Rob Scott suit new web

Managing Partner

Robert represents mid-market and large enterprise companies in software license transactions and disputes with major software publishers such as Adobe, IBM, Microsoft, Oracle and SAP.  He has defended over 250 software audit matters initiated by software piracy trade groups such as the BSA and SIIA.  He is counsel to some of the world’s largest corporations, such as Schlumberger, PepsiCo, Iron Mountain and American Express, on information technology matters including intellectual property licensing, risk management, data privacy, and outsourcing.

Education

1996 – Hofstra University School of Law – Juris Doctorate – Law
1992 – Austin College – Bachelor of Arts  – Economics  & Philosophy

License

1999 - Texas

Affiliations

Dallas Bar Association, Computer & Technology Section - Member
Managed Service Providers Alliance - Board Member
State Bar of Texas Data Security and Privacy - Committee Member
Certified ISO 19770 - Practitioner
Microsoft Software Asset Management - Certification

Admissions

Texas State Courts
United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
United States District Court for the Northern, Western and Eastern Districts of Texas
United States District Court for the District of Colorado

Podcasts

DatePodcast
02/25/2022MSP Zone Weekly RoundUp with Charles Weaver and Robert Scott
02/03/2022MSP Zone Cyber Insurance Missteps into Managed Services
01/13/2022MSP Zone The Armchair Cybersecurity "Expert"
11/29/2021MSP Zone MSP Contract Negotiation Series - Data Processing
10/28/2021MSP Zone MSP Contract Negotiation Series - Limitation of Liability & Indemnification
10/14/2021MSP Zone MSP Contract Negotiations Series - Termination Clauses
09/23/2021MSP Zone Changing Legal Landscape for Managed Service Providers
09/10/2021MSP Zone Do You Have Ransomware in Your MSP Agreements?
08/18/2021MSP Zone MSP Service Catalogs in the Age of Cloud
07/14/2021MSP Zone What MSPs Need to Know about the Kaseya Ransomware Attack
06/30/2021MSP Zone Service Guarantees – Should MSPs Use Them?
06/16/2021MSP Zone Setting Up your Managed Services Portfolio
06/04/2021MSP Zone Managed Services Insurance: Everything You Need to Know
05/21/2021MSP Zone When Security Vendors Get it Wrong
05/06/2021MSP Zone Cyber Insurance Claims - What You Need to Know
04/16/2021MSP Zone Advice on Negotiating with Vendors
04/06/2021MSP Zone Is it Smart to Private Label Your Services as an MSP?
03/16/2021MSP Zone Are Managed Services Clients on a Collision Course with Vendors?
03/04/2021MSP Zone Death of Pay as You Go?
02/18/2021MSP Zone Vendor Supply Chain Data Breaches - What Should You Do?
01/26/2021MSP Zone Is your MSP Business Plan Still Relevant?
01/12/2021MSP Zone Securing the MSP Supply Chain
12/16/2020MSP Zone 2020 Managed Services Year in Review
12/02/2020MSP Zone Current Best Practices in Mananged Services Contracts
11/19/2020MSP Zone Can you Resell Managed Services?
11/05/2020MSP Zone Managed Servies Has Bright Future, Regardless of Political Outcomes
10/27/2020MSP Zone The Managed Services Standard of Care
10/08/2020MSP Zone Ransomware Payments Could Expose Your MSP Practice to Sanctions - OFAC Guidance
09/28/2020MSP Zone Are MSPs Responsible for their Vendors?
08/28/2020MSP Zone Safe Cyber Hygiene Through Managed Services Contracts
08/12/2020MSP Zone Understanding the Difference Between Security and Privacy Incidents
06/23/2020MSP Zone Negotiating Public Cloud Agreements
06/15/2020MSP Zone RMM Legal Agreements - What MSPs Need to Know
05/11/2020MSP Zone Legal Tips for Dealing with MSP Clients During a Pandemic
04/21/2020MSP Zone Is it Time to Tear Up Your Master Service Agreement?
 
