Introduction 

Data protection and international trade are increasingly interleaved. The traditional doctrine consisted in dissociating the two topics. However, current WTO negotiations on electronic services highlight inherent connections and interdependencies between trade and data protection. The panel will explore how trade agreements and policies intersect with data protection frameworks, and attendees will gain a deeper understanding of how trade negotiations influence data governance practices and viceversa, in addition to the foreseen evolutions in this field.  

Key questions and objectives 

• How do data protection and trade agreements interact with each other?
• How are privacy laws and data protection addressed from a trade agreement perspective?
• What are the implications for data subjects and the industry?