Building Drones into Your Business’ Ecosystem
The legal issues surrounding unmanned aircraft systems (UAS or drones) cut across many practices. Our multidisciplinary Drone Team includes lawyers who have years of experience focusing on the relevant legal and regulatory issues that the UAS industry faces, from Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulation and privacy and cybersecurity, to manufacturing supply chains, insurance, and even litigation. While most law firms have an aviation perspective on these matters, Robinson+Cole’s Drone Team focuses on the data these drones collect, how the information can be used, and how it should be protected and secured. We also can assist with vendor management and contractual protections and compliance with FAA requirements and the secure collection and transfer of the data.
SERVICES
The services offered by our multidisciplinary Drone Team include:
- Navigating FAA regulations and waivers
- Part 107 regulations, including operational limitations and remote pilot certification requirements and registration requirements, waiver considerations and applications
- Advising on business models and training of existing employees versus hiring new employees or third-party vendors
- Intellectual Property
- FAA compliance
- Including preparation and implementation of drone compliance policies, procedures and guidelines, in particular those policies related to privacy and cybersecurity
- Vendor/Subcontractor management
- Review and/or preparation of subcontractor agreements to include obligations to comply with Part 107 regulations, alcohol/drug screen requirements, insurance requirements, privacy and cybersecurity measures, indemnification, and other related areas
- State regulatory guidance
- Including preparation of Model UAS Zoning Ordinance to combat local regulation
- Insurance considerations
- Government contracts
- Drafting contractual agreements
- With employees or vendors/UAS operators
- Negotiation of agreements
- Privacy and cybersecurity
- Review and evaluation of privacy and security practices and procedures, and updating them to include reference to UAS data collection, retention, use and disclosure, and mirror industry standards and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s (NTIA) best practices, with the inclusion of cybersecurity protections for the transfer/transmission of data from the UAS to your business, based on the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) guidance
- Litigation
- From negligent drone operation to manufacturing defects to personal or property damage claims, invasion of privacy or preemption litigation
As new UAS technologies and applications emerge and more standards develop, Robinson+Cole’s multidisciplinary Drone Team is well positioned to help clients navigate the regulatory, privacy and cybersecurity issues and other legal complexities of this emerging field.