Presentations

DatePresentation
April 2022Technology Assurance Group Spring Break: How to Implement Online Customer Contracts Using ConnectWise Sell
March 2022MSPWorld Conference: Solving the MSP Cybersecurity Dilemma
January 2022FLGISA: Surviving a Major Software Audit
January 2022OTX Roundtable: Managing Risk in Managed Services
December 2021MSP Alliance Webcast: The Managed Services Year in Review
December 2021The ITAM Review Software Audits Online Summit: Surviving a Major Software Audit
November 2021Technology Assurance Group 20th Annual Convention: Using Customer Contracts to Mitigate Risk in a Dangerous World
March 2021Technology Assurance Group Webinar: MSP Liability Protection
October 2020MSPWorld Conference: A New Approach to Customer Contracting - How to Protect Your MSP from Liability
August 2020Scott & Scott Webinar: A New Approach to Customer Contracting - How to Protect Your MSP from Liability
May 2020Scott & Scott Webinar: Negotiating Enterprise Agreements with Microsoft
May 2020Thomson Reuters and Celesq Webinar: Limitations of Liability in AI Contracts
March 2020Scott & Scott Webinar: 5 IP Protections for AI Contracts
Feburary 2020MTSP Central Alliance Group Meeting: TAG's New Approach to Customer Contracting - How to Protect Your MSP from Liability
November 2019CAUCUS IT Procurement Summit: Negotiating Software License Transactions and Disputes with Microsoft
November 2019Technology Assurance Group Meeting: Protecting Your Managed Services Practice: Are You at Risk?
October 2019MSPWorld Conference and Expo: Most Common Contract Change Requests Made by Customers
March 2019MSPWorld Conference and Expo: Negotiating a GDPR Compliant Data Processing Agreement
December 2018Scott & Scott and MSPA Webinar: GDPR - A Comptetive Edge for MSPs
June 2018Scott & Scott Webinar: Negotiating Enterprise Agreements with Microsoft
May 2018Scott & Scott Webinar: GDPR is Coming - Are You Ready? A Roadmap for Controllers
May 2018IT Procurement Academy: GDPR is Coming - Are You Ready?
March 2018MSPWorld 2018 GDPR: What Every MSP Needs to Know
February 2018Strafford Webinar: Software License Due Diligence in M&A Deals
December 2017Scott & Scott Webinar: How to Defend a Software Audit
November 2017Scott & Scott Webinar: What Service Providers Need to Know About GDPR: The Ins & Outs of the EU's New Privacy Law
September 2017ITAM Review Annual US Conference: Litigating Software Audit Disputes
April 2017Scott & Scott Webinar: Reselling Microsoft SPLA and Cloud
March 2017MSPAlliance MSPWorld Conference: Reselling Microsoft SPLA and Cloud
January 2017Scott & Scott Webinar: Negotiating Enterprise Agreements with Microsoft
January 2017Scott & Scott Webinar: Successfully Defending Software Audits
October 2016CAUCUS IT Procurement Summit: Data Privacy & Security Issues in Cloud Contracts
October 2016MSPAlliance MSPWorld Conference: Seven Secrets to Successful Customer Contracts
September 2016DBA Computer Law Section CLE: Data Privacy & Security Issues in Cloud Contracts
September 2016ITAM Review Annual US Conference: Audit Defense, The Legal Perspective
August 2016State Bar of Texas Advanced In-House Counsel Course: Hot Topics in SaaS & Cloud
June 2016Scott & Scott Webinar: Negotiating Enterprise Licensing and Cloud Services Agreements with Microsoft
June 2016Oklahoma Bar Association Intellectual Property Law Section Seminar and Midyear Meeting: Hot Topics in Software Licensing Disputes & Audits
April 2016North Texas ISSA Lunch and Learn: Data Security and Privacy Issues in Cloud Contracts
April 201638th Annual Corporate Counsel Institute: Software as a Service and Cloud Contracts: Avoiding the Risks
April 2016MSPAlliance MSPWorld Conference: Emerging Legal Risks in the Cloud
March, May, June 2016SecureWorldExpo: Privacy & Security Issues in Cloud Contracts
February 2016Texas Lawyer In-House Counsel Summit: Hot Topics in Technology Transactions
February 2016State Bar of Texas Intellectual Property Law Workshop: Managing Software Compliance
February 2016Copyright Society USA CLE: The Current State of Software Protection, Enforcement and Licensing
