WEB 3 & NEW TECHNOLOGIES

FELIOS & ASSOCIATES Law Firm places great emphasis on the emerging field of Web 3.

We believe that this, in Aldous Huxley’s words, “Brave New World” is having a profound effect on our lives, even if we do not realize that we are already living in it. For this reason, our Firm wishes to keep a close eye on technological developments in order to be able to offer high quality legal advice to our clients.  

The regulatory framework in the so-called “Web 3” is still being shaped globally. We aim to develop our legal knowledge at the same speed as the regulatory and legal changes are galloping globally, with a particular focus on EU decisions.

NFTs and Metaverse

FELIOS & ASSOCIATES Law Firm has a long track record and unique experience in Art Law.

We are therefore able to provide expert advice in the field of Non Fungible Tokens (NFTs), the legal nature of which is intrinsically linked to intellectual property law.

Law, as it applies and as we perceive it today, faces the challenge of “understanding” the digital world and creating the appropriate analogies.

However, the field of NFTs and Metaverse poses a whole new parameter to the legal discipline, as the challenge is now to understand the “intersection” of the physical and digital world and the legal issues that arise, which are entirely novel in Law – and possibly in History.

Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) and blockchain

Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) and its main subset, “blockchain”, are yet another major technological application that needs legal understanding.

The aforementioned technology has offered highly promising features in the past years, e.g. data transfer that is fast, secure, immutable, timestamped, decentralized and accessible to anyone with internet access. Major corporations have adopted or experimented with blockchain technology and Regulatory Authorities around the world are already assessing the potential that it promises and how it could be introduced in the present regulatory framework.

However, every new technology presents in its first steps minor or major “flaws”, which in the legal system translate into legal uncertainty and which can potentially lead to legal disputes.

At FELIOS & ASSOCIATES Law Firm we examine blockchain technology both from the commercial and regulatory aspect and we provide expert legal advice on this promising technology.

Digital currencies and ‘Crypto’

Digital currencies have radically reshaped the financial world over the last decade.

Digital currencies, also referred to as “cryptocurrencies” or simply “crypto” have created a framework of operation that is almost beyond the reach of the current legal system to understand. Governments are considering the creation and use of “stable cryptocurrencies” to understand and potentially place restrictions on these tectonic changes.

At FELIOS & ASSOCIATES Law Firm we closely follow all issues related to cryptocurrencies, focusing on the aspects that may affect an individual or business, such as the declaration of the identity of the person acting (Know Your Customer policy or KYC), taxation, and any issue that could potentially be deemed “questionable” in the eyes of the law.

Our firm does not undertake the creation of a cryptocurrency from the beginning, with all the legal entities that such a process needs. Instead, we offer a service that we consider more important: acting as an independent third party and scrupulously examining the accuracy and legality of the legal advice our client receives from the entity chosen for such a project.

Coverage in multiple jurisdictions

One of the most important aspects in the field of Web 3 is the applicable law for individuals and legal entities.

This aspect is most often overlooked, as the nature of these projects and the transactions take place on the internet, and those involved in this area tend to believe that are unreachable by Law.

Any individual or company runs the risk of being regarded as subject to the applicable law of a state on various grounds, i.e., nationality/citizenship, financial transactions, tax obligations etc.

At FELIOS & ASSOCIATES Law Firm we cover many jurisdictions around the world through the extensive network of leading independent law firms, LIBRALEX.