Information Technology Law

UK

All companies rely on technology to some degree - whether for core corporate functions such as payroll and invoicing, for business critical service lines or for selling to customers. The contracts that underpin your software are critical to managing potential risks and limitations. Working with an experienced information technology law firm will ensure that you have access to legal advice with a deep understanding of the complexities and key issues that can arise within this area.

Our dedicated Information Technology (IT) team has a wealth of knowledge in handling a wide range of technology-related contracts, easily recognising "industry standard" as well as potential pitfalls and technical limitations that can impact legal teams.

We pair in-depth knowledge of the IT industry with experience across a range of sectors including automotive, retail, financial services, life sciences and energy.

Our public sector lawyers draw on our support for central and local government procurements of technology systems. We also have a powerful ally in our IT Litigation team. We work closely with them to stress-test key clauses and gain a litigator's insight.

Our information technology solicitors have acted on agreements for software performing every type of function - from access card systems for buildings, to pension portal software, huge ERP systems, retailers' e-commerce websites and financial services brokers' platforms. They have looked at agreements for every aspect of the technology – design, development, configuration, customisation, implementation, hosting, support and system integration – and at agreements for all different licensing models – on premise licensing, SaaS, private cloud, public cloud, PaaS (and 'anything'-as–a-Sevice).

We understand the digital infrastructure required to deliver systems virtually, acting on projects such as installation of WAN networks in warehoues or between offices, installation of dark fibre into commercial properties and installation of Wi-Fi within retail estates. We even act for data centre operators. Understanding the complexities of IT supply chain and technology stacks, we alert our clients to the key risks and legal issues and provide solutions to help mitigate them.

Increasingly, our information technology lawyers review and advise on data-related agreements as businesses look to extract value from data that they hold or to create new services by combining and analysing data. We work closely with our head of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Intellectual Property (IP) team to guide clients through this exciting emerging area.

IT contract law services

Cloud services
Data centre (colocation) agreements
Data licensing agreements
E-commerce terms
Hosting
Licensing
Networks, Wi-Fi and telecommunications
Outsourcing
SaaS, PaaS and XaaS agreements
Software development and licensing
Systems implementation

Client work

NFU Mutual

Advising NFU Mutual on a number of material outsourcings (under the PRA's regulatory regime) for networking services and combined telecoms/software solutions for their customer contact centres and customer management systems.

Lloyd's Register

Advising Lloyd's Register (marine insurer) on outsourcings of core business functions (IT managed services, payroll, accounting) to create a shared services function for their group.

Electrical Products Manufacturer

Advising an electrical products manufacturer on its ERP software licence, and separately its system integrator agreement.

Dealer Management Solution Provider

Undertaking a complete re-write and overhaul of a dealer management solution provider's standard SaaS terms.

Virtus Data Centres

Advising Virtus Data Centres for over 10 years on all key customer relationships (including with hyperscalers), drafting standard colocation terms and negotiating outsourcing of facilities management agreements.

Pret a Manger

Advising Pret a Manger on its first generation outsourcing of core IT business functions as part of its digital transformation strategy.

Awards and recognition

They develop a deep understanding of their client's business. Chambers UK

We are proud to be recognised by the legal directories for our work in IT law, ranking in Band 2 for "Information Technology" in the Midlands in Chambers UK and Tier 2 for "Technology, Media and Telecoms" in The Legal 500.

We also contribute to ThinkHouse, our in-house lawyer programme, with a dedicated annual masterclass on IT related issues.