January 2016Scott & Scott Webinar: Cloud Contracts to Minimize Risk  
October 2015SecureWorld Expo Dallas: Privacy & Security Issues in Cloud Contracts
October 2015CAUCUS IT Procurement Summit: Negotiating Enterprise Licensing and Cloud Services Agreements with Microsoft
October 2015MSPAlliance MSPWorld Conference: Seven Software Licensing Risks for MSPs
September 2015Dallas Bar Computer Law Section CLE: Software Agreements and Audits
September 2015Texas State Bar Corporate Counsel Section Networking CLE: Negotiating and Drafting Software License Agreements 
June 2015Scott & Scott Webinar: Negotiating Enterprise Licensing and Cloud Service Agreements with Microsoft
May 2015DRI Intellectual Property Litigation Seminar: A Non-Authorized Software Claim? What To Do When the Letter Arrives
April 2015Scott & Scott CLE Webinar: Six Secrets to Offering Commercial Hosting Services Using Microsoft SPLA
March 2015MSPAlliance MSPWorld Conference: Adding Cloud Solutions to Customer Contracts
February 2015Texas Lawyer In-House Counsel Summit CLE Series: Software Agreements & Audits 
October 2014CAUCUS IT Procurement Summit: Due Diligence & Contingency Planning Before Trusting the Cloud 
October 2014CAUCUS IT Procurement Summit: When Publishers Sue
October 2014MSPAlliance MSPWorld Conference: Legal Risks in Reseller Relationships 
October 2014Strafford CLE Webinar: Drafting IT Master Services Agreements
October 2014IPO IP Chat Channel Webinar: Surviving A Software Audit
July 2014Iron Mountain/Scott & Scott Webinar: Cloud Contracts - Risks and Mitigation Strategies
June 2014Scott & Scott CLE Webinar: When Software Publishers Sue
April 201436th Annual Corporate Counsel Institute: Software Agreements & Audits 
March 2014MSPAlliance MSPWorld Conference Keynote Speech: The Future of Managed Services and Cloud: Prepare Your MSP Business for Success
February 2014Collin County Bar Association Corporate Counsel Section CLE: Successfully Defending Software Audits
January 2014Scott & Scott and License Dashboard Webinar: New Tools and Strategies to Reduce Software Risk and Successfully Defend Software Audits
October 2013CAUCUS IT Procurement Summit: Cloud Computing Contracting  
October 2013CAUCUS IT Procurement Summit: Legal Aspects of Software Agreements with Large Vendors  
October 2013MSPAlliance MSPWorld Conference & Expo: How to Manage Risks as You Grow Your Managed Services and Cloud Practice
July 2013Scott & Scott CLE Webinar: Hot Topics in Adobe Licensing 
June 2013Strafford CLE: M&A Transactions and Software License Due Diligence 
March 2013Scott & Scott CLE Webinar: To SPLA or Not to SPLA: Microsoft Licensing for the Hosting Services Provider
March 2013MSPAlliance MSPWorld Conference & Expo: Cloud Law - Everything you Need to Know about Cloud Computing and the Law  
January 2013Scott & Scott CLE Webinar: Software Compliance Risks in M&A Transactions 
October 2012Law Seminars International IP and Technology Licensing: Privacy and Security Risks in Cloud Computing
October 2012CAUCUS IT Procurement Summit:  Cloud Contracting
October 2012MSPAlliance MSPWorld Conference & Expo: Managed Services Pricing
September 2012SecureWorld Dallas: Managing Data Breaches for Financial Services
April 2012Scott & Scott Webinar: Keys to Successful Microsoft Negotiations
February 2012DBA Computer Law Section CLE:  Recent Trends in Software Licensing Transactions and Disputes
February 2012MSPWorld Conference & Expo:  Preparing Your Managed Services Business for Sale
November 2011SecureWorld Dallas:  Privacy & Security Risks in Cloud Computing
September 2011MSP Alliance Webinar:  Cloud Contracting: Strategies for Minimizing Risks as a Cloud Provider
March 2011Council on Litigation Management:  How to Wade the Murky Water of Alternative Fee Arrangements
October 2010Storage Networking World: The Cloud and the Law
August 2010Dallas, TX CLE:  Selecting the Best Alternative Fee Arrangement with Outside Counsel
July 2010Dallas, TX CLE:  Hot Topics in Privacy & Security Law
 
