The UK’s outgoing info commissioner Elizabeth Denham is set up to hitch global law firm Baker McKenzie, which previously defended Fb against privateness enforcement by her screech of work.
Denham joined the Records Commissioner’s Workplace (ICO) in 2016, where she oversaw the introduction of the Overall Records Security Legislation (GDPR) in Could presumably well presumably also just 2018, and is on account of get replaced by fresh Fresh Zealand privateness commissioner John Edwards.
Per a press liberate from Baker McKenzie, Denham will most certainly be half of the firm’s London screech of work from January 2022 as portion of its global info and skills crew, where she is going to work as a specialist to expose its purchasers on info protection finest notify, procedure and wider skills regulation traits.
Baker McKenzie’s chair of global info privateness and safety trade unit, Brian Hengesbaugh, said Denham’s appointment used to be a “loyal coup” for the firm: “No stranger to grappling with just some of the thorniest factors in the discipline of craftsmanship and the draw our info is aged and accessed, Elizabeth’s appointment will bring yet elevated power and depth to this core discipline of focal point for the firm.”
On the opposite hand, Denham’s exit from her regulatory role straight staunch into a non-public sector job representing the firms she aged to supervise the behaviour of has led some to decry the revolving door between regulators and industry.
Andrew Pakes, deputy total secretary and review director at union Prospect, said: “The revolving door between regulator and trade speaks volumes in regards to the lack of transparency in the arena of Massive Tech. It simply need to silent not be seemingly for somebody to be regulating sooner or later after which potentially advising somebody straightforward tricks on how to handbook clear of that regulation the next.
“Massive tech already has the firepower to out foyer unions, community and civic rights organisations, namely at this sort of sensitive time round info and AI [artificial intelligence] regulation.”
He added that incoming commissioner Edwards has a “gigantic allege” forward, and that info rights at work need to silent be prioritised beneath his tenure.
“AI is an increasing number of being aged in the screech of work and regulation is in threat of lagging far in the abet of. We can’t simply contain a free-for-all on info and skills rights with employees paying the worth. By working with trade unions and employees on these factors, the brand new commissioner has the alternative to originate an even and equitable atmosphere that works for every businesses and employees,” he said.
Estelle Massé, global info protection lead at global human rights organisation Bag staunch of entry to Now, important that the announcement of Denham’s new job comes appropriate two days after she formally left the ICO on 30 November 2021.
“The timeline of the switch raises serious questions of independence and seemingly conflicts of passion. Used to be the commissioner in talks with Baker McKenzie for a job whereas investigating just some of the firms the law firm represents, along with Fb? Used to be the ICO crew notified of seemingly conflicts of passion and what measures had been taken to handbook clear of them? The faded commissioner and ICO need to silent acknowledge these questions,” she said.
“The disproportionate energy of large tech firms will not be fully mirrored in how their platforms operate, nonetheless in the quantity of lobbying they discontinue and the resources they’ve to hire skills and folk of energy.
“This case presentations how main ensuring the independence of information protection authorities is. There need to silent be clear principles and processes round positions that commissioners and DPA crew can switch to restrict conflicts of passion.”
Talking to the BBC in October 2021, Denham said that the sheer scale of craftsmanship firms and the sizable resources at their disposal in total outcomes in regulators being overwhelmed and therefore slack to use movement.
“The varied part that I’ve learned in this job is that noteworthy tech not fully has lobbying energy, nonetheless it absolutely has in actuality deep pockets,” she said. “So by litigating, these firms are positively willing to litigate against public authorities love my screech of work. [Their] deep pockets means that there is an inequity of arms when we’re tackling these.”
Asked if her switch to Baker McKenzie will contribute to the “inequity of arms”, Denham disagreed: “Surely one of many things that excites me in regards to the alternative is being ready to bring that regulator’s point of view to the law’s firm purchasers so as that they’ll create informed choices intellectual what somebody with my background thinks in regards to the compliance and product create challenges that they’re coping with. Here’s very the case for the law firm’s purchasers’ compliance with the Age Acceptable Procedure Code, and advising on privateness and safety by create.”
She added that her work with Baker McKenzie is portion-time, and that she has accredited two civil society roles – one in the UK and one in Canada – which is able to be announced in the brand new year.
“My map is for a portfolio profession to continue to complete protection work that supports folk’s rights in the UK, North America and in other areas,” she said.
Per whether she sees a war of passion, Denham said: “No. I understand why this query is being asked, and it’s totally legit. Every I and Baker McKenzie are very attentive to the contain to recognize my previous regulatory role and tasks, as successfully as all confidentiality and professional tasks that come up from them. All of this has been belief to be and planned for precisely.
