IT law encompasses, on the one hand, classic IT contract law (for example, in outsourcing, ASP/cloud computing/SaaS, data center, and hosting contracts – including the necessary SLAs) and, on the other hand, software contracts for the creation or procurement of hardware and software. Increasingly, however, new European regulations such as the Data Act, the Cyber Resilience Act (CRA), and the Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act) are shaping the legal framework. In parallel, data protection issues and IT security (for instance, through the NIS-2 Directive) are moving massively into focus.
Contract drafting is the high art of legal craftsmanship, which is especially true in this dynamic environment. This is because many problems here have not been resolved by case law, and the literature has often not yet found an answer to completely new questions of the digital decade. This makes our experience and ability to communicate with our clients, as well as the technical understanding so urgently needed in the IT sector, all the more helpful. We accompany projects and contracts from the very beginning, but we also help with problems (for example, regarding warranty, damages, or cyber incidents) or represent you in the enforcement of your rights. We have many years of experience in contract drafting and litigation (including arbitration proceedings).
In practice, IT law regularly means: projects. In such projects, we advise and support you from the very beginning, based on our many years of experience and our deep technical and economic understanding. Ideally, legal support should begin with your business idea or the conceptualization of a new product (e.g., with networked IoT devices or the use of artificial intelligence) – entirely in the spirit of "Compliance by Design". But at the latest when a draft contract, a risk assessment according to new regulatory requirements, or an intensive contract review becomes necessary, we stand strategically by your side.
Contracts are of enormous importance, especially in the IT sector: on the one hand, the increasing relevance of IT requires a reliable legal basis; on the other hand, cutting-edge topics – such as data access rights under the Data Act or the use of generative AI – lack established case law, which makes concrete contractual agreements essential.
For us, drafting IT contracts means analyzing, discussing, preparing, and writing down what our clients want, supported by our technical understanding, and constructively balancing this with the interests of the contracting party. We draft and negotiate individual contracts for software projects, outsourcing, cloud services, as well as general terms and conditions (e.g., for software providers or purchasing GTCs). In doing so, we seamlessly integrate new regulatory obligations, such as securing IT supply chains in accordance with the CRA or transparency obligations when using AI.
Nobody likes to litigate, and for us too, lawsuits are only a means of last resort. But if they (must) be conducted, then we conduct them competently and consistently. This means that we present the facts comprehensibly to the courts, which are often not well-versed in highly complex IT matters or new regulatory frameworks, and we thoroughly penetrate the legal issues. We determine the approach and tactics together: For successful litigation, trusting cooperation with the client as a team and mutual communication are essential – only in this way can proceedings before courts, in arbitration, or in disputes with supervisory authorities be successful.
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