ALTIUS is delighted to announce the promotion of Jan Clinck to partner. Jan has been a pillar of ALTIUS’ ICT department for many years, and has contributed to ALTIUS’ growth and development through his hard work, commitment, and innovative thinking.
Let’s ‘fire up’ Jan with some questions and introduce you to our brand new partner.
When did you start working at ALTIUS?
I joined ALTIUS 9 years ago, in July 2017. Before that, I spent five years as a lawyer at another Brussels law firm.
How did you start your career at ALTIUS?
I was at a seminar organised at the ALTIUS office. Gerrit Vandendriessche was presenting a topic and afterwards we had a talk. Apparently, he was urgently looking to strengthen his IT team. With the GDPR on the horizon, there was a significant amount of work coming — and this seemed as a very nice opportunity for building a focused practice around data protection and digitalisation. It turned out that this was indeed the right move.
What does this promotion mean to you?
I see it as a next step in my development as a lawyer. It is a confirmation of the quality of my work and of the trust that both clients and the other partners, in particular Gerrit, place in me.
What has been key in building your career at ALTIUS?
I believe three things stand out. First, making early strategic
choices and sticking to them. Together with Gerrit, I invested
heavily in data protection litigation from the very outset of the
GDPR — at a time when many were still focused primarily on
compliance advice. That has paid off because our GDRP Team is now
widely recognized for its expertise.
Second, the ability to translate complexity into clarity. Data
protection and digital regulation are highly technical fields, and
what clients need most is a clear explanation of what the rules
mean for them in practice and a pragmatic, workable solution. I
have always tried to bridge that gap — breaking down complex
matters in plain terms and focusing on actionable advice.
Third, and perhaps most importantly, building trust. Trust is
earned by genuinely listening to clients’ concerns, remaining
authentic, and acting with integrity — even when that means
delivering a message the client does not want to hear.
What are your professional goals going forward?
I want to continue developing data protection litigation, an area in which we have built a strong and recognised expertise over the years. At the same time, I am keen to develop the practice area related to the EU Digital Package (AI Act, DSA, NIS2, Cyber Resilience Act, and others). These are still evolving fields, and I see a great opportunity to write the same success story there as we did with data protection. And of course, I want to keep investing in the team — making sure we remain the go-to destination for talented lawyers who want to build their careers in these areas.
According to Valérie Struye, ALTIUS’ General Manager, Jan personifies ALTIUS’ values:
“Jan’s promotion is great news, both for him and for ALTIUS. Over the past nine years he has built, together with Gerrit, a data protection and digitalisation practice that is now widely recognised in the market. What stands out is not only his technical excellence, but the way he combines that with genuine care for clients and colleagues alike. I am very proud to see him join our Partner group, and I am confident he will continue to help shape ALTIUS’ role at the forefront of data protection and digital regulation.”
Gerrit Vandendriessche, head of ALTIUS ICT department, sees this as the natural and well-deserved next step in Jan’s career:
“As from the moment I first met Jan, it was clear from the start that he had exactly the right profile to help build a strong data protection practice, right as the GDPR was about to change everything. Since then, he has more than delivered: he was instrumental in developing our data protection litigation practice into one that now sets the standard in the market, and he has done so while always keeping things clear and practical for clients. This promotion is fully deserved, and I am excited to keep building the team’s future together with him, including on the new generation of EU digital regulation.”