Robert Blamires

Robert Blamires leads strategic counseling and transactional work on cutting-edge regulatory compliance issues in the firm’s Privacy & Cyber and Data & Technology Transactions Practices. He works with some of the world’s largest and most cutting-edge companies and on some of the most complex, market-making transactions.

A seasoned leader, Mr. Blamires draws on more than two decades of practice, and his multi-jurisdictional qualifications and experience, to guide US and international clients on data privacy, cyber, and related regulatory issues (covering both US federal/state and UK/EU data privacy laws), in the context of:

• M&A, private equity, IPO, venture capital and other corporate and commercial transactions, including pivotal strategic decisions and structuring, highly bespoke diligence, drafting, and negotiation
• Compliance strategies and implementation
• Growth strategies, including international expansion and associated cross-border/multijurisdictional issues
• Incident response, containment, and management

Mr. Blamires helped grow the firm’s US Privacy & Cyber Group and leads US Transactional Privacy & Cyber. He also sits on the firm’s Technology and Security Committees, is Chair of the Working Group on AI, and is a member of the firm's AI Task Force.

As a prominent member of the data privacy and cybersecurity community, Mr. Blamires regularly writes and speaks on privacy and cybersecurity, as well as on AI and other technology, and is an editor of the firm’s Global Privacy & Security Compliance Blog.

He maintains multiple International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP) certifications, including:

• Artificial Intelligence Governance Professional (AIGP)
• Fellow of Information Privacy (FIP)
• Privacy Law Specialist (PLS)
• Certified Information Privacy Professional for Europe, US Private Sector, and US Government (CIPP/E, CIPP/US, and CIPP/G)
• Certified Information Privacy Technologist (CIPT)
• Certified Information Privacy Manager (CIPM)

