U.S. And EU Reach Political Agreement On A New Trans-Atlantic Data Privacy Framework: The Implications For Businesses

On March 25, 2022, President Biden and the President of the European Commission ("EC") von der Leyen announced that the US and EU reached an agreement in principle on a new Trans-Atlantic Data Privacy framework for transatlantic data flows (the New Framework). The parties now need to translate the consensus into legal documents, which will be submitted for approval over the next months. When effective, the New Framework will allow participating companies to legally transfer data from the EU to the US. Until then, such transfers remain in flux, with standard contractual clauses ("SCCs") accompanied by transfer impact assessments ("TIAs") remaining as the only viable option for many.