Validity of Caveats

Pat James made this Freedom of Information request to Ministry of Justice This request has been closed to new correspondence. Contact us if you think it should be reopened.

The request was successful.

Dear Ministry of Justice, in your email replies to FOI requests you often insert the following "This e-mail (and any attachment) is intended only for the attention of
the addressee(s). Its unauthorised use, disclosure, storage or copying
is not permitted. If you are not the intended recipient, please destroy all
copies and inform the sender by return e-mail."

Please provide an explanation of the lawful validity of this statement, together with any documentation that would ensure its enforcement.

Yours faithfully,

Pat James

MoJ ICT FOI/PQ, Ministry of Justice

1 Attachment

Dear Pat,

 

Please find attached our response to your request for information from the
Ministry of Justice.

 

Your sincerely

 

Neil

 

Neil Dickens | Interim Knowledge Information Liaison Officer | MoJ
Technology

102 Petty France | London | SW1H 9AJ | Ministry of Justice

[1]https://www.gov.uk/government/organisati...

Creating a safe, just and democratic society

 

"I am not authorised to bind the Ministry of Justice contractually, nor to
make representations or other statements which may bind the Ministry of
Justice in any way via electronic means".

 

 

 

This e-mail (and any attachment) is intended only for the attention of
the addressee(s). Its unauthorised use, disclosure, storage or copying
is not permitted. If you are not the intended recipient, please destroy
all
copies and inform the sender by return e-mail.

Internet e-mail is not a secure medium. Any reply to this message
could be intercepted and read by someone else. Please bear that in
mind when deciding whether to send material in response to this message
by e-mail.

This e-mail (whether you are the sender or the recipient) may be
monitored, recorded and retained by the Ministry of Justice. E-mail
monitoring / blocking software may be used, and e-mail content may be
read at any time. You have a responsibility to ensure laws are not
broken when composing or forwarding e-mails and their contents.

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Communications via the GSi may be automatically logged, monitored and/or
recorded for legal purposes.

References

Visible links
1. https://www.gov.uk/government/organisati...

Dear MoJ ICT FOI/PQ, Please translate your response into meaningful English. I am unable to interpret its meaning as it has little or no clarity.
Yours sincerely,

Pat James

MoJ ICT FOI/PQ, Ministry of Justice

Dear Pat,

Thank you for your email in response to my recent communication to you.

As per my previous response; the wording you had highlighted is automatically attached to all emails sent by the Ministry of Justice. This wording is not specifically applied to MoJ responses to FOI requests, but is designed to protect the MoJ should any email be sent to the wrong recipient outside of the MoJ.

As all information provided through an MoJ reply to an FOI request is a public disclosure in nature, it follows that no action would be taken in relation to any FOI data that is shared or published; including if the FOI response had been inadvertently sent to the wrong recipient.

As your original request had been submitted as an FOI using the 'what do they know.com' but did qualify as an FOI request within the FOI Act, I was required to explain why our response would not treat your request as an FOI within the boundaries of the legislation.

I hope that answers your question and will assist you in any future requests or communications with the MoJ.

Your sincerely

Neil

Neil Dickens | Interim Knowledge Information Liaison Officer | MoJ Technology
102 Petty France | London | SW1H 9AJ | Ministry of Justice
https://www.gov.uk/government/organisati...
Creating a safe, just and democratic society

"I am not authorised to bind the Ministry of Justice contractually, nor to make representations or other statements which may bind the Ministry of Justice in any way via electronic means".

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Dear MoJ ICT FOI/PQ, thank you for your candor in this matter, and I understand that these sort of caveats have no standing in law.

Yours sincerely,

Pat James