The recent implementation of the General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679 (GDPR) has brought about quite a few changes in the way in which we share and use data. However, one thing that has gone slightly under the radar or that some people may not be aware of is that Section 35 of the Data Protection Act 1998, which was used to request information in regards to third party details, has been abolished.
As a result of the GDPR shakeup, a new data protection regime under the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA 2018) provides an equivalent exemption covering information to be disclosed by law or in connection with legal proceedings. The section of the new Act is as follows:
Schedule 2: Part 1: Paragraph 5: Information required to be disclosed by law etc. or in connection with legal proceedings.
(1) The listed GDPR provisions do not apply to personal data consisting of information that the controller is obliged by an enactment to make available to the public, to the extent that the application of those provisions would prevent the controller from complying with that obligation.
(2) The listed GDPR provisions do not apply to personal data where disclosure of the data is required by an enactment, a rule of law or an order of a court or tribunal, to the extent that the application of those provisions would prevent the controller from making the disclosure.
(3) The listed GDPR provisions do not apply to personal data where disclosure of the data—
(a) is necessary for the purpose of, or in connection with, legal proceedings (including prospective legal proceedings),
(b) is necessary for the purpose of obtaining legal advice, or
(c) is otherwise necessary for the purposes of establishing, exercising or defending legal rights,
to the extent that the application of those provisions would prevent the controller from making the disclosure.
So the next time you want to request third party information, bear in mind that it is Schedule 2, Part 1, Paragraph 5 of the DPA 2018….although it does not roll off the tongue as easy as Section 35!