IT & Data Protection Law · Hannover

IT Law and Data Protection in Germany – Software, Cloud, AI and GDPR Advice from Hannover

horak Rechtsanwälte advises companies on IT contracts, software licensing, cloud services, AI regulation and data protection under the GDPR and German law. We combine legal advice with technical understanding of your systems and business model.

IT contracts and software

We draft, review and negotiate the contracts that technology projects depend on:

• project contracts covering scope, deadlines, customer cooperation, acceptance and change requests;
• development and licence agreements – scope of use, rights in work results, open-source components, documentation and further development;
• software and hardware purchase, maintenance and support agreements, specifications (Pflichtenheft), warranty and liability;
• outsourcing and cloud services, with attention to availability, subcontractors and exit options.

For international projects, we address the choice of law, jurisdiction and enforcement at the contract stage.

Data protection

We help you identify which rules apply to your business model, customers, data and systems, and implement compliant processes. Our work covers the GDPR, the BDSG and the Telecommunications Digital Services Data Protection Act (TDDDG), processor and joint-controller arrangements, data subject rights, the obligation to appoint a data protection officer, data breach notifications and data protection impact assessments. For international data transfers, we advise on adequacy decisions, standard contractual clauses and the EU-US Data Privacy Framework. We also support the set-up of data protection management systems and represent clients before data protection authorities and in court.

AI, cyber security and new EU regulation

New European rules create additional obligations for manufacturers, providers and users of digital products. We advise on the AI Act, the Data Act and the Cyber Resilience Act, and on IT security obligations under the new German BSI Act (BSIG), which implements key NIS-2 requirements. Whether and how these rules apply must be checked for each company and sector – and none of them replaces the GDPR.

Internet, e-commerce and domains

Digital offers to consumers require particular care with information duties, digital products and the ordering process. We also advise on internet, domain and telecommunications law, including domain disputes.

Disputes

When an IT project runs into difficulties, we help secure the contractual position and technical evidence, assess remedies and payment claims, and develop a strategy for negotiation or litigation. We enforce contracts, defend against claims and are open to alternative dispute resolution, including arbitration and conciliation.