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Companies that register under this framework will be considered safe recipients of personal data, ensuring an adequate level of protection by Article 45 of the GDPR (1). When transferring personal data to such companies, there will no longer be a need for Transfer Impact Assessments (TIAs), Local Law Assessments (LLAs), or complex contractual clauses. In other words, data transfers to these companies will take place under the same regime as transfers between companies within EU member states. This marks the third attempt to regulate the transfer of personal data to the USA. The original legal framework, known as the Privacy Shield, was invalidated in 2020. The Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) had two main concerns. Firstly, US government authorities and intelligence services had essentially unrestricted access to personal data, including data of EU citizens. This concern was closely tied to the second issue, as EU citizens could not access information about the processing of their personal data in the USA and had no means to enforce their rights. The DPF addresses these shortcomings. The USA, through Executive Order 14086, “Enhancing Safeguards for United States Signals Intelligence Activities,” issued by President Biden on October 7, 2022, establishes a specialized official for civil liberties and privacy protection (Civil Liberties and Privacy Officer – CLPO) within the Office of Intelligence and Research. The CLPO is responsible for ensuring the respect of fundamental rights regarding protecting personal data, including by state authorities and intelligence services. Decisions by the CLPO can then be reviewed by the new specialized court, the Data Protection Review Court. As a result, EU citizens will be able to assert their rights concerning their personal data in the USA. While this is a significant step towards restoring legal certainty in the transfer of personal data between the EU and the USA, it is already certain that this decision, like previous adequacy decisions, will be subject to scrutiny and reevaluation by the CJEU. The organization #noyb, led by Max Schrems, has already criticized the decision, arguing that the DPF does not meet the requirements of the GDPR. Therefore, it can be expected that the current decision on the adequacy of protection will be assessed by the CJEU soon. Finally, it is crucial to highlight that the implementation of the DPF will bring modifications to your Privacy Policy. If your company engages in the transfer of data to a processor in the USA who is registered under the DPF, it is imperative to explicitly state in the information documentation that such transfers are grounded on a Commission adequacy decision and that the processor is duly registered under the DPF. The list of companies registered under the DPF can be found from July 17, 2023, here: https://lnkd.in/eCUrwrvc We are ready to assist you with the assessment and potential adjustments to your information documentation. Please do not hesitate to contact us. (1) Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons

As of July 1st, 2023, Aston Avocats in France and KDBM Law in Bulgaria will join act legal, fortifying the act legal’s presence and expertise across Europe. The offices will adopt the act legal brand identity and operate as act Aston Avocats and act KDBM Law respectively. With a relentless commitment to delivering exceptional cross-border legal services, act legal expands its footprint to cover 11 countries, currently including Austria, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Romania and Slovakia. By joining forces with Aston Avocats and KDBM Law, act legal cements its position as the go-to firm for seamless and high-quality legal support throughout Europe and worldwide. More information: https://actlegal.com/sk/news/act-legal-expands-its-european-reach-welcoming-aston-avocats-in-france-and-kdbm-law-in-bulgaria/

act MPH Advocates has again this year won 2 victories in the prestigious Law Firm of the Year 2023 competition, which is judged by an independent expert jury. act MPH Advocates won in the Telecommunications, Information Technology Law category and in the Best Client Services category. We are the only law firm in Slovakia to have won the first prize in the Telecommunications and IT sector for the sixth time in a row.  In addition, we have gained the status of HIGHLY RECOMMENDED law firm in other 14 categories: Corporate Law, Competition, Restructuring & Insolvency, Real Estate & Development, Mergers & Acquisitions, Intellectual Property, Public Procurement, Litigation, Tax Law, Energy & Energy Projects, Compliance, Logistics, Transportation & Construction, Health Law and Environmental Law. act MPH advocates is RECOMMENDED law firm in 2 categories: Banking and Finance, Employment Law. In the 11-year history of the competition, act MPH advocates has thus won a total of 9 first prizes. In addition to the Telecommunications, Information Technology Law and Best Client Services categories, we also won the Logistics and Transportation category in 2022 and the Legal Disputes category in 2021.  The best law firms are evaluated by an independent jury, the organiser of the prestigious competition is the business media Trend and Epravo.cz group. This success is a clear indication of our expertise, professionalism, and experience in this field. With 18 years of experience, we have been offering our clients exceptional legal services and support, not only in Slovakia but also in global projects. As a member of the act legal international alliance, we are proud to be associated with over 400 top-notch lawyers, financial, tax, and business advisors across 9 EU countries.