Publications

• “Oregon and Delaware Join the Surge of US States Enacting General Privacy Legislation,” Latham & Watkins, September 6, 2023
• “EU-US Data Privacy Framework Goes Live: What Are the Practical Implications?,” Latham & Watkins, August 1, 2023
• “Employee Data Increasingly in the Crosshairs of Data Privacy Enforcement,” Latham & Watkins, July 20, 2023
• “California - Sectoral Privacy Overview,” OneTrust DataGuidance, July 1, 2023
• “Indiana, Montana, and Tennessee Enact General Data Privacy Laws, Bringing the Total to Nine and Counting,” Latham & Watkins, May 23, 2023
• “And Now There Are Six: Iowa Passes New Privacy Law,” Latham & Watkins, April 3, 2023
• “Overview of the EU-US and Swiss-US Privacy Shield Frameworks,” OneTrust DataGuidance, December 1, 2022
• “Preparing for the New Data Privacy Landscape,” Latham & Watkins, November 7, 2022
• “CCPA Will Now Fully Regulate Personnel and B2B Information,” Latham & Watkins, September 14, 2022
• “Due Diligence: The Key Ingredient in Restaurant M&A,” Latham & Watkins, August 16, 2022
• “Cyber Risk in Finance: A Q&A With Latham Partners,” Practical Law, March 2, 2022
• “Massachusetts: Cybersecurity,” OneTrust DataGuidance, December 1, 2021
• “CCPA Housekeeping Reminders,” Latham & Watkins, December 17, 2020
• “The CCPA & Other Developments Shaping the Landscape,” Privacy Laws & Business, July 1, 2020
• “Alternative Data Regulatory and Ethical Issues for Financial Services Firms to Consider,” Latham & Watkins, March 1, 2020
• “California AG Releases Modified CCPA Regulations,” Latham & Watkins, February 21, 2020
• “What’s New, What It Means: California AG Releases Modified CCPA Regulations,” Latham & Watkins, February 14, 2020
• “California Consumer Privacy Act Draft Regulations: What’s New, What’s Next,” Latham & Watkins, October 22, 2019
• “The California Consumer Privacy Act’s Amendments Are Final: What Businesses Need to Know,” Latham & Watkins, September 23, 2019
• “Adtech and Real Time Bidding in the Regulatory Crosshairs,” Latham & Watkins, September 11, 2019
• “EDPB Publishes Regulatory Guidance on Territorial Scope of GDPR,” Latham Global Privacy & Security Compliance Law Blog, January 2019
• “Social sharing and the US Video Privacy Protection Act: Perilous for online content providers,” Data Protection Leader, May 2018
• “USA – Privacy Shield,” Guidance Note, DataGuidance, February 2018
• White & Case Technology Newsflash:
  • “California Consumer Privacy Act Guide,” September 2018
  • “A Slice of GDPR in California?” September 2018
  • “CCPA and GDPR: Comparison of certain provisions,” September 2018
  • “Privacy Shield: Recent Developments,” April 2017
  • “Data Privacy in a Time of Reaction: ‘Big Data’ versus ‘The People’,” February 2017
  • “Further Challenges to EU-US Privacy Shield and EU Data Exports,” December 2016
  • “EU-US Privacy Shield challenged,” November 2016
  • “New York’s New Cybersecurity Rules: What Is Required?” October 2016
  • “EU-US Privacy Shield: How to Certify,” August 2016
  • “Unlocking the EU General Data Protection Regulation: A practical handbook on the EU’s new data protection law,” July 2016
  • “EU-US Privacy Shield approved,” July 2016
  • “New threats to transatlantic data flows as Model Clauses come under fire,” June 2016
  • “Strict and far-reaching new EU data protection regime comes into force,” May 2016
  • “Significant concerns from EU Data Protection Authorities may delay the EU-US Privacy Shield,” April 2016
  • “European Parliament approves new EU data protection law,” April 2016
  • “No consensus on Privacy Shield following debate on adequacy,” March 2016
  • “New deal for transferring personal data from the EU to the US moves a step closer,” March 2016
  • “EU Regulatory Agendas: EDPS Priorities 2016 and Article 29 Working Party Work Programme 2016 – 2018,” February 2016
  • “Safe Harbor is dead, long live Safe Harbor!” February 2016
  • “International Data Privacy: How to Navigate the Challenges,” January 2016
  • “UK and EU Law Enforcement Investigatory and Data Sharing Powers: Developments and International Impact,” January 2016
  • “Introduction of new EU General Data Protection Regulation: final stages,” December 2015
• “EU Consumer Rights And US Businesses,” The Los Angeles | San Francisco Daily Journal, July 2014
• “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Search,” The Los Angeles | San Francisco Daily Journal, June 2014
• “EU: Doing Business In The European Union,” Mondaq, Corporate/Commercial Law and Privacy, June 2013
• “The Proposed Ban On Credit And Debit Card Surcharges,” E-Finance & Payments Law & Policy; E-Commerce Law & Policy, November 2012
• “Smarter Thinking – Connected TV, Law And Regulation,” Entertainment Law Review, June 2012
• “Developments In Intermediary Liability: The Cases So Far,” E-Commerce Law & Policy, June 2012
• “Illegal File Sharing – Newzbin And The Digital Economy Act,” E-Commerce Law & Policy, May 2012
• “A Smart Approach To Smart TV,” Digital TV Europe, April 2012
• “‘Paying To Pay’” – UK Government To Ban Excessive Surcharges For Debit And Credit Card Payments,” E-Finance & Payments Law & Policy, March 2012
• “Mass Market Contracting,” Chapter 2, Computer Law Textbook, Oxford University Press, February 2011

