Email used as evidence

[Guest janensteve]

i sent an email to my landlord and it now appears that without my consent or authority, the said email is being used against me as evidence in a civil claim by an unconnected party.

 

Can the email be used in court if obtained without my permission. What right in light of data protection has landlord to disclose the said email to a third party.

[Tawnyowl]

Interesting.Just been looking around.Only item i can find at the moment is this.Will look again.Somebody will advise further,i am sure.Email as court evidence

[Tawnyowl]

How to access information - Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) Hope this helps -whos the third party.How to access information - Information Commissioner's Office (ICO)

[trooper68]

i sent an email to my landlord and it now appears that without my consent or authority, the said email is being used against me as evidence in a civil claim by an unconnected party.

 

Can the email be used in court if obtained without my permission. What right in light of data protection has landlord to disclose the said email to a third party.

 

 

Hi, Jenensteve

 

Welcome to the site.

 

Ok, two things, was the email marked private and did it have a disclaimer?

Data protection cannot be used in this occation. First, was this email done on a your works/office pc, did you use a "hotmail" or other free email account, (web based)?

 

 

When an email leaves from a mail program, it enters the public domain to the sender, if that sender recieves that email it then becomes the recievers (addresse). He can do what he wants, delete, reply etc etc. However, if it had a discliamer or marked private, then, sent it on to a third party then he would be breaking a confidentiality between you and him. Heres the BUT, he can do with it want he wants, sorry.

 

This subject has become a hotbed of topic since email has been used. You do have some protection if it was a company email system, this is because the email, program and/or computer is company property. The company could request that it be deleted and removed from a archive.

 

You could always say that you never sent it, your computer password was discoverd, walked away without locking.....

[Bookworm]

i sent an email to my landlord and it now appears that without my consent or authority, the said email is being used against me as evidence in a civil claim by an unconnected party.

 

Can the email be used in court if obtained without my permission. What right in light of data protection has landlord to disclose the said email to a third party.

Yes, it can. The rules of how evidence is obtained are considerably more lax in a civil court than in criminal court, and if the judge thinks it is relevant, then he will accept it.

 

The LL is unlikely to be a registered data processor as defined under the DPA (assuming he is a private individual, not a corporation, yes?) in any case.

 

In other words, don't pin any hopes on getting that e-mail disregarded through the DPA etc, won't happen.

[Guest janensteve]

Here is the disclaimer sent on every email

This email and the information it contains may be privileged and/or confidential. It is for the intended addressee(s) only. The unauthorised use, disclosure or copying of this email, or any information it contains is prohibited and could in certain circumstances be a criminal offence. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify Company A @ btconnect.com immediately and delete the message from your system. Please note that Company A does not enter into any form of contract by means of Internet email. None of the staff of Company A is authorised to enter into contracts on behalf of the company in this way. All contracts to which Company A is a party are documented by other means. Company A monitors emails to ensure its systems operate effectively and to minimise the risk of viruses. Whilst it has taken reasonable steps to scan this email, it does not accept liability for any virus that it may contain.

 

The third party whom i am engaged in a legal dispute is quoting an email that i have sent to my landlord as evidence that i entered into a certain agreement with my landlord which prejudices the third partys claim against me.

[trooper68]

Here is the disclaimer sent on every email

 

This email and the information it contains may be privileged and/or confidential. It is for the intended addressee(s) only. The unauthorised use, disclosure or copying of this email, or any information it contains is prohibited and could in certain circumstances be a criminal offence. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify Company A @ btconnect.com immediately and delete the message from your system. Please note that Company A does not enter into any form of contract by means of Internet email. None of the staff of Company A is authorised to enter into contracts on behalf of the company in this way. All contracts to which Company A is a party are documented by other means. Company A monitors emails to ensure its systems operate effectively and to minimise the risk of viruses. Whilst it has taken reasonable steps to scan this email, it does not accept liability for any virus that it may contain.

 

The third party whom i am engaged in a legal dispute is quoting an email that i have sent to my landlord as evidence that i entered into a certain agreement with my landlord which prejudices the third partys claim against me.

 

 

Ok, this is quite clear, as it is a company email system the email is company property, he cannot use it without permission from the company.

 

Before you go any further, check that your employee rights on using the company email system for personal reasons. You may find that there may be a clause allowing you to use it, but, abuse could be punished...

