Cybersecurity Policy Report, Supreme Court’s Slaughter Ruling Prompts Request for Review of EU-U.S. Data Transfers, (Aug 3, 2026)

By Tony Foley

European Data Protection Board (EDPB) Chair Ana Talus sent a letter Friday to Michael McGrath, the European Commission’s commissioner–democracy, justice, the rule of law, and consumer protection, requesting that the Commission assess whether the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision in Trump v. Slaughter affects the operation of the European Union-U.S. Data Privacy Framework (DPF) and the functioning of the EC’s adequacy decision for the U.S. based on the DPF.

In the letter, Chair Talus notes that the decision in Slaughter found that U.S. presidents had the power to remove commissioners of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) without cause. The letter emphasizes that, with regard to cross-border transfers of personal information, “the existence and effective functioning of one or more independent supervisory authorities in the third country, with responsibility for ensuring and enforcing compliance with the data protection rules, is one of the key elements to be taken into account” in assessing the adequacy of a level of protection in a third country under article 45(2)(b) of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

The EC’s adequacy decision regarding the U.S. that underpins the DPF relies on the independence of U.S. authorities, including the FTC. The letter asks the EC to assess whether the consequences of the Slaughter decision affect its adequacy decision. Chair Talus said the EDPB would welcome relevant actions by the EC, including continued sharing of information, and assured the EC that it was available to cooperate with the commission and engage in further discussions.

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