Legal architecture that protects and leverages data.
From dual KVKK and GDPR compliance to the Data Act: data inventory, cross-border transfer, data contracts, and breach response — legal architecture that both protects data and creates value from it.
An integrated legal framework for Data
Data is no longer confined to the heading of “personal data protection” alone. A company's customer relationships, employee management, product data, supplier relationships, and use of artificial intelligence depend on data governance; new rules such as the EU Data Act also subject non-personal data to sharing and access obligations.
We treat data both as a risk to be protected and as an asset to be commercialised: we bring KVKK/GDPR compliance, transfer architecture, data-sharing and licensing agreements, the retention-and-destruction regime, and breach response together into a single workable system.
Services We Offer in This Focus Area
In the Data focus area, we bring the relevant legal disciplines together into a single work plan.
Data Inventory & Governance
A company-wide data governance framework with mapping of processing activities, legal-basis analysis, and a roles-and-responsibilities regime.
Explore →KVKK/GDPR Policy & Document Set
Setting up the privacy-notice, explicit-consent, retention-and-destruction, cookie and VERBİS regime in an operations-ready, audit-ready manner.
Explore →Cross-Border Data Transfers
Establishing KVKK's current transfer regime (including standard contracts and notification to the Board — the Personal Data Protection Board) together with GDPR safeguards in a single architecture, suited to Türkiye–DACH flows.
Explore →Data Agreements & Licensing
Data processing (DPA), data-sharing, licensing and data-driven collaboration agreements; the balance of rights and responsibilities in the commercialisation of data.
Explore →EU Data Act Compliance
User access and sharing obligations for connected-product and related-service data, cloud switching provisions, and adaptation of the contract set.
Explore →Breach Response & Board Proceedings
Notification, containment, and communication under the 72-hour regime in data breaches; defence in Board reviews and management of data-subject applications.
Explore →A team that reads KVKK, GDPR, and the data economy in a single framework
Data compliance is achieved through working processes, not documents sitting in a folder. We address KVKK and GDPR within a single framework and build data-economy rules such as the Data Act into your contract set; in particular, we set up Germany-related data flows to be compliant with both bodies of legislation and ready for audit.
- Dual competence in KVKK and GDPR, a single compliance regime
- Field practice in Türkiye–DACH data transfers
- Transactional experience in data-sharing, licensing and DPA agreements
- Early compliance planning for the Data Act and data-economy rules
- Rapid response at the moment of a breach and Board experience
Related Practice Areas
The legal disciplines this focus area draws on.
Related Services
Our services most often engaged in this focus area — together with their scope.
Data & Document Management
Data and document management brings secure storage, KVKK/GDPR compliance, and the access and authorisation framework together under one roof. We manage your information without losing any of it, while protecting confidentiality and keeping it audit-ready.
Explore →Compliance
Compliance advisory: we build programmes that bring your company into line with KVKK/GDPR, anti-corruption rules, and sectoral regulations. Through internal audit, policy, and training, we turn compliance into a lasting corporate culture.
Explore →Contract Digitalisation
Contract digitalisation brings your CLM process into a single order with a template library, electronic signatures, and renewal tracking. We turn scattered documents into traceable, analysable contract management.
Explore →Process Automation
Process automation reduces lost time and errors by digitalising routine document production, approval and signature workflows, and compliance checks. We design auditable workflows tailored to your processes while preserving legal accuracy.
Explore →Digital Evidence & eDiscovery
Emails, messages, system logs, and deleted files are the true witnesses of most disputes. We manage e-discovery processes for the lawful collection and preservation of digital evidence and for finding the relevant record within large volumes of data.
Explore →Related Sectors
The sectors this focus area touches often.
Technology
Legal advisory on licensing, SaaS, data, intellectual property, investment, scaling, compliance, and product law for technology companies.
Explore →Banking & Finance
Advisory services in banking, fintech, payments, lending, collateral, investment, regulation and financial dispute processes.
Explore →Healthcare
Regulatory, data, contract, investment and dispute advisory for healthcare services, medical products and the pharmaceutical ecosystem.
Explore →E-Commerce
Advisory on consumer rules, KVKK/GDPR, tax, platform compliance and brand protection across marketplace, direct sales, subscription and cross-border sales processes.
Explore →Automotive
Contract, compliance, investment, and dispute advisory across the automotive value chain for OEMs, suppliers, distributors, and investors.
Explore →Related Regional Desks
Our cross-border and specialist desks that run this focus area.