 

Speak to HR.

 

The company could act on you behalf and ask that the email be destoyed and not USED in any court action.

 

What has your landlord got to do with this case?

 

Trooper68

[Bookworm]

Sorry, but I disagree.

 

The disclaimer is there in case the e-mail lands in the wrong inbox. Furthermore, communications sent, once sent, become the property of the recipient, NOT the sender, and he can do what he wants with it.

 

What's more, as I have already stated, even if there was a doubt on how this e-mail ended in the hands of the 3rd party, the judge is more than likely to accept it as evidence anyway if it is germane to the case. It is civil court, not criminal, I repeat.

 

Janensteve, you are not going to get this e-mail disregarded simply because you're not happy how it ended in the other guy's hands, you need to concentrate on how to defend your case in other ways.

[trooper68]

Sorry, but I disagree.

 

The disclaimer is there in case the e-mail lands in the wrong inbox. Furthermore, communications sent, once sent, become the property of the recipient, NOT the sender, and he can do what he wants with it.

 

What's more, as I have already stated, even if there was a doubt on how this e-mail ended in the hands of the 3rd party, the judge is more than likely to accept it as evidence anyway if it is germane to the case. It is civil court, not criminal, I repeat.

 

Janensteve, you are not going to get this e-mail disregarded simply because you're not happy how it ended in the other guy's hands, you need to concentrate on how to defend your case in other ways.

 

Hi Bookworm

 

I agree on what you are stating that he needs to defend the case in other ways.

 

What i'm trying to get across, is that the email remains the property of the Company, the first line states it all. And giving it to a third party may be seen as hear say, either county or criminal court, it can be edited. Giving it to a thirdparty could be seen as criminal if the information contained is deflamatory or security sensative.

 

Like I state, they need to speak to the HR department. The disclaimer is there for addresse and non addresse. Emails have always been a grey area in law, and never relied apon as "reliable". If it was a hotmail account, and was emailed from the persons login then I would say It could be held up in court, I had this very disscution in a security IT seminar...

 

Trooper68

[Guest janensteve]

COmpany A is the trading style of my sole trader business ! does that affect matters ?

[Bookworm]

What i'm trying to get across, is that the email remains the property of the Company, the first line states it all.

Hmmm, still don't agree. All it says is that it may contain privileged/confidential info, that's all, and that doesn't set any ownership one way or another. It's a warning, that's all. The recipient can do what he wants with it. He doesn't even have to keep to the confidentiality set out in the e-mail if he hasn't agreed to it beforehand or there is no contractual obligation (lawyer/client relationship for example).

And giving it to a third party may be seen as hear say, either county or criminal court, it can be edited.

And all the judge has to ask is: "did you actually write this?" and it's a whole different kettle of fish to lie to the judge about it...

 

Like I state, they need to speak to the HR department.

Completely disagree, it's not their battle or concern.

Emails have always been a grey area in law, and never relied apon as "reliable".

Less and less so, and I think you'll find that e-mails are now accepted in the same way that letters are (which can be just as easily doctored)

I had this very disscution in a security IT seminar...

And I had this conversation with our very own Bankfodder about one of my cases, when I was copying word for word the correspondence from the other side's solicitors on here, and they were reading my thread and tried to threaten me with the whole "our correspondence is privileged, remove it or we'll sue you" bull. Since they were not my solicitors, there was no way they could unilaterally hold me to a duty of confidence they imposed with no consideration to me.

 

I'm sorry, but I really think OP is barking up the wrong tree on this one.

 

 

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[Guest janensteve]

well the person whom i am engaged with in a civil dispute is asserting that i entered into a contract by way of email. The disclaimer certainly covers that aspect off, so guess he will fall at the first hurdle.

[trooper68]

well the person whom i am engaged with in a civil dispute is asserting that i entered into a contract by way of email. The disclaimer certainly covers that aspect off, so guess he will fall at the first hurdle.

 

janensteve

Ahh. As you are a sole trader, then yes I would say it could be binding, if they accepted the contract as it stood without changes. If there are replys, going back and forwards between and the landlord, and they were not produced (to show continuity), it may seem to give a 1 sided view.

 

Sorry my friend if it was me I would get a sol.

 

 

Trooper68