Data (Use and Access) Bill – current outlook

The UK Government’s Data Use and Access Bill 2024 (DUA Bill) seeks to reform the UK GDPR and DPA 2018. We take a look at some of its key features.

New guidance has been published by the Department for Business and Trade and the Office of Trade Sanctions Implementation to help UK businesses avoid exporting goods to Russia in contravention of Russian sanctions.

The UK Government has now published its response to the House of Lords Modern Slavery Act 2015 Committee report. We take a look at the supply chain recommendations.

Greenwashing is the term used where a business makes environmental claims about their products or services which are not strictly true. This can extend to trade marks so businesses should take care so they avoid running into issues.

In the UK, a trade mark can be considered to be registered in “bad faith” if an individual or company acts with dishonesty which falls below commercial standards.

A call by European Authorities in late 2024 for Apple to align their practices with the EU’s (anti) Geo-Blocking Regulation serves as a reminder that, despite the UK’s departure from the EU, UK businesses trading in the EU still need to comply with the rules.

The recent case of BNP Paribas Depository Services Ltd and another v Briggs & Forrester Engineering Services Ltd [2024] EWHC 2903 (TCC) serves as a timely reminder of the importance of considering the extent of the Contractor’s design responsibility under a JCT Design and Build Contract.

The EU Data Act will become directly applicable to member states from 12 September 2025. Although the UK is no longer a member of the EU, UK businesses will need to familiarise themselves with their obligations under the Act if they use, collect and/or manage any data in the EU.

Cybersecurity threats are an ever-present challenge for businesses. What should organisations be doing to mitigate risk and to ensure that they comply with relevant legislation?

The Court of Appeal has upheld the High Court’s decision that a director and minority shareholder was not personally liable for a breach of confidence because he did not know (nor suspect) that there was a duty of confidence (despite the company signing an NDA, and the director being involved in an initial meeting).

As organisations are increasing their use of new technologies to tackle pressures such as time, resources and expenditure, it comes as no surprise some are using AI large language models (LLMs) to streamline business processes. But what happens when organisations use AI to make automatic decisions?