Legal Tech Glossary
Key terms in document intelligence, Swiss and EU data protection law, legal databases, and the technology behind DocIQ Sphere and Shield.
Document Technology
OOXML
Office Open XML (OOXML) is the ISO/IEC 29500 standard file format used by Microsoft Office applications. A .docx file is a ZIP archive containing XML files that describe the document's content, formatting, styles, tracked changes, comments, and metadata.
Tracked Changes
Tracked changes (also called revision marks or redlining) is a Microsoft Word feature that records edits made to a document. Insertions are shown in colored text, deletions are shown with strikethrough, and each change can be individually accepted or rejected.
Data Protection
FADP
The Federal Act on Data Protection (FADP/DSG, Datenschutzgesetz) is Switzerland's primary data protection legislation. The revised FADP, effective September 1, 2023, aligns Swiss data protection with the EU's GDPR while maintaining Swiss-specific provisions.
DSG
DSG (Datenschutzgesetz) is the German-language designation for Switzerland's Federal Act on Data Protection (FADP). The revised DSG (nDSG/revDSG), effective September 1, 2023, is the current version of Swiss data protection law.
PII
Personally Identifiable Information (PII) is any data that can be used to identify a specific individual. This includes direct identifiers (name, address, social security number) and indirect identifiers (date of birth, employer, job title) that could identify someone when combined.
Anonymization vs Pseudonymization
Anonymization irreversibly removes all identifying information from data, making it impossible to re-identify individuals. Pseudonymization replaces direct identifiers with artificial codes while maintaining a key that could theoretically re-link the data to individuals.
Legal Databases
Fedlex
Fedlex is the Swiss federal government's official publication platform for federal legislation, ordinances, treaties, and the Official Compilation of Federal Legislation (AS/RO) and the Classified Compilation of Federal Legislation (SR/RS).
EUR-Lex
EUR-Lex is the official access point to European Union law. It provides free access to EU treaties, legislation (regulations, directives, decisions), international agreements, preparatory documents, and case law of the Court of Justice of the EU.
BGE
BGE (Bundesgerichtsentscheide / ATF, Arrêts du Tribunal fédéral) are the published decisions of the Swiss Federal Supreme Court (Bundesgericht). They constitute binding precedent in Swiss law and are the primary source of Swiss case law.
CJEU
The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) is the judicial institution of the EU, comprising the Court of Justice, the General Court, and specialized courts. It ensures the uniform interpretation and application of EU law across all member states.
ECHR
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR / ECtHR) is the international court interpreting the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). It hears applications from individuals, organizations, and states alleging violations of Convention rights by member states, including Switzerland.
Product Concepts
Clause Bank
A clause bank is a searchable repository of pre-approved contract clauses maintained by a legal team or organization. It stores standard language for common provisions (indemnification, limitation of liability, confidentiality) with metadata like jurisdiction, usage history, and last review date.
Data Room
A virtual data room (VDR) is a secure online repository for sharing confidential documents with external parties during due diligence, M&A transactions, fundraising, and other processes requiring controlled document access.
Playbook
In legal AI, a playbook is a structured template that defines review criteria, risk categories, and compliance checks for a specific document type or analysis task. Playbooks encode organizational expertise into repeatable, consistent methodology.