Privacy

23.05.22

SLAPPs: A real problem or a defendant’s wildcard?

Brett Wilson LLP partner Iain Wilson argues that problems regarding so-called SLAPPs are overstated and that further defamation reform is unnecessary   In our blog In defence of privacy and the judiciary we discussed how the press had misreported the decision in HRH the Duchess of Sussex v Associated Newspapers Ltd [2021] EWCA Civ 1810 and,…

27.04.22

Sex offender’s attempt to hold law firm to ransom over data breach backfires

In Chief Constable of Kent Police & Anor v Taylor [2022] EWHC 737 (QB), Mr Justice Saini considered a claim for breach of confidence, arising from the Defendant’s refusal to delete videos that a law firm that had accidentally disclosed to him and which contained sensitive information about a vulnerable minor.  The videos were taken…

26.04.22

Closed judgments and national security

In this blog we examine the decisions in The Queen on the application of Privacy International v Investigatory Powers Tribunal [2022] EWHC 770 QB and Her Majesty’s Attorney General for England and Wales v British Broadcasting Corporation [2022] EWHC 826 (QB), and the topic of closed judgments.  Neither judgment fully explains the reasoning behind their…

24.03.22

Anonymisation in civil proceedings

There has long been a tension between the principles of open justice and the desire of parties litigating sensitive matters to keep their identity, parts of the litigation, or even the fact of the litigation itself, private. The default position for almost all civil litigation is that (i) parties are named in proceedings, (ii) non-parties…

7.03.22

Lexis Nexis Interview: Reasonable expectation of privacy in information relating to criminal investigations (Bloomberg LP v ZXC)

  Percy Preston of Brett Wilson LLP is interviewed about the Supreme Court’s decision in Bloomberg LP v ZXC [2022] UKSC 5.   What was the key issue on appeal?  The central issue on the appeal was whether, in general, a person under criminal investigation has a reasonable expectation of privacy in respect of information…

14.02.22

Lexis Nexis Interview: Trade secrets, breach of confidence and conspiracy

Adham Harker of Brett Wilson LLP is interviewed about the decision in Salt Ship Design AS v Prysmian Powerlink SRL [2021] EWHC 2633 (Comm). Introduction The High Court has upheld a claim for breach of confidence and unlawful means conspiracy in this case which involved a design document being misused by a third party, after…

4.02.22

In defence of privacy and the judiciary: the fall-out from HRH the Duchess of Sussex v Associated Newspapers Ltd

Brett Wilson LLP partner Iain Wilson tries to unpick some of the misreporting following the Court of Appeal’s decision in HRH the Duchess of Sussex v Associated Newspapers Ltd [2021] EWCA Civ 1810   Here we are again.  The press doesn’t like us having private lives and the government doesn’t like judges making decisions it disagrees…

What is required for a harassment by publication claim to succeed?

In Sube & Anor v News Group Newspapers Ltd & Anor (Rev 1) [2020] EWHC 1125, Mr Justice Warby (as he then was) distilled several points that had arisen from the limited number of authorities that have addressed claims for harassment by publication to the world at large (hereinafter simply referred to as ‘harassment by…

18.01.22

How to identify anonymous anti-vax trolls

In the social media age, anyone can quickly and unintentionally become the subject of online harassment, such as speculation, ridicule, and abuse.  A significant minority are willing to post, retweet or share content without care or critical thinking, spreading misinformation and hate.  A smaller, but still significant, minority actively target and abuse those who do…

10.01.22

Lexis Nexis Interview: Misuse of private information claims – where are we after Lloyd v Google?

Percy Preston of Brett Wilson LLP is interviewed about the future of misuse of private information claims after the Supreme Court’s decision in Lloyd v Google [2021] UKSC 50 What are the key points the Supreme Court made in Lloyd v Google regarding misuse of private information claims? It is important to note that the…