Technology

Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr's Technology Law practice was one of the first such practices to be set up in a law firm in South Africa in 1993. Our technology law experts specialise in advising clients on their technology law requirements and our technology law team has an unrivalled reputation for the drafting of and negotiation of complex service level agreements and is also regarded as the premier outsourcing legal service provider in South Africa, having had extensive experience both locally and internationally.

One of our key strengths is our in-depth understanding of the technical aspects and business impacts of general technology services and complex outsourcing services, which means that we are able to advise our clients not only on the legal aspects of each transaction, but also on the technical and business-related aspects of the transaction and on how best these can be incorporated into the relevant agreements.

In light of our exposure to prominent clients in the financial services sector, the technology team has extensive experience in advising such clients on technology and banking-related legal compliance matters, including in respect of data security, internet banking, data protection and privacy issues. We also have extensive experience in advising clients in the public, technology and corporate sectors.

We specialise in the following areas:

• Information Technology
  We are positioned to assist with the drafting and negotiation of a full range of information technology specific agreements.

• E-Commerce
  With a comprehensive knowledge of the law as it pertains to E-commerce and the internet, our technology law experts are well placed to assist clients in the preparation of E-commerce related agreements covering B2B, B2C and internet transaction processing requirements.

• Outsourcing
  Our outsourcing law experts have acted in some of the largest and most prominent outsourcing transactions in South Africa. Our technology law team represents some of South Africa's largest and most prominent private and public sector institutions in information technology and business process outsourcing transactions.
  
  We have extensive expertise in advising our clients on structuring their overall outsourcing initiative, advising on and reviewing or drafting of tender documents and responses thereto, drafting outsourcing terms and conditions, ensuring regulatory compliance and compliance with relevant industry guidelines and procedures, advising on security issues, data protection, business continuity, intellectual property, employee- and technology transfer issues. In addition, we advise our outsourcing clients on possible BEE, tax, administrative law and competition law implications on the outsourcing transaction.

• Data Protection (including information privacy)
  Our specialist information law experts have advised on South African, European and global data protection issues, as well as advising on privacy issues, as contained in legislation. They advised on issues such as data protection issues in corporate transactions including database ownership and transfer; international transfers of personal data and drafting of Manuals in terms of the Promotion of Information to Access Act.