We received the prestigious award and The Legal 500 EMEA Leading Firm status in three categories – Commercial, Corporate, M&A, Litigation and Real Estate & Construction.  Legal 500 is an independent global platform that annually assesses the quality of law firms in more than 150 jurisdictions and provides an up-to-date view of the global legal market. A high ranking in the Legal 500 is a testament to our expertise, competence and excellent legal services and it also confirms that we are among the best in the field. We are committed to continuing to work with dedication and creating a top-notch legal background for our clients. The awards we have received are both a source of satisfaction and a commitment to excellence for us.

We also confirmed expertise and professional competencies in the other 10 categories. We belong to the TOP 10 largest law firms with specialization in: act MPH advocates is also among the TOP 5 most successful local law firms in Slovakia. This position is the result of our long-term intensive work, 100% commitment of the entire team and success in the market. The rankings of the best law firms are created every year by the editors of The Slovak Spectator and SME in cooperation with Finstat. The results are published in the Investment Advisory Guide. This success and trust naturally obliges us to continue providing our clients with the best service.

act MPH advocates WON the prestigious Law Firm of the Year competition in the Telecommunications, Information Technology and Logistics and Transport Construction Law categories. act MPH advocates was awarded the HIGHLY RECOMMENDED law firm label in the following 14 categories: Corporate, Competition, Restructuring & Insolvency, Development & Real Estate, Mergers & Acquisitions, Intellectual Property, Employment, Public Procurement, Litigation, Tax, Energy & Power Projects, Healthcare, Environmental and Compliance. Act MPH Advocates was also awarded the RECOMMENDED Law Firm label in the Banking and Finance category. “Big Thank You to all. I greatly appreciate the trust our clients have placed in us. My sincere thanks goes firstly to all my colleagues for their efforts and excellent work in the act MPH advocates team. The award is a testament to our commitment to offering the best knowledge, experience and client communication. As well as these awards, we value every single mandate and every single project that we can contribute our expertise to.” JUDr. Milan Malata, partner act MPH advocates We thank our clients for their trust and the opportunity to collaborate on interesting projects. Our success and trust obliges us to further provide you with a strong legal background and premium services. The prestigious Law Firm of the Year competition for the best law firms in Slovakia is announced and organized by TREND in cooperation with the publishing house EPRAVO.SK. 

The act MPH Advocates team comprehensively covered the entire due diligence process. Our team participated in the negotiation process and managed the communication with all parties. The project also included the drafting of transactional and contractual documentation. Specific regulations The acquisition project of a payment services licensee represents unique know-how from a regulatory perspective. In addition to the complex M&A process, our team also covered complex legal advice and services related to specific financial market regulations, transaction structuring and tax advice.  Three investment partners act MPH Advocates was involved in the drafting of three separate majority share purchase agreements representing the interests and terms of the three parties. The investment transaction also included the transfer of part of Tapeon’s payment terminal intermediation business to Pay Solutions.  “act MPH advocates has provided legal advice and its other services to major innovators and investors in the payment solutions sector in Central Europe. The outcome of this strategic acquisition confirmed our expertise and ability to close challenging transactions in the technology sector and in the international space,” said Mgr. et Mgr. Katarína Kasalová, partner at act MPH Advocates, who led the expert legal team.  The shared vision of this acquisition is to expand technology and products into the CEE region. Pay Solutions’ Besteron payment gateway is used by approximately 1,500 online merchants. PaySolution is expected to process payments of over €400 million in 2022. The acquisition by Solitea will bring a number of innovations to the market for modern payment gateways – for example, disbursement in 32 EU countries in 12 currencies.  “I am delighted that we have chosen to work with act MPH advocates on this strategic transaction,” said Martin Skaba, of Sandberg Capital, the majority owner of Solitea. “They are among the best in the market – not only in the breadth of their knowledge and experience but also in their combination of expertise in other areas. What we particularly value about working with act MPH Advocates is their team’s ability to see issues in a broader context, their high level of professionalism and business insight into our business activities,” added Martin Skaba The act MPH advocates team that provided legal advice on this acquisition was led by Mgr. et Mgr. Katarína Kasalová, partner of act MPH advocates. Mgr. Jana Alušíková, Mgr. Jana Vasilova, Mgr. Patrik Budke and Mgr. Andrea Mochorovská. __________________________________ About act MPH advocates act MPH advocates is a renowned law firm with more than 15 years of experience on the market. The experienced expert team creates a strong legal background for clients for long-term investments with international reach, as well as for day-to-day decisions. act MPH advocates is part of the act legal alliance, which houses over 400 lawyers, financial, tax and business advisors working in 11 law firms spannning 9 European countries. act MPH advocates is a multiple winner in the Law Firm of the Year competition and has repeatedly been awarded Law Firm of the Year in the categories of Telecommunications, Information Technology Law and Litigation.

The purpose of this book is to provide investors and companies with a practical guide for labour law in most of the relevant economies in Europe.