Dangers of Transferring Confidential Information

In Brandeaux Advisers (UK) Ltd and others v Chadwick (2010), the High Court looked at whether the employee`s conduct of sending large amounts of confidential information to her personal email account amounted to a repudiatory breach of contract.  

The employee sought to argue that she was entitled to use or disclose confidential information ‘as a matter of law and/or as a matter of reasonably necessity` and had transferred the confidential material in the event of possible future litigation with her employers.  

The High Court doubted that the possibility of litigation could ever justify the transfer of an employer`s confidential information which may be relevant to a future dispute and held that the employee`s conduct in this case was a repudiatory breach that justified her dismissal.    

Employers should check their email and internet use polices to ensure that they cover the transfer of company information to personal email accounts and set out the sanction that may be applied if employees do so.

Please see our blog for more information or if you wish to comment on this.