Schrems III or what will happen with transatlantic data transfers? - A Thought Experiment on the Validity of the EU-USA Data Privacy Framework Decision
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Abstract
The United States of America and Europe are each other's most important cooperative partners. This naturally includes the economic relationship based on the transfer of personal data. Over the past nearly decade, this transatlantic data transfer has operated amid continuous legal uncertainties due to the repeated invalidation of the European Commission's adequacy decisions and issues related to the applicability of standard contractual clauses. The problem appears to be currently resolved thanks to the EU-US Data Privacy Framework Decision. However, this Commission decision has already been challenged, and a new procedure is expected to begin this year. The purpose of this study is to conduct a thought experiment to examine the validity of the mentioned decision, which could serve as guidance for future legal practice and provide forecasts for economic actors about expected developments. The paper's conclusion is that due to the unchanged violation of fundamental rights, the EU-US Data Privacy Framework Decision is likely invalid.