Publications

PublicationArticle
MSPAllianceHow MSPs Can Limit Legal Liability
HeadnotesAre Your Clients Ready for GDPR on May 25?
TechCrunchSoftware piracy claims can ruin your business and reward those responsible
HeadnotesHot Topics in Cloud Contracts
The Licensing JournalMany Cloud Contracts Are Missing A Critical Term
Corporate Compliance InsightsGreatest Compliance Risks Surrounding Third-Party Outsourcing 
GroundReportSoftware Audit Alert: Be Prepared - 11 Software Audit Best Practices 
The Licensing JournalManaging Software License Disputes: Cooperation or Litigation
Aspatore Special ReportUnderstanding the Legal Risks of Cloud Computing
Westlaw Journal Intellectual PropertyHow to Defend Against Software Audits Successfully
HeadnotesDrafting Contracts for the Cloud
Enterprise Features7 Software Audit Secrets
World Trademark ReviewTime for trademark practitioners to get their heads in the clouds
Corp! MagazineTaking the Risk Out of Cloud Computing
Scott & Scott, LLPLitigating Copyright Infringement Claims Related to Competing Software Applications
HeadnotesSoftware Police Target Dallas
Scott & Scott, LLPHot Topics in Open Source Software Licensing
Scott & Scott, LLPManaging Software License Disputes: Cooperation or Litigation
Northwestern Journal
of Technology and
Intellectual Property
Ethical Considerations for Attorneys Responding to a Data Breach
Scott & Scott, LLPComplying with the GLBA Privacy and Safeguards Rules
Scott & Scott, LLPThe Business Impact of Data Breach
Scott & Scott, LLPLaptop Data Breach: Mitigating Risks through Encryption & Liability Insurance
Scott & Scott, LLPPrivacy, Network Security and the Law
Scott & Scott, LLPA Legal Guide to Managed Services
IT Compliance NewsSoftware Licensing:  A Legal, Not Technology, Issue
Law Technology NewsAre Mobile Devices a Portable Security Threat
The AdvocatBeware of the Software License Police
The SciTech LawyerSuccessfully Defending Software Audits
Yahoo! FinanceSoftware Police Increase Enforcement Efforts
 
