Information Commissioner's Office

Commission for Patient and Public Involvement in Health

12 February 2007, Education (Other)

The complainant requested that the public authority disclose information concerning its instructions to a firm of solicitors in relation to a particular matter. The public authority provided some of the information but not all of it relying upon section 42 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (legal professional privilege) in respect of the balance. The Commissioner has reviewed the information in question and is satisfied that the public authority has applied the section 42 exemption correctly to part of the information only. The public authority is accordingly directed to disclose the part of the information which he does not accept as being covered by the exemption in section 42. The Commissioner also finds that the public authority is in breach of section 17 of the Act.

FOI 17: Upheld