Bar’s Committee on Cybersecurity & Privacy Law aims to be the ‘go-to’ resource for lawyers
The new Standing Committee on Cybersecurity & Privacy Law — a first of its kind — will be a panel of experts dedicated to helping lawyers protect themselves, and their clients, from a constantly evolving threats, says a co-chair and founding member.
“Hopefully, we’ll be an in-depth repository of information,” said Co-Chair Steven Teppler. “We will have that technical expertise, and we’ll also have the ability to convey, in simple English terms, what our technical expertise informs us.”
A Mandelbaum partner who teaches a popular cybersecurity course at Nova Southeastern University College of Law, Teppler is also an ISACA-certified data privacy solutions engineer.
At the same time the Bar formed the cybersecurity and privacy committee, President Scott Westheimer appointed a “Special Committee on AI Tools & Resources.”
Westheimer said the latter will help Bar members, among other things, keep abreast of the game-changing technology.
Teppler and cybersecurity Co-Chair Franklin Zemel will direct the 25-member committee with Vice Chair John Giantsidis. It will be a resource for the other tech-related committees, and work with them on joint projects, Teppler said.
“You can look at is as kind of a hub of a wheel, and lots of spokes that we apply to,” he said. “And we intend to be the general source of information and the general go-to for anything cybersecurity and privacy-related.”
For example, the cybersecurity committee expects to work with the Board Technology Committee on a best practices guide for Florida lawyers, Teppler said.
“We’re looking at providing a more in-depth guidebook, or handbook, on cybersecurity for lawyers to protect themselves and their clients,” he said.
The cybersecurity committee at some point hopes to make a presentation to circuit judges, Teppler said.
“We hope to be a continuing source of updated and updating knowledge, suggestions, cautions, anything that has to do with cybersecurity and privacy law,” he said.
Another critical part of the mission will be to help lawyers better understand where cybersecurity intersects with their ethical responsibilities.
“Addressing the unique ethical issues presented by the use of technology (competence, diligence, client-confidentiality, third-party confidentiality, fairness,) as well as ethical issues presented in case of a cyberattack,” Teppler wrote in an application earlier this year to the Program Evaluation Committee.
Some of the issues raised by cyberattacks include how to respond, whether to pay a ransom demand, and the obligation to notify clients, third parties, and government entities, the application notes.
“We’ll be trying to make sure that Florida attorneys are kept abreast of the latest development in this area, from a simplistic explanation perspective, all the way to what’s complicated and what we’re seeing in terms of legal developments in the area of cybersecurity and privacy,” Teppler said.
