3 Data Privacy Changes for Legal Teams to be Aware of

As privacy regulations have evolved and changed over the years, so has the role of in-house legal teams–especially enterprise organizations looking to scale. The year 2023 marks the fifth anniversary of the notorious EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) legislation, which ushered in a new era of heightened worldwide security and data privacy expectations. 

While in-house legal should still focus on monitoring and staying compliant with the GDPR, they should also arm themselves against some of the more complicated and nuanced data privacy regulations. Below are three ways data privacy and compliance regulations are changing in 2023 and beyond.

Stricter regulations are sweeping the globe

Regulatory changes are spreading and changing faster than ever before. According to Gartner, an estimated 75% of the global population will have its personal data covered under privacy regulations by 2024. GDPR continues to evolve, but even newer, more complicated forms of data privacy regulation are starting to take effect.

“Transatlantic data transfer” is becoming more complicated

Data privacy laws are complex enough on their own. When you add international data sharing, it can get complicated really quickly. Businesses that regularly deal with international data transfer hope that the recent EU-US Data Privacy Framework will be finalized by mid-2023 to help streamline the process.

States in the U.S. are getting more individualized with their data privacy laws

As of 2023, five states have already implemented their own GDPR-inspired legislation in the wake of the American Data Privacy and Protection Act being denied at the federal level. Trying to fill the federal void makes data privacy laws all the more complicated for U.S. organizations and other countries working with them. 

Contract lifecycle management (CLM) can help legal teams effectively manage regulatory compliance. Now is the time to ask yourself if your current CLM solution will help prepare you for multiple types of contract-related tasks–especially to support growing compliance needs.

If you found these insights helpful, download our new guide, The State of Data Privacy for Legal Teams: U.S. and Europe Edition for a deep-dive into regulatory changes and more information on how CLM can help you navigate them.