules may help drive good behavior (you know the old adage, “good fences make good neighbors”).