Mastering M&A in the Digital Age: Navigating data privacy, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence risks

Frank Xavier Wukovits | Chiesa Shahinian & Giantomasi PC

Frank Xavier Wukovits practices with the firm’s Tech, Privacy, & Data Innovations and Corporate & Securities Groups

Frank dedicates his practice to working with entities at the intersection of law, business, and emerging technologies, ranging from startups, emerging growth companies, private companies, and Fortune 500 companies to private equity funds, venture capital funds, corporate VCs, family offices, and angel investors that invest in those companies.

Frank works with entities across the entire corporate life cycle, including strategic planning and decision making prior to formation, governance, corporate counseling, venture capital, debt and equity financings, series funding, joint ventures, mergers and acquisitions, and integration.

Frank’s passion is rooted in helping client’s identify, assess, adopt, and benefit from advanced technologies, such as artificial intelligence. This includes guiding entities in the development, deployment, acquisition, and use of products and services that incorporate artificial intelligence, machine learning, and automated processing.

Frank also enjoys guiding clients on complex matters involving corporate compliance, cybersecurity, privacy, integration, analytics, and digital forensics. Among other things, this includes identifying and mitigating risks to an organization’s core business functions, leading vulnerability and risk assessments, investigating and responding to data breaches, protecting organizational assets and systems, and implementing effective security protocols, policies, and procedures.

Frank also negotiates and drafts agreements involving application development, end user licenses, Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS), secure cloud computing, mobile computing, information technology, data licensing, e-commerce, AdTech, marketing tech, insurtech, and healthcare with service providers, vendors, partners, developers, business associates, manufacturers, suppliers, customers, and other entities.

Frank’s experience in complex healthcare transactions includes, but is not limited to, strategic planning and negotiation of documentation for the organization, management, financing, merger, acquisition, and integration of healthcare facilities. Frank’s healthcare transactional experience is buttressed by his experience litigating highly contested federal and state healthcare legal issues.

Frank’s speaking engagements include seminars and presentations for board members, executives, in-house counsel, managers, industry experts, attorneys, and law students in the realm of mergers and acquisitions, artificial intelligence, data security and privacy, risk management, current and trending issues, threat analysis, cost benefit analysis, and compliance.

Prior to joining CSG Law, Frank litigated complex disputes in federal, state, appellate, and arbitration proceedings ranging from contract disputes to class actions and federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) claims.

While in law school, Frank served as a judicial intern for the Honorable Esther Salas, United States District Court, District of New Jersey, as well as the Honorable Thomas J. Walsh, Superior Court of New Jersey, Law Division, Civil Part. Frank also interned for the Federal Trade Commission, the Data Privacy and Cybersecurity Section of the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General, and a Fortune 500 company ranked as one of the world’s largest IT management services firms.

Frank received his Juris Doctorate from Seton Hall University School of Law, with a concentration in Data Privacy & Security; Masters of Engineering from The George Washington University – School of Engineering & Applied Science, with a concentration in Cybersecurity Policy and Compliance; and Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Colgate University.

Tyler J. Thompson | Greenberg Traurig, LLP

Tyler J. Thompson advises clients on data privacy and protection, technology contracts and contract processes, websites and mobile apps, digital accessibility, artificial intelligence, and data issues in the franchise space. Tyler offers clients practical and efficient legal counsel, striving to manage costs and risk with business-friendly strategies.

With deep experience in digital compliance, Tyler focuses on handling all aspects of a client’s website, platform, or mobile app to pursue compliance while maintaining the best user experience. His practice also focuses on creating enforceable digital agreements with platform users, whether that platform is a website, SaaS, mobile app, or video game. He also helps clients reduce website scraping risk.

Tyler has designed and implemented privacy programs for clients from Fortune 500s to start ups, ensuring those clients are compliant with U.S. and international privacy laws. Tyler also advises on data retention and minimization, privacy by design, data inventories, and privacy impact assessments. Tyler is accredited by the American Bar Association and the International Association of Privacy Professionals (“IAPP”) as a Privacy Law Specialist. He is also certified by the IAPP as an Artificial Intelligence Governance Professional (AIGP), Fellow of Information Privacy (FIP), Certified Information Privacy Professional for the United States (CIPP/US), Europe (CIPP/E), Asia, (CIPP/A) and Canada (CIPP/C) as well as a Certified Information Privacy Manager (CIPM) and Certified Information Privacy Technologist (CIPP/T). Tyler is also an ISACA Certified Data Privacy Solutions Engineer (CDPSE).

In the technology space, Tyler counsels on artificial intelligence (including generative AI and LLMs), open source software, digital marketing, software licensing, and SaaS agreements. He also works with clients to modernize commercial contracting processes and privacy practices, enabling in-house attorneys to function more efficiently and conserve resources.

Outside of the firm, Tyler practices archery, is an FAA certified private pilot, and a PADI certified SCUBA diver. He is on a mission to see every national park, MLB stadium, and good tiki bar in the United States.

You can follow Tyler on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/tylerjthompson/

Session I – M&A: Diligence, analysis, and artificial intelligence | 11:00am – 12:00pm

• Due diligence in the digital age
• Risk mitigation strategies
• Emerging technologies and deal evaluation
• Negotiating in a dynamic environment

Break | 12:00pm – 12:10pm

Session II – Shielding Assets: Navigating data privacy and cybersecurity risks in M&A transactions | 12:10pm – 1:10pm

• Identify the growing risks caused by the increase of domestic and international data privacy legislation
• Discuss the growing risks of cyber security threats to companies, specifically highlighting security breaches and ransomware attacks, and how those risks can poison an M&A transaction
• Highlight that artificial intelligence will increase privacy and security M&A risks even further
• Discuss the importance of proper data diligence in all transactions, even those that may not seem data-centric