Presentations

• “Vendor Procurement in the age of AI,” International Association of Privacy Professionals KnowledgeNet, March 2024
• “An Insider’s Perspective: Global Privacy and Cyber Developments, Trends and Enforcement Strategies,” Latham & Watkins, London, March 2023
• “The Future State of M&A: Dealmaking in the Golden Age of Cybercrime,” Aon M&A and Transaction Solutions Symposium, California, January 2023
• “Developments in ESG: Opportunities for Privacy Governance,” The Rise of Privacy Technology Data Privacy Week Conference, January 2023
• “I’m GDPR compliant: How do I manage US/GDPR privacy risks given the changing landscape?” Privacy Laws & Business 35th Annual Conference, Cambridge, July 2022
• “Cyber is Coming to a Loan Near You,” Loan Syndications and Trading Association, October 2021
• “Incorporating California’s New Data Privacy Regime into an International Compliance Program,” Privacy & Security Forum, October 2020
• “New Era for US Privacy Laws: California and More,” Privacy Laws & Business Conference & Workshop, November 2019
• “California Privacy Law & the GDPR,” Latham & Watkins Private Equity General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer Retreat, October 2019
• “GDPR Five Months After Implementation: How Enforcement, Compliance and Insurability Issues are Playing Out,” RIMS Cyber Forum, Seattle, October 2018
• “Critical Engagement and Machine Learning and AI,” Berkeley Center for Law & Technology’s 7th Annual Privacy Law Forum, Silicon Valley, March 2018
• “International Considerations in Licensing, Understanding the Intellectual Property License,” Practising Law Institute, December 2017
• “Standards and Guidelines for User Privacy Management,” Keynote, Polestar Connect Day Conference, Silicon Valley, March 2017
• “Privacy in the Era of Safe Harbor II,” 13th Annual Stanford E-Commerce Best Practices Conference, Stanford Law School, June 2016
• “GDPR Compliance Countdown – It’s All About the Details Now,” TRUSTe Privacy Risk Summit, San Francisco, June 2016
• “Counsel’s Toolbox: Innovation in Managing Digital Privacy Risk,” Legaltech West Coast, San Francisco, June 2016
• “How to Handle Cross-Border Data Transfers Post Safe Harbor and the Birth of the GDPR,” Masters Conference for Legal Professionals – Cybersecurity and Cross Border eDiscovery, San Francisco, April 2016
• “Privacy By Design,” Berkeley Center for Law & Technology's 5th Annual Privacy Law Forum, Silicon Valley, March 2016
• “Changing Rules for Data Privacy: Liability, Reform, and Opportunity,” Autonomous Cars Silicon Valley Conference, February 2016
• “Practical Guidance on International Data Transfers,” Union Square Ventures Legal Lunch, New York, January 2016
• “Privacy & Security in the Age of Global Investigations,” November 2016
• “European Data Privacy,” Union Square Ventures Legal Lunch, New York, December 2014
• “Exhaustion of Distribution Rights and Software Downloads,” US Association of Corporate Counsel, December 2013
• “Mobile App Privacy for Developers: EU/US Perspectives,” UKTI App Developer Mission, San Francisco, October 2013
• “Making Social Media Work For You,” Association of Corporate Counsel, September 2013
• “Selling Online In Europe,” Association of Corporate Counsel, June 2013
• “EU Legal Issues for US Enterprises,” Association of Corporate Counsel, April 2013
• “EU Privacy Issues For US Enterprise,” John Marshall Law School, Chicago, March 2013
• “App: The Legal Challenges,” Mobile Apps: The Legal Challenges Conference, London, May 2012
• “Commercial Exploitation of .Brands,” New Top Level Domains Conference, London, May 2012
• “Getting It Right When Selling Online,” Internet Retailing Conference, Birmingham, March 2012
• “What Does .Brand Mean For You?” ICANN Conference, London, February 2012
• “Commercial Exploitation of .Brands,” iStrategy Conference, Amsterdam, October 2011
• “UK Regulatory Enforcement Of Consumer Protection Law Online,” The Norwegian Consumer Ombudsman, October 2010
• “Internet Regulation,” The Office of Fair Trading, London, April 2010
• “Exploitation Of Digital Media Rights,” European Association Of Animation Film / Cartoon Digital, Malaga, Spain, April 2009
• “Virtual Worlds," Cambridge University, February 2009
• “Negating The Use By Counterfeiters Of Web 2.0,” International Trademark Association, Conference On Counterfeiting, Paris, December 2009