A simple complaint against Facebook’s privacy practices, submitted to an Irish agency by an Austrian law student, has snowballed into a seven-year legal battle that continues to disrupt the global privacy landscape. The European Union’s highest court will soon issue a ruling that Bloomberg Law analyst Mark Smith says may have major implications for U.S. lawyers and businesses.

 

In this episode, Smith details the legal carve-outs Facebook has relied upon to justify the transfer of data from the EU to the U.S., and he discusses how those measures have fared under the scrutiny of the European court system. He also explains what’s at stake with the upcoming ruling, and how U.S. lawyers can prepare for the next chapter in this seemingly never-ending but fascinating story.