Cloud Lawyers

“We are lawyers with a passion for Cloud Law”

Experience that counts

Established in 2000, Nicholls Legal is a law firm located in South Melbourne, Australia.  Our general areas of practice include Technology, Communications, Intellectual Property, Defamation, Commercial Law and Disputes – and we have specific expertise as Cloud Lawyers.

Typical Cloud Law matters that we have worked on include:

  • Negotiating and drafting all forms of Cloud agreements, including business/major asset sale and acquisition, supply, distribution, agency, joint venture, telehousing, interconnect, technology development and exploitation, technology assignments and transfers, outsourcing, facilities management and confidentiality agreements.
  • Acting for the vendor in the sale of a telecommunications fibre-to-the-home network in Western Australia.
  • Acting for the vendor in the sale of a Cloud provider in New Zealand.
  • Acting for numerous Cloud providers in negotiating telecommunications access and interconnection agreements.
  • Advising in relation to preparing and maintaining standard forms of agreement pursuant to Part 23 of the Telecommunications Act 1997 (Cth).
  • Acting for the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission in preparing model non-price terms and conditions for access to core telecommunications services.
  • Providing the lead external legal and regulatory advice to the Commonwealth Department of Communications Information Technology and the Arts in relation to its review of telecommunications regulation in Australia, having regard to next generation networks.

We have successfully represented parties in litigation at all Australian Superior Court levels, including the Victorian Supreme Court, the Victorian Court of Appeal, the Federal Court of Australia and the High Court of Australia.

In addition to our expertise as Cloud Lawyers, we also specialize in Commercial & Business Law, Communications Law, Competition & Consumer Law, Defamation & Media Law, Information Security & Privacy Law, Intellectual Property Law, Internet Law and Technology & IT Law.

See our publications on Cloud Law here.

Competitive Fees

We offer very competitive fees including a free initial consultation.  Please contact Matthew Nicholls (ph: +61 3 8376 7131) to discuss your Cloud Law requirements.

Our latest Cloud Law eNews items are below:

  • IACCM publishes 20 critical information security controls - From the IACCM:  The International Association for Contract & Commercial Management (IACCM) has published a useful checklist for businesses seeking a guide to information security controls. Based on the SANS Institute’s ‘Top 20 Critical Controls’ document, the guidance is useful for businesses to prioritise and fund information security initiatives.  The top 20 tips are Inventory […]
  • Attorney General announces mandatory data breach notification laws - From the office of the Australian Attorney General:  The Commonwealth Attorney General has announced new laws to be introduced into Parliament requiring businesses and organisations to inform individuals when a data breach involving their personal information has occurred. Attorney General Mark Dreyfus QC made the following remarks: “With businesses and government agencies holding more information […]
  • US Judge suggests evidence that Apple took part in eBook pricing conspiracy - From Cellular News:  A US Federal Judge has stated that there is likely evidence that Apple had conspired to increase the price of eBooks. Apple has previously refused offers from the US Department of Justice  (DOJ) to settle, as part of the DOJ’s ongoing investigation into the pricing of eBooks. At a pre-trial hearing US […]
  • Key EU nations take legal action against Google - From TechNewsWorld:  6 key EU nations have joined forces to take legal action against Google over the privacy protections of its user data. France, Spain, Italy, the UK, the Netherlands and Germany have announced that they will take joint legal action against Google over its privacy policies.  The action will include investigations, and possible fines.  […]
  • What Australian businesses need to know about cloud compliance - From ZDNet:  Australia often draws up regulation based on tried and tested laws from around the world. But there are times when the country pushes for bold new legislation that may be out-of-step with our technology-centric modern society. Prime examples of these include changes to its Privacy Act, which have taken four years to reach […]
  • U.S. Ups Ante for Spying on Firms - From the Wall Street Journal:  The White House threatened China and other countries with trade and diplomatic action over corporate espionage as it cataloged more than a dozen cases of cyberattacks and commercial thefts at some of the U.S.’s biggest companies. Top administration officials painted a pervasive portrait of the far-reaching costs of espionage—competitive disadvantages, […]
  • NBN services launched across Tasmania - From the DBCDE:  The Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Senator Stephen Conroy, together with Julie Collins, the Member for Franklin, and Senator Catryna Bilyk, Senator for Tasmania, have launched twenty new NBN services across Tasmania. Eight new Tasmanian NBN Digital Hubs, seven Digital Enterprises, and five Digital Local Government Programs came online. […]
  • The fog of law and cloud computing - From the Sydney Morning Herald:  Data sovereignty and privacy concerns resulting from the extension of US-government mass-surveillance powers raised in an EU report publicised last week should not dissuade Australian businesses from actively considering and adopting cloud computing services, legal experts say. The reach of the US Patriot Act – which essentially compels US companies […]
  • Federal Court provides clarity on internet simulcasting - From the Australian Copyright Council:  The Federal Court has unanimously ruled in favor of artists and recording labels, by overturning a previous decision regarding internet simulcasts. The PPCA (representing the artists and recording labels) in its press release reports that it “has won a declaration that internet simulcasts of radio programs fall outside the definition […]
  • Obama Presses Cybersecurity Effort - From the Wall Street Journal:  The Obama administration has pressed ahead with its campaign to bolster cybersecurity measures through an executive order while setting the stage for a new battle in Congress over how to ensure computer safeguards at companies that run the electric grid and other key infrastructure. Republicans who last year derailed a […]
  • NZ Privacy Commissioner Releases Cloud Guidelines - The New Zealand Privacy Commissioner has released two documents designed to assist businesses who are thinking of shifting to cloud based services. The Cloud Computing checklist for small business  summarises a number of steps that small businesses should take to ensure that the privacy of data sent to the cloud is properly protected.  Cloud Computing […]
  • Social Networking Sites to cooperate with Government on complaint handling - From the DBCDE:  Social Networking Sites have agreed to continue promoting user safety as well as undertaking education and awareness raising about antisocial behaviour online under new guidelines announced by the Prime Minister. The Cooperative Arrangement for Complaints Handling on Social Networking Sites commits companies, such as Facebook, Google (YouTube), Yahoo! and Microsoft, to: Set […]
  • Social media boosts customers - From the Conversation and the University of Buffalo:   Customers who connect with a business through social media will go to the business more frequently and contribute more to its bottom line, according to a new study from the University at Buffalo School of Management. The study, forthcoming in Information Systems Research, found that customers who […]
  • Aussie data retention so dangerous it’s ‘dynamite’: Berners-Lee - From ZDNet:  A controversial plan to store information about personal internet and telephone usage in Australia has been criticised by the world wide web’s inventor, Sir Tim Berners-Lee. Internet service providers and telecommunications companies would be asked to store data that passes through their networks for up to two years under plans being considered by […]
  • IBM and NATO Team Up for a Cloud Based Project - From ZDNet and Cloud Law Consulting:  ZDNet has reported that NATO and IBM are collaborating for a cloud-based project with aims to launch new technologies more efficiently and to improve data sharing among the group’s 28 member countries. The cloud computing model developed through the partnership will presumably be used for future military operations.  The […]