India's Data Protection and Digital Privacy Act (DPDPA) Is Transforming the Way Businesses Handle Data Privacy and Engage with Legal Technology. Importantly, Non-Compliance with the DPDPA Can Lead to Penalties Ranging from Rs 10,000 to Rs 250 Crore (or Two Per Cent of Global Annual Turnover, Whichever Is Higher).

Years ago, the understanding of legal technology in India was limited to contract law, document automation, e-discovery, and litigation management.

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More recently, the government’s ‘Digital India’ program and implementation in courts and digital legal technologies are rapidly driving the adoption of legal tech across various categories of legal practice. These initiatives are improving access to justice, particularly for marginalized communities. While lawyers were initially hesitant to embrace these technologies, government adoption, investment, and industry incentives for compliance and accountability have reinforced the role of legal technology in the Indian legal system.

India’s Data Protection and Digital Privacy Act (DPDPA) is transforming the way businesses handle data privacy and engage with legal technology. Non-compliance with the DPDPA can lead to penalties ranging from Rs 10,000 to Rs 250 crore (or two per cent of global annual turnover, whichever is higher).

Data privacy advisory and compliance automation

The DPDPA imposes obligations regarding the handling of personal data across the data lifecycle, from collection to storage, the purposes of processing, data subject rights, and notification. Compliance requires long-term strategic improvements in systems and processes. Implementing these controls can seem overwhelming, but legal technologies offer numerous solutions to ensure compliance and minimize costs. Many of these solutions have been tried and tested in jurisdictions that are further along in their data protection regulation journey.

Data management