Digital law
As digital threats become increasingly varied, cybersecurity has become a major concern for businesses and public sector organisations. Technical measures are part of the solution, but they are not sufficient on their own. Cybersecurity also involves legal and human considerations. A cybersecurity lawyer plays a central role before, during and after an incident, helping organisations prevent risks and strengthen their protection.
Helping you comply with French and European cybersecurity requirements
With an expanding regulatory framework encompassing the GDPR, the NIS2 Directive, DORA and ePrivacy rules, a lawyer helps you understand and implement the requirements that apply to your organisation. In many cases, compliance is a prerequisite for tendering for contracts or meeting customer requirements.
As cybersecurity lawyers, we help draft or review your terms and conditions of service as a provider. For customers, we negotiate agreements with IT providers, cloud hosting companies and software suppliers, addressing critical issues such as infrastructure recovery times following an attack and the allocation of liability.
Working with your IT and HR departments, we also help draft your organisation’s acceptable use policy, setting out clear, practical rules for using digital tools. This policy defines how employees may use the digital resources provided by the organisation, including computers, email, internet access and software. It establishes a framework designed to safeguard information systems, protect data and support the organisation’s day-to-day operations.
Working closely with IT departments and data protection officers (DPOs), we also help incorporate data protection into projects from the outset through privacy by design, and ensure that default settings limit the collection and use of personal data through privacy by default.
Legal support before, during and after a cybersecurity crisis
Cybersecurity management, governance and awareness
Cybersecurity extends beyond technical considerations and individual responses to incidents. It is an integral part of organisational management and governance, encompassing internal processes, the allocation of responsibilities, approval procedures, risk management and business strategy.
Lawyers contribute to a range of measures, including cybersecurity compliance assessments, due diligence, internal reviews and audits requested by business partners. They also assist with privacy impact assessments (PIAs) and the development of business continuity plans (BCPs) and disaster recovery plans (DRPs).
By raising awareness among decision-makers, training operational teams and explaining the wider implications of cybersecurity, lawyers help establish a shared cybersecurity culture aligned with applicable legal requirements.
Supporting your response to a cybersecurity incident
When an incident occurs, whether ransomware, data theft, a DDoS attack or compromised accounts, a lawyer’s role becomes crucial.
We act promptly to assess the incident from a legal perspective and help determine which obligations apply. These may include notifying the French data protection authority (CNIL) within 72 hours, informing affected individuals and notifying your cyber insurer.
We also assist with gathering and preserving digital evidence to safeguard your ability to bring legal proceedings. We help prepare sensitive documents, including incident reports and official communications, and ensure that decisions made under pressure comply with the law, reduce litigation risks and protect your organisation’s reputation.
Working alongside teams across your organisation
Cybersecurity is a multidisciplinary field at the intersection of technological innovation, business organisation and regulation. In this context, lawyers provide a vital link between technical specialists, legal departments and senior management.
We contribute from the earliest stages of complex technology projects involving artificial intelligence, blockchain, the Internet of Things or industrial automation, helping ensure legal compliance and respect for ethical principles.
Our broad perspective provides a coherent approach in a digital environment where responsibilities overlap and risks extend across professional disciplines.
Cybersecurity lawyers actively help organisations address these challenges. Their contribution includes anticipating threats, establishing a clear legal framework for action, supporting organisations through crises, strengthening governance and informing decisions.
In a constantly evolving digital environment, we help build legal safeguards that are as fundamental as technical security.