Data & Cybersecurity Desk
Integrated advice spanning multiple jurisdictions in KVKK and GDPR compliance, cross-border data transfer, and cyber incident response.
Explore →Legal Tech Desk
International advisory on process innovation, compliance and scalable legal architecture for legal-technology ventures and next-generation business models.
Explore →Germany Desk
An end-to-end legal bridge in Türkiye for companies from the DACH region and in Germany for Turkish companies.
Explore →Track Record: Selected Matters
Anonymised examples of our work in this focus area, including the approach, process and outcome.
Building a single compliance programme for KVKK and GDPR
Establishing the data inventory, document set, transfer mechanisms and breach plan of a group selling in two markets within a single programme.
Review the matter →Data breach response and notification management
Managing detection, legal assessment, authority notifications, and communications from a single plan when a system breach is suspected.
Review the matter →Uninterrupted legal counsel for a multinational supplier
Retainer-based support across day-to-day commercial operations, contract management and compliance processes.
Review the matter →Structuring an investor share transfer in a growth round
Share transfer, shareholders' agreement and compliance processes in a venture capital investment.
Review the matter →Team in This Focus Area
Data and meet our experienced multilingual team.
Related Publications
Data — latest insights and guides.
Related Legislation
Data — the legislation that directly affects this focus area, tracked in plain language on our Legislation Radar.
The world’s first comprehensive artificial intelligence regulation: risk-based classification, provider/deployer obligations, and a phased implementation timeline. It may also cover Turkish companies whose output is used in the EU.
ABAvrupa B.EU Directive & RegulationIn forceEU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)Source · ABl. L 119, 4.5.2016In force · 25.05.2018Last amended · Nov 2025 (Digital Omnibus proposal — Regulation text unchanged)The framework of the EU data protection regime: it also directly covers Turkish companies that offer goods and services to persons in the EU or monitor their behaviour.
TRTürkiyeLawIn forcePersonal Data Protection Law (KVKK, 6698)Source · RG 29677, 07.04.2016In force · 07.04.2016Last amended · Mar 2024 (Law No. 7499) · Jan 2025 (cross-border transfer guide)Türkiye’s data protection framework: the 2024 amendments re-established the regime for special-category data and cross-border transfers; the standard contract and notification to the Board are at the centre of practice.
ABAvrupa B.EU Directive & RegulationRecently amendedEU Data ActSource · ABl. L, 22.12.2023In force · 12.09.2025 (application)Last amended · Sep 2025 (application) · next 12.09.2026 (design obligation); Digital Omnibus proposal under negotiationRules on access to, sharing of, and cloud switching for connected-product and related-service data: the regulation that re-establishes the contractual order of the data economy has been in application since September 2025.
Genuinely anonymised data is outside the scope; however, if re-identification is possible, the data is not considered “anonymous.” We verify the adequacy of the anonymisation technique through legal and technical tests and make your data sets safely usable.
The inventory is an internal record of all processing activities and is mandatory for everyone; VERBİS, on the other hand, is the public registry notification of data controllers that meet the criteria. We build the inventory in line with operations and derive VERBİS from it.
Yes, but under the post-2024 regime an appropriate transfer mechanism (most often the Board's standard contract) must be put in place and notification made within the time limit; the privacy notices must also cover the transfer. We build the intra-group flow with a single set of contracts.
The GDPR also covers you if you offer goods/services to individuals in the EU or monitor their behaviour, and it brings additional obligations that differ from the KVKK (a representative, DPIA, a different notification regime). We run your existing compliance through the GDPR threshold and close the gaps.
Both the KVKK and the GDPR require the breach to be notified to the authority within a short time; delay is in itself grounds for sanctions. With a response plan prepared in advance, the detection, containment, notification, and communication steps proceed without panic.
Cookies that run without consent and designs that pressure users to “accept all” are risky under both the KVKK and the GDPR. We turn your cookie layer into one that offers genuine choice and keeps records.
Under the current KVKK regime, the most practical route is usually the standard contract announced by the Board; after signing there are registration obligations, including notification to the Board, and safeguards are also required on the GDPR side. We set up your intra-group transfer structure with a single set of contracts compliant with both regimes.
If you offer connected (IoT) products or related digital services, or use cloud/data services in the EU, you are likely to be affected: provisions on user access to data, sharing with third parties and switching providers must be written into your contracts. We start with a scope analysis and prioritise the necessary revisions.
Let's build a legal strategy in the Data focus area.
Let's assess your needs together with the relevant Practice Areas, Sectors, and Regional Desks.