Some departments prepare documents / for legal proceedings without the help of Legal Services.
In such a case, when preparing and submitting information for processes such as appeals, tribunals, enforcement, prosecutions for example, the following points should be considered:
- Information about individuals should always be removed (redacted) from documents if it is not relevant, particularly if it is sensitive or likely to cause distress. Each page must be considered in full with only the relevant sections left in;
- Information about third parties should only be included where necessary for the purpose of the legal proceedings, that is if the judge or person/s making decisions need to see the details in order to reach a fair decision;
- Remember that individuals may still be identified even if their name and address is not included. Care must be taken to remove any details which would identify a person, unless the details are relevant to the case.
If there is any doubt about whether information is relevant to the case, advice must be sought from Legal Services. If there is any doubt about whether details are actually personal information, please consult with the Information Governance Team.
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