International law firm Bird & Bird further strengthens its market-leading international Privacy & Data Protection team with the arrival of experts Romain Perray and Lorraine Maisnier-Boché as new partners in Paris.
The recruitment of Romain and Lorraine perfectly aligns with Bird & Bird’s ambitions to significantly enhance our leading Data Protection practice in France as well as globally, especially within the realms of digital health, insurance and the mobility sector, amongst other areas of interest.
Inherently international, their practice draws on substantial footprints in the Middle East, notably in the UAE, and Japan - two regions strategically critical to the global growth of Bird & Bird's international Privacy & Data Protection team.
Romain and Lorraine will join alongside associates Mai Matsubara, as well as Julie Favreau who will join at a later stage.
Romain Perray
Celebrating his 21 years at the Paris bar specialising in data privacy and data protection law, Romain advises across the full spectrum of data protection and data security matters for clients in automotive, adtech, life sciences, insurance, e-commerce, leisure, social networks and even the public sector, especially in the context of smart cities projects.
His experience extends to multijurisdictional cross-border data transfers strategy (including global intragroup data transfers framework agreements), joint data controllers and/or data processor agreements, the formulation of privacy and/or cookies policies, and the use of personal data for marketing purposes, including through profiling techniques, particularly in a Big Data context. Romain has also conducted numerous privacy impact assessments (notably in cases of pseudonymisation or anonymisation) as well international data protection audits to ensure compliance with both EU and domestic data protection requirements.
Beyond data privacy, Romain also advises on the EU Data Act, open data issues and cybersecurity (including incident response to cyberattacks, NIS2 and DORA compliance programs). He is also a lecturer in data privacy and data protection at the University of Paris-I Panthéon-Sorbonne, the University of Sorbonne Abu Dhabi, the University of Sorbonne Morocco and the University of Tokyo. Romain also authors numerous academic legal publications at LexisNexis and Lamy Editions.
Lorraine Maisnier-Boché
With 15 years of experience in data protection, e-commerce, cybersecurity and information technology (IT) law, Lorraine Maisnier-Boché has a prime sectoral focus on life sciences as well as insurance and adtech.
Lorraine regularly advises medtech/biotechs, digital health providers, medical device manufacturers, health care professionals, cosmetic companies, insurance companies and data brokers in advertisement on their data protection, cybersecurity and information technology (IT) law matters. Having served as Senior Legal Counsel at the French Digital Health Agency (ANS), Lorraine has a strong background in data protection, and regularly advises on GDPR compliance programmes, international data transfers, marketing and profiling actions, sensitive data (e.g., personal health data), AI, compliance, audits, and cybersecurity.
She is a lecturer in data protection law at the Paris Universities and has authored several papers on digital, data protection and digital health law. Lorraine is also a board member in the Association for the Development of IT Law (ADIJ) and associate researcher in the Legal Research Institute “Law and Health” and is a Certified Information Privacy Professional/Europe (CIPP/E).
Lorraine returns to Bird & Bird, having started her career as a data protection lawyer at the firm.
Alexandre Vuchot and Emmanuelle Porte, co-Managing Partners of Bird & Bird France, comment: “We are delighted to welcome Romain, and welcome back Lorraine, to Bird & Bird. Their exceptional reputation and expertise in data protection, particularly in digital health, insurance, and mobility, will significantly enhance our practice in France and strengthen our global offering. The French data protection market holds immense potential, and this strategic recruitment underscores our commitment to growing our presence locally and internationally. With their impressive credentials and strong market standing, we are confident they will play a key role in elevating our visibility and capabilities in this critical area.”
Ruth Broadman and Jeremy Tan, co-heads of Bird & Bird’s International Data Group, comment: “We’re excited to welcome Romain and Lorraine to our French partnership, significantly enhancing our data protection presence in this key jurisdiction. Their expertise across the full spectrum of data protection and data security is a strategic addition to our French team that further consolidates Bird & Bird's position as a leading law firm in this field globally.”
Romain adds: “Bird & Bird is renowned as a leader in the tech and data fields, not only in France but across Europe and beyond, with a strong presence in the Middle East and Asia-Pacific, including the UAE and Japan, two of our main markets in addition to Europe. Bird & Bird’s exceptional multiregional platform matches perfectly with the global clients I serve, providing a unique opportunity to collaborate seamlessly across borders and provide great expertise to support our clients’ increasingly complex and multijurisdictional needs. Joining Bird & Bird will allow Lorraine and me to take our practice to new heights, leveraging the firm’s global reach and deep sector expertise to deliver even greater value to our clients.”
Lorraine said: “Having previously worked at the firm, I know firsthand the strength of its One Firm approach, which ensures seamless collaboration across international offices and allows us to quickly bring together the right experts for high-value, complex projects. Bird & Bird’s outstanding reputation of their Life Sciences & Healthcare, Tech & Comms, and Privacy & Data Protection teams provides an exceptional platform to further develop a robust Digital Health practice and deliver unparalleled support to my clients worldwide.”
