HM Treasury v The Information Commissioner & Anor

HM Treasury v The Information Commissioner & Anor

The Tribunal erred in law by failing to give real weight to the Law Officers’ Convention as reflected in section 35(1)(c) FOIA, by not properly considering the general public interest in maintaining the exemption, and by failing to assess for itself the public interest in disclosure. The Tribunal was also wrongly...

Source-derived case information.

Parties
Appellant: HM Treasury; Respondent: The Information Commissioner; Interested Party: Evan Owen
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
21 July 2009
Procedural Posture
Administrative Law Appeal / High Court Appeal From Information Tribunal
Outcome
Appeal allowed; Tribunal decision quashed and remitted for reconsideration.
Legal Topics
Law Officers’ Convention, Freedom of Information Act 2000, Ministerial Code, Legal Professional Privilege, Public Interest Test
Constitutional Law Administrative Law Freedom of Information Law Officers’ Convention Freedom of Information Act 2000 Ministerial Code Legal Professional Privilege Public Interest Test

Source-derived case record

Summary, issues, holding and outcome

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Parties

HM Treasury

Appellant

The Information Commissioner

Respondent

Evan Owen

Interested Party

Procedural Posture

Administrative Law Appeal / High Court Appeal From Information Tribunal

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the Information Tribunal erred in law in its approach to the public interest test under section 35(1)(c) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 regarding disclosure of whether Law Officers’ advice was sought
  2. 2 Whether the Law Officers’ Convention retains weight post-FOIA
  3. 3 Whether the Tribunal failed to assess the public interest in disclosure

Ratio Decidendi

The Tribunal erred in law by failing to give real weight to the Law Officers’ Convention as reflected in section 35(1)(c) FOIA, by not properly considering the general public interest in maintaining the exemption, and by failing to assess for itself the public interest in disclosure. The Tribunal was also wrongly influenced by a misunderstanding of the effect of FOIA on the Convention. The decision is quashed and remitted for reconsideration.

Court Disposition

Appeal allowed; Tribunal decision quashed and remitted for reconsideration.

Orders

  • The decision of the Information Tribunal is quashed.
  • The matter is remitted to the Tribunal for reconsideration in accordance with this judgment.