[quote] Jennifer Daskal, a professor at American University's Washington College of Law, said Friday that companies are wary of being caught in the middle of a conflict of law between two countries. But she said they are equally concerned that the DOJ's approach might embolden countries like Russia to adopt the same philosophy-that if a company can turn over data in their jurisdiction, it must do so regardless of where the data is physically located.

Legislation that balances the different interests of national authorities, companies and users would be a better outcome than litigating the issue at the Supreme Court, she said, while noting there are currently no pending bills in Congress to address the issue. "I think having the Supreme Court take it up forces [the court] to choose between two not ideal solutions."

At the same time, she predicted that the high court would likely rule in the government's favor. "Given the practical consequences of the Second Circuit's decision," she said, "my guess is the Supreme Court is going to be concerned and interested, obviously in accordance with the law, in making sure that U.S. warrant authority in legitimate investigations is not arbitrarily confined based on where the data is located."