The Simmons & Simmons data protection and privacy team counts financial institutions and TMT, healthcare and life sciences companies among its clients. The team advises both national and international clients, heavily benefitting from the firm’s broad European presence. The team was strengthened by the arrival of Georgie Courtois, whose expertise spans both litigation and advisory work in the life sciences sector.
Legal 500 Editorial commentary

Accolades

Client satisfaction: Lawyer & team quality

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

  • ‘Great team. Gives practical, sensible and commercial advice and a pleasure to deal with.’
  • ‘A competent and responsive team that offers pragmatic solutions.'
  • ‘Simmons & Simmons has been a trusted partner to my company for many years. They have a breadth of experience across areas relevant to the pharmaceutical business. Over the years, they have provided value add services and have been innovative in agreeing mutually beneficial engagements.'
  • ‘S&S is expert in the EU data privacy space. They are responsive, thorough and consistently help us assess various solutions and present their advice in a clear manner that helps the in-house lawyers easily explain it to business colleagues.’
  • ‘The team stands out for its accessibility and pragmatic approach. They work collaboratively, without any hint of superiority, while providing high-quality, clear, realistic, and actionable advice. Their mindset is decidedly solution-oriented ("can-do"). Another strength lies in their rigorous budget management: the team consistently works on a fee-based basis, adheres strictly to it, and provides transparent updates when an overrun is anticipated.’
  • ‘Our main contacts are Sarah Bailey and Emilie Danglades-Perez. They are approachable, warm, and fluent in English, which is essential for cases with an international dimension. They stand out for their professionalism and the clarity of their advice, which is always concrete and immediately actionable. Unlike some, they don't just raise problems or ask questions without offering solutions: their recommendations truly enable action and progress on cases. Their unassuming approach, combined with genuine expertise, clearly sets them apart from their colleagues at other firms.’

Key clients

  • Rhythm Pharmaceuticals
  • Hopscotch
  • Legalplace

Work highlights

Assisting Rhythm in relation to the regulatory and data privacy aspects of its activities in Europe, both at EU level for GDPR and local laws.
Advised Hopscotch on ensuring compliance with GDPR requirements, drafting and negotiating data processing agreements and providing guidance on privacy issues.
Advised Legalplace on all aspects of its data privacy and AI matters.
Practice head

Sarah Bailey; Georgie Courtois

Other key lawyers

Emilie Danglades-Perez