In medio stat virtus? The Data Governance Act and the European Union’s (difficult) quest for balance

Regulation (EU) 2022/868, also known as “Data Governance Act” (DGA), was the first piece of legislation passed by the EU to start the implementation of the new European strategy for data. Announced as a breakthrough in the EU data law landscape, the DGA inevitably reveals both strengths and weaknesses. Accordingly, key aspects such as the DGA’s legal background, its main constitutional elements, core thematic pillars, and procedural requirements are worth illustrating, especially from an EU law perspective, to envisage potential consequences. Through this analysis, it is possible to conclude that the impact of some novelties introduced by the EU legislator with the DGA risks being lower than expected. In particular, it is argued that some issues are likely to arise in terms of legal feasibility and certainty, systematic consistency among different legal frameworks, and multilevel coordination and cooperation between a multitude of public and private actors.