Media Coverage

PublicationTopic
KeyPoint IntelligenceThe Technology Assurance Group’s MTSP Meeting Is a Win-Win
TechTargetEU GDPR regulation: MSPAlliance to protect providers against claims
TechTargetManaged service provider security: Bad clients put your business at risk
courier-journalMicrosoft and city of Louisville in talks over software piracy dispute
ITAM ChannelHow virtual server security and compliance procedures can reduce risk
ipswitchSoftware Licensing Tips to Reduce the Risk of Legal Action
TorrentFreakBSA PAYS DISGRUNTLED EMPLOYEES TO RAT ON ‘PIRATING’ BOSSES
InfoWorldSoftware audits: How high tech plays hardball
ipswitchShadow IT: When Employees Become Bounty Hunters
Business InsiderMicrosoft is still playing hardball when it comes to software payments, some partners complain
InfoWorldBeware hidden costs of Microsoft's new Windows Server licensing
ComputerWorldLaw firm warns of Oracle's licensing 'traps'
CIOWhat does an Oracle audit look like? This one certainly wasn't pretty
InformationWeekHow To Survive A Software Licensing Audit
InformationWeekSoftware Licensing Audits: Is Your Company Prepared?
CDWG4 Tips for Surviving Software Audits
InformationWeek7 Ways to Avoid Information Governance Pitfalls
Digital GuardianHow to Hire and Evaluate Managed Security Service Providers
Law360Cybersecurity Concerns Creep Into M&A Transactions
ChannelFuturesYour Business: Red Flags to Watch for in Managed Services Contracts
IDG ConnectPointing the finger of blame over a data breach
ThreatTrack Security CSO BlogAttorney: Paying Ransonware Is No Crime
Contango ITCloud Storage for Business: 37 Cloud Experts Reveal the Top Cloud Storage Mistakes They See Companies Make Moving to Cloud Storage   
Law360M&A Needs Privacy Attys, Facebook's WhatsApp Buy Shows
SearchCompliance.comCloud Provider Research, Due Diligence Needed to Maintain Compliance
CDW White PaperSoftware License Management for the Modern Enterprise
HacksurferClick Here to Win a FREE iPad, Just Give Me All of Your Personal Information First
InfoWorldEight is Enough! IT's Biggest Frenemies
HacksurferThe Number One Threat to Corporate Cybersecurity - Your Employees
HacksurferExperts Weigh In: What Are Your Top Cybersecurity Concerns?
HacksurferHacking Point of Sale Systems: Old Story, New Victims, Same Poor Business Practices
CDW White PaperSoftware Asset Management: Getting Started
InfoWorldThe 7 Scariest Monsters in Tech
CIO UpdateHow to Avoid SLA 'Gotchas' in the Cloud
E-Commerce TimesISPs Agree to Mete Out Punishment for Illegal File-Sharing
Business InsuranceSony grapples with data loss
eChannelLineShould BSA anti-piracy study walk the plank?
TechWorldLawsuit: Trial version of CAD software includes spyware
Business InsuranceData breach at Epsilon underscores key cyber risk
Bloomberg BusinessweekMarriott, Hilton Hit by Breach to Client E-mail Information
Treasury & RiskCloud Containment
MacNewsWorldMicrosoft Scraps With Apple Over Silly Trademark Tricks
BloombergEchoStar's `Egregious' Acts in Destroying E-Mail Threaten Court Defense
The New York TimesChasing Pirates: Inside Microsoft’s War Room
ComputerworldIT shifts to the cloud, anecdote by anecdote
Processor.comCloud Security & Control
The Atlanta PostTrademarks and The Business of Securing an Artist's Brand Name
Hospital Compliance WatchTo Notify or Not to Notify? HITECH Rule Leaves Room for Confusion
EntrepreneurThe Hard Truth About Software Licensing
SearchITChannel.comHow to Write an IT Service-Level Agreement
BaselineWhat to Do When You Receive a BSA Audit Letter
Associated PressSmall Business in Cross Hairs of Software Industry Group’s Aggressive Piracy Crackdown
Computer WorldUnder threat of litigation: How to survive a software audit
Computer WorldSoftware Audits: Not a Case of If, But When
LexisNexisBSA Targets Law Firm Software Pirates
CIOOracle-SAP Suit Exposes Contract Weaknesses
Financial TimesDigital Business: External Audits: Fair Play on Both Sides?
eWeek Channel InsiderGrowing Data Breaches Mean Opportunity for VARs
IT Business EdgeEncryption Can Save Data – And a Company’s Rep
Financial WeekData Breach Getting Costly
eWeekUsing Managed Services for License Compliance
CRM BuyerHow to Respond to a Data Breach: Part 1
CRM BuyerHow to Respond to a Data Breach: Part 2
NetworkWorldSAM Stinks