Art. 10 Data Act (COM Proposal)

1. Data holders and data recipients shall have access to dispute settlement bodies, certified in accordance with paragraph 2 of this Article, to settle disputes in relation to the determination of fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory terms for and the transparent manner of making data available in accordance with Articles 8 and 9.

2. The Member State where the dispute settlement body is established shall, at the request of that body, certify the body, where the body has demonstrated that it meets all of the following conditions:

(a) it is impartial and independent, and it will issue its decisions in accordance with clear and fair rules of procedure;

(b) it has the necessary expertise in relation to the determination of fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory terms for and the transparent manner of making data available, allowing the body to effectively determine those terms;

(c) it is easily accessible through electronic communication technology;

(d) it is capable of issuing its decisions in a swift, efficient and cost-effective manner and in at least one official language of the Union.

If no dispute settlement body is certified in a Member State by [date of application of the Regulation], that Member State shall establish and certify a dispute settlement body that fulfils the conditions set out in points (a) to (d) of this paragraph.

3. Member States shall notify to the Commission the dispute settlement bodies certified in accordance with paragraph 2. The Commission shall publish a list of those bodies on a dedicated website and keep it updated.

4. Dispute settlement bodies shall make the fees, or the mechanisms used to determine the fees, known to the parties concerned before those parties request a decision.

5. Dispute settlement bodies shall refuse to deal with a request to resolve a dispute that has already been brought before another dispute settlement body or before a court or a tribunal of a Member State.

6. Dispute settlement bodies shall grant the parties the possibility, within a reasonable period of time, to express their point of view on matters those parties have brought before those bodies. In that context, dispute settlement bodies shall provide those parties with the submissions of the other party and any statements made by experts. Those bodies shall grant the parties the possibility to comment on those submissions and statements.

7. Dispute settlement bodies shall issue their decision on matters referred to them no later than 90 days after the request for a decision has been made. Those decisions shall be in writing or on a durable medium and shall be supported by a statement of reasons supporting the decision.

8. The decision of the dispute settlement body shall only be binding on the parties if the parties have explicitly consented to its binding nature prior to the start of the dispute settlement proceedings.

9. This Article does not affect the right of the parties to seek an effective remedy before a court or tribunal of a Member State.