Monday 22 July 2013

UK: England and Wales: company entitled to inspect former director's e-mails

The Court of Appeal gave judgment last Friday in Fairstar Heavy Transport NV v Adkins [2013] EWCA Civ 886. At issue was whether a company was entitled to an order requiring its former CEO to provide access to the content of e-mails (stored on his computer) relating to the company's business. At first instance the company argued that it had a proprietary claim to the content of the e-mails held by the former director. This argument failed: see [2012] EWHC 2952 (TCC). The Court of Appeal, citing the right of a principal to an inspection and copying remedy against a former agent, held that the judge ought to have made an order for inspection of the e-mails on the computer.

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