Data Protection/Freedom of Information

Our lawyers are highly experienced in advising on this complex and often contradictory area of law. Data protection law restricts many activities involving personal data, but it is often possible to find ways around the restrictions in a compliant manner with our help.

We can:

  • Create data protection/privacy/IT usage policies
  • Advise on data protection compliance generally
  • Help minimise the burden of dealing with subject access requests
  • Advise on data protection registration
  • Advise on transfers of data to third parties and outside Europe, both of which are prohibited unless certain conditions are met
  • Tell you how personal data can be used for direct marketing within the law
  • Advise on employee data issues
  • Help with monitoring communications
  • Deal with Information Commissioner investigations into your data processing activities

The Freedom of Information Act 2000 creates both risks and opportunities for businesses. We can use the Act to obtain all sorts of information from public authorities, such as information on contracts, policies and even contractors. The other side of the coin is that people may be able to use the Act to obtain information about you. For example if you contract with a public authority, the authority may be obliged to disclose financial details about you to in response to an information request from your competitor, unless you have satisfied the authority that the information is commercially sensitive and included appropriate contractual terms. We can help you get the most out of the Act, from both the aggressive and defensive perspectives.

For further assistance, please contact Justin Ellis.