RPC Privacy Law

The latest news in privacy law

Financier granted permanent anonymity in defamation proceedings

Posted on April 11, 2013 by Harry Kinmonth

Proceedings have finally drawn to a close in the case of ZAM v CFW & TFW, which involved a financier who claimed to have been libelled by his sister-in-law (the first defendant) and her husband (the second defendant). The claim centred on the second defendant who had threatened to tell and then... read more

Defence to Harassment actions reformulated

Posted on April 10, 2013 by Oliver Murphy

The Supreme Court has handed down a judgment in Hayes v Willoughby1 that redefines the scope of the most commonly used defence to claims of harassment. The Claimant was the owner of several companies, one of which the Defendant had previously worked for. On termination of his employment the Defenda... read more

Can schools take pupils' fingerprints?

Posted on April 09, 2013 by Keith Mathieson

The Times reported last week that parents at an independent school in north London had protested when fingerprints were allegedly taken from pupils without consent with a view to the fingerprints being used for the automated lunch payment system. One of those pupils subsequently wrote to the Times ... read more

UK/EU conflict over the 'right to be forgotten'

Posted on April 05, 2013 by Keith Mathieson

The Guardian is reporting today that Britain wants to opt out of the 'right to be forgotten', the term applied to article 17 of the Data Protection Regulation which is intended to facilitate the deletion of personal data on request whether or not the data is incomplete or incorrect.The EU justice Co... read more

Do we really value our privacy?

Posted on April 03, 2013 by Keith Mathieson

How much do we really care about our personal privacy? Research suggests less than we might like to think.The New York Times has published a profile of Alessandro Acquisti, a behavioural economist at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. Mr Acquisti and his colleagues have observed that while ... read more

Did the Australian radio hosts breach their industry code?

Posted on December 10, 2012 by David Hooper

Will the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) take tough action not only in respect of the broadcast without permission of the secretly recorded telephone call, but also for breaching the Duchess of Cambridge’s privacy? Notwithstanding the appalling and utterly shocking consequences... read more

LEVESON’S VISION OF A REGULATED PRESS

Posted on November 30, 2012 by David Hooper

Introduction Lord Justice Leveson has now reported following his 16 month Inquiry into the press. His report runs to some 2000 pages. The question of what changes result is essentially a political matter. First indications are that there will be a parliamentary majority ... read more

Unmeritorious privacy claim dismissed as attempted extortion.

Posted on November 28, 2012 by Louise Turner

Summary A privacy claim brought by an ex-business associate of Lord Sebastian Coe in relation to an Evening Standard article which published leaked business emails was dismissed on Tuesday by the High Court. Mr Justice Tugendhat’s judgment rejected the claim in the most clear and scathing of terms.... read more

Prince Harry – has the Sun got it right?

Posted on August 24, 2012 by Keith Mathieson

This blog noted a couple of days ago that clause 3 of the PCC Code requires editors to justify intrusions into an individual’s private life without consent. The Sun has now sought to justify its publication of the photos of Prince Harry naked on various grounds, one of which is a previous deci... read more

A former editor’s view on the naked Royal

Posted on August 22, 2012 by Keith Mathieson

There’s an interesting view on the naked pictures of Prince Harry from a former tabloid editor. In a blog on the Huffington Post site, Neil Wallis, described as “media commentator, former tabloid editor and currently under arrest as part of Operation Weeting”, says he would publish them: He... read more

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About this blog

RPC Privacy Law Articles

This blog features regular postings on developments in UK privacy law written by specialist lawyers at RPC. The postings are intended to keep RPC's Privacy Law Handbook (see below) as up-to-date as possible and while postings do refer readers to relevant sections of the book, we hope and intend that the blog will also be a useful source of current information to those without access to the book.