Category Archives: freedom of information

A response to the Open Data Consultation

Posted on October 27, 2011 by

Lucy Series, a doctoral researcher at the University of Exeter, and I have submitted a response to the Cabinet Office’s open data consultation. Our focus is opening up data in the legal sphere: court listings, judgments, information about reporting restrictions … Continue reading →

Posted in academic research, courts, data, digital open justice, freedom of information | Tagged , , , , , | 7 Comments

Free speech complexities for Scottish bill

Posted on September 28, 2011 by

A parliamentary bill in Scotland intends to “tackle sectarian hatred and other offensive and threatening behaviour” related to football matches, but critics are worried about its implications for fans’ freedom of expression. The proposed Act would create two new criminal … Continue reading →

Posted in freedom of information | Tagged | 1 Comment

Who holds our courts data? FoIs reveal HM Courts’ exclusive contracts

Posted on July 20, 2011 by

Courts data is public, right? Well no, not quite. Hearings and judgments might be public, but information about them can be difficult to access. The HM Courts and Tribunals service does publish daily case listings for many courts here, on … Continue reading →

Posted in courts, data, freedom of information | Tagged , , , | 9 Comments

What to do about libellous Freedom of Information responses?

Posted on November 26, 2010 by

Some Friday food for thought on FoIs, which happens to coincide with David Higgerson’s similarly themed weekly post. Francis Davey, an independent barrister who advises technology and media companies in computer and internet law, raised an interesting issue on his … Continue reading →

Posted in defamation, freedom of information, media law | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Fobbing off with FoI?

Posted on October 8, 2010 by

Now here’s a curious approach to media relations. Hyperlocal news site VentnorBlog has been told by the Isle of Wight council chief executive, Steve Beynon, to use the Freedom of Information Act to find out the answers to questions about … Continue reading →

Posted in freedom of information, journalism | Tagged , | 3 Comments