Steve Puiszis Discusses the MSBA Opinion in Light of GDPR's "Right to be Forgotten" in Bloomberg Law

Hinshaw's Chicago-based partner Steve Puiszis, who also serves as the firm's General Counsel Privacy, Security and Compliance, was featured in a Bloomberg Law article titled "Bar Advises on Conflict Checks in a GDPR World." Focused on a new legal ethics opinion issued by the Maryland State Bar Association (MSBA) on October 2, 2018, the article discusses how the opinion could potentially affect the process for running conflicts checks for U.S. firms with international clients, particularly when such clients invoke the "right to be forgotten" under the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

"In my opinion retaining personal information in a conflicts database necessary to run a conflicts check fits easily within that exemption," Puiszis said, referring to Article 17(3)(e) of the GDPR, which states that the right of erasure doesn't apply to the extent the information is necessary for the "establishment, exercise or defense of legal claims."

Read "Bar Advises on Conflict Checks in a GDPR World," on the Bloomberg Law website (subscription may be required)