Mr X and the Central Statistics Office (FOI Act 2014) (Central Statistics Office) [2017] IEIC 170181 (25 October 2017)

Mr X and the Central Statistics Office (FOI Act 2014) (Central Statistics Office) [2017] IEIC 170181 (25 October 2017)

The CSO was justified in refusing access to records that were publicly available (section 15(1)(d)), subject to legal professional privilege (section 31(1)(a)), contained personal information (section 37), or were held by the Attorney General's Office (section 42(f)). The CSO was not justified in refusing access to other records under sections 15(1)(i), 29(1), 30(1)(a), or 32(1)(a), as the relevant harms or exemptions were not established.

Citation
[2017] IEIC 170181
Parties
Applicant: Mr X; Respondent: Central Statistics Office
Jurisdiction
Ireland
Judgment Date
25 October 2017
Procedural Posture
FOI Review / Decision of Information Commissioner Following Internal Review
Outcome
partly affirmed, partly annulled
Legal Topics
FOI Exemptions, Personal Data, Legal Professional Privilege, Public Interest Balancing, Deliberative Process, Law Enforcement Exemption
Administrative Law Data Protection Law Freedom of Information FOI Exemptions Personal Data Legal Professional Privilege Public Interest Balancing Deliberative Process +1 more

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Parties

Mr X

Applicant

Central Statistics Office

Respondent

Procedural Posture

FOI Review / Decision of Information Commissioner Following Internal Review

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the CSO was justified in refusing access to records under sections 15(1)(d), 15(1)(i), 29(1), 30(1)(a), 31(1)(a), 32(1)(a), 37(1), and 42(f) of the FOI Act

Ratio Decidendi

The CSO was justified in refusing access to records that were publicly available (section 15(1)(d)), subject to legal professional privilege (section 31(1)(a)), contained personal information (section 37), or were held by the Attorney General's Office (section 42(f)). The CSO was not justified in refusing access to other records under sections 15(1)(i), 29(1), 30(1)(a), or 32(1)(a), as the relevant harms or exemptions were not established.

Court Disposition

partly affirmed, partly annulled

Orders

  • Affirmed refusal of access to certain records under sections 15(1)(d), 31(1)(a), 37, and 42(f) of the FOI Act.
  • Annulled refusal of access to remaining records and directed their release.