Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Norwich Pharmacal disclosure for anonymous Indeed reviews refused: GovData v Indeed [2024] EWHC 39 (Comm)—necessity, proportionality, particularisation and public interest in anonymity (England and Wales)

Published on: 05 February 2024

Published by a LexisNexis TMT expert

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Article summary

GovData Ltd v Indeed UK Operations Ltd [2024] EWHC 39 (Comm) What are the practical implications of this case?

This decision arose from GovData Ltd’s request for a Norwich Pharmacal order compelling Indeed UK Operations Ltd to reveal identifying information about four anonymous reviewers who had posted comments on Indeed’s platform, so that GovData could consider claims for defamation and malicious falsehood.

It confirms that any Norwich Pharmacal application must be properly particularised. Moreover, even if the gateway criteria are satisfied—there is an arguable wrong, the order is required, and the respondent both facilitated the alleged misconduct and can supply the data—the court will only grant relief where, considering relevant factors, it is strictly necessary and proportionate.
It also highlights the rigorous scrutiny such applications attract. The court was troubled by how GovData and two employees pursued the matter: a casual approach to identifying the correct claimant; a scattergun reliance on largely unarguable causes of action; and indications that GovData’s reputational difficulties might derive not from the reviews themselves, but from unrelated issues...

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