Various IT law topics will again be dealt with in the 2022 winter session. We provide an overview. The focus is on various digitalisation initiatives. Particularly noteworthy is the consultation on the Federal Act on Digitalisation in the Notary's Offices.

Thomas Steiner and co-panellist Pascale Schwerzmann discussed with the Swiss Informatics Society (SI) how IT professionals can contribute to operationalising compliance with the requirements of the new Swiss Federal Data Protection Act at SI’s EveningTalk of 20 October 2022. Here’s the presentation from Thomas Steiner’s keynote.

The new Swiss Data Protection Act (nFDPA) will enter into force on 1 September 2023. At this year’s annual conference of the Swiss Bar Association (SBA), Thomas Steiner addressed the new requirements and their implementation in law firms. The presentation (in German), which can be downloaded here, contains a checklist for the implementation of the nFDPA – not only for law firms. The presentation focuses, in particular, on tips for the creation and implementation of the records of processing activities, the drafting and implementation of privacy notices and for vendor management.

The Federal Parliament will discuss various IT law topics during its 2022 Autumn session. Digitalisation continues to be a major topic. On the one hand, the Federal Act on the Use of Electronic Means for the Performance of Public Authority Tasks will be discussed, and on the other hand, the National Council will vote on several motions calling for the Federal government to provide financial aid for digitalisation projects in the private sector.

The City of Zurich will allow its organisational units to use cloud services in the future. The City Council has based its corresponding decision of 13 July 2022 primarily on a legal opinion by LAUX LAWYERS AG on the legality of cloud use. LAUX LAWYERS has written the legal opinion on behalf of the Organisation and Information Technology Department of the City of Zurich (OIZ). The legal opinion addresses various legal aspects of the use of public cloud services, including internal authorisations, official secrecy, data protection and lawful access to data. The legal opinion places a particular focus on the US CLOUD Act. We hereby publish the legal opinion by arrangement with the OIZ.

In his article for the WEKA Data Protection Newsletter, Yves Gogniat discusses the decisions of the French and Austrian data protection authorities regarding the use of Google Analytics, which led to many discussions and uncertainty at the beginning of 2022.

In this interview with cmm360 magazine, Senior Advisor Christian Laux explains which legal safeguards must be considered in IT integration projects, why it makes sense to consult a lawyer right from the beginning and which clauses and aspects must be taken into account in such contracts.

The need to work flexibly, and not tied to a specific location, will not go away or fade in the same way as "Corona". It is becoming apparent that, for many, this form of work is set to become a permanent feature of work arrangements, over and above the classic home office. This confronts an employer with complex organizational, legal and technical security challenges. The article by Yves Gogniat provides a brief overview of the legal framework that an employer must observe if she wants to allow remote work. Unfortunately, there is no simple yes or no for remote work; because remote work can be structured differently depending on the company. In addition, industry-specific differences must be taken into account (e.g. due to regulations or the like).