“As successfully as to the upright tasks positioned on any serving faded commissioners by the Records Security Act 2018 (portion 132), my work will not involve any contact with or representations to the faded screech of work for a duration of on the least three hundred and sixty five days.”
The ICO has said that since its employees need to not civil servants or ministers, Denham didn’t need approval from the UK’s Advisory Committee on Enterprise Appointments to hitch her new employer.
“When they’ve left their role, there are no restrictions on the work the faded commissioner can undertake,” said an ICO spokesperson. “The ICO additionally has strict insurance policies governing the declaration of any interests. No war of passion has been identified in regards to this role.
“The knowledge commissioner, and all their crew, are additionally required by law to withhold the confidentiality of the details they receive as portion of their job. This applies each right by and after employment on the ICO.”
Per questions from Computer Weekly about Denham’s role, Baker McKenzie said in a the same enlighten to Denham that any seemingly for a war of passion has been belief to be and planned for precisely.
The firm additionally confirmed to Computer Weekly that Denham will most certainly be barred from contact with or representations to her faded screech of work for on the least a year: “Baker McKenzie has a firm commitment to moral governance and the rule of law, which is one among the reason why we’re so excited to contain Elizabeth be half of us and produce that regulator’s point of view to our crew.
“As successfully as to the upright tasks positioned on any serving faded commissioners by the Records Security Act 2018, Elizabeth’s work will not involve any contact with or representations to her faded screech of work for a duration of on the least three hundred and sixty five days.”
Baker McKenzie and Fb vs the ICO
Fb used to be previously represented Baker McKenzie when, beneath Denham’s oversight, the ICO took enforcement movement against the corporate in a case that in a roundabout draw resulted in a confidential settlement.
In that case, the ICO on the birth imposed its maximum penalty of £500,000 on Fb in October 2018 for serious breaches of information protection law linked to Cambridge Analytica, after finding that Fb “processed the non-public info of users unfairly by allowing utility builders access to their info with out sufficiently clear and informed consent and allowing access even though users had not downloaded the app, nonetheless had been simply ‘pals’ with folk that had”.
Denham said on the time: “Fb failed to sufficiently defend the privateness of its users forward of, right by and after the unlawful processing of this info. An organization of its size and skills need to silent contain identified better and it would silent contain accomplished better.”
A year later, in October 2019, Fb settled with the ICO, agreeing to pay the £500,000 penalty, nonetheless not accepting criminal responsibility.
In a enlighten on the time, the ICO said Denham “considers that this agreement finest serves the interests of all UK info issues who’re Fb users”.
Nonetheless addressing the UK’s Parliamentary Sub-committee on Online Harms and Disinformation in January 2021, Denham printed that a secret diagram between her screech of work and Fb shunned her from publicly answering whether or not Fb had contacted the ICO about ending an “app audit” – something Fb CEO Brand Zuckerberg had publicly committed to forward of a US senate committee in April 2018.
“I mediate I could perhaps well well also acknowledge that question with you and the committee in non-public,” Denham urged MP Kevin Brennan when asked whether or not the ICO used to be contacted in regards to the audit.
There used to be no mention of this diagram when little print of the deal between ICO and Fb had been on the birth announced in October 2019, nonetheless Fb, beneath the phrases of the agreement, did catch permission to “abet paperwork disclosed by the ICO right by the allure for diverse choices, along with furthering its have investigation into factors round Cambridge Analytica”.
Asked why this resolution used to be reached, Denham said she can not be authorized by law to comment, and extra important that Fb used to be “issued with the excellent penalty that the law on the time entitled the ICO to impose”.
Baker McKenzie and noteworthy tech
In October 2021, an investigation by the Global Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) constant with the Pandora Papers chanced on that Baker McKenzie – which employs round 4,700 attorneys across 46 countries with revenues of $3.1bn – has helped a range of institution firms to handbook clear of taxes and scrutiny by the spend of shell firms, trusts, and offshore tax havens.
This involves noteworthy tech firms Apple, which it helped catch a tax haven, and Fb, which its attorneys helped route billions of bucks in profits to low-tax commute gain 22 situation Ireland.
In December 2020, it used to be reported that Fb paid appropriate £28.5m in UK company tax in 2019, no topic reaching a file £1.04bn in scandalous profit that very same year.
Baker McKenzie urged the American Lawyer THAT it strongly disagreed with ICIJ’s reporting, which it claimed used to be “highly selective, contains inaccuracies and is speculative in nature”.
A spokesperson added: “Baker McKenzie is built on the principles of integrity, transparency, professionalism and adherence to the excellent requirements of ethics. We present purchasers round the arena on issues of law, and strictly discover the law in every jurisdiction whereby we operate.”
Asked to touch upon the ICIJ investigation, Baker McKenzie supplied a link to a webpage about its global tax notify.
