Privacy in the UK, privacy in the US - Can we learn anything from each other?

Ball, Richard

Abstract

The UK and the US are both common law based countries that have developed distinct approaches to the protection of data and information that is private. In the US a right to privacy was first suggested by Warren and Brandeis in their famous Harvard Law Review article of 1890, developed through State case law and in more recent years written into State legislation . However, as has been noted this law of privacy has failed to provide the protection to individuals that was originally envisaged by Warren and Brandeis, with technology creating more intense concerns over what a right to privacy should include and cover.

In the UK a right to privacy has still not been recognised by the courts , although a tort of misuse of private information is now actionable . This has again been developed through case law, although with Article 8ECHR acting as the catalyst rather than legal academic commentary. Concerns over the content of a right to privacy and its coverage have also recently come to light , and it could be that the UK is approaching the possibility of enshrining a right to privacy in statute .

Citation

Ball, R. (2013, May). Privacy in the UK, privacy in the US - Can we learn anything from each other?. Paper presented at Fifth Northumbria Information Rights Conference: Changing Notions of Privacy, Northern Design Centre, Gateshead, Tyne and Wear

• Presentation Conference Type: Conference Paper (unpublished)
• Conference Name: Fifth Northumbria Information Rights Conference: Changing Notions of Privacy
• Conference Location: Northern Design Centre, Gateshead, Tyne and Wear
• Start Date: May 1, 2013
• End Date: May 1, 2013
• Publicly Available Date: Jun 7, 2019
• Peer Reviewed: Not Peer Reviewed
• Keywords: privacy, UK, USA, Warren and Brandeis, Prosser, Solove, Articles 8 and 10ECHR
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/932099
• Additional Information: Title of Conference or Conference Proceedings : Fifth Northumbria Information Rights Conference: Changing Notions of Privacy