ECJ about Schrems against Facebook case
Publish Time: 25 Jan, 2018
The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), ruled that Austrian lawyer, Maximilian Schrems
, could sue Facebook in his home country, with respect to their handling of his personal data. However, the CJEU ruled that he could not bring a consumer lawsuit on behalf of 25 000 Facebook users (who he contacted via Facebook) for alleged privacy breaches. Facebook claimed that Schrems was a 'professional litigant', and not a neutral consumer, meaning that he had no right to sue Facebook in Austria -but had to sue them in Ireland, where Facebook's European headquarters are located. On Thursday, the CJEU ruled that Schrems could sue Facebook as a consumer in Austria -despite his activities (publishing books, giving lectures, fundraising, and his campaigning Facebook page) -because he primarily used his account for personal reasons.