Privacy
Hamlins is at the forefront of taking legal action under privacy law and we have successfully secured numerous actions to protect our clients’ privacy and reputation.
Our team has vast experience in protecting the reputation of individuals and businesses, with preventing damage our primary objective. We have acted against publishers, individuals and broadcasters on behalf of a broad range of private and public individuals.
We have worked on a some of the leading cases which have contributed to shaping and developing privacy law:
- Hamlins successfully acted in a landmark privacy case for our clients, Shakir Ali and Shahida Aslam. This ground-breaking judgment set a precedent as to the rights and freedom of reality TV and observational documentary producers and broadcasters, and helped determine the extent to which non-consenting footage of the general public can be used and justified by reference to public interest. Our team has helped, and continues to help, multiple clients with claims against Channel 5 for breach of privacy during the filming of TV programme, ‘Can’t Pay? We’ll Take it Away!’
- In January 2025, we successfully acted for Lord Tom Watson in a landmark privacy claim against News Group Newspapers Limited. We have represented numerous claimants in the phone hacking litigation since its early days and acted for multiple clients in successful claims against both News Group Newspapers Limited (The Sun and the News of the World) and MGN Limited (The Mirror, Sunday Mirror and The People newspapers). We continue to act as Lead Solicitor in the litigation against News Group Newspapers.
- The leading privacy law case of Douglas and OK! v Hello! was one of the first brought following the inception of the Human Rights Act 1998. Our partner, Christopher Hutchings, represented the defendant magazine throughout the 7-year case, helping shape the law of privacy.
- Hamlins acted for a major international pharmaceutical manufacturer to prevent a national UK tabloid publishing private information about its senior executives.
Broadcast
We act for clients, including individuals and businesses, prior to, and in the aftermath of, the broadcast of private information. This frequently includes reliance on regulatory codes such as OFCOM and the concepts of ‘fairness’ and the ‘right of reply’. This includes preparing statements for broadcast which are sufficiently succinct to avoid the editing out of key elements by the broadcaster on the basis they will not carry more lengthy positions.
We have the concept of ‘responsible journalism’ at the forefront of our thinking and strategy, to deter broadcasters from seeking to defend their intended programme on the basis it is in the public interest. Where we provide the factual background in advance of broadcast, it can exclude this defence on the basis the broadcaster is ‘on notice’ of the true position.
The broadcast of these programmes can cause considerable distress and have a harmful impact to claimants whose privacy has been breached during the making of and broadcast of such content.
We have successfully secured public apologies, substantial damages payments and undertakings not to further broadcast content in which our clients are featured, alongside payment of reasonable legal costs.
Observational (fly-on-the-wall) documentaries
Private individuals can often find themselves the focus of unwarranted and unlawful intrusion into their private lives by the broadcast media, sometimes via covert recordings.
Our team has helped a number of clients with claims against documentary makers including Channel 5 for breach of privacy during the filming of the TV programme ‘Can’t Pay? We’ll Take it Away!’ and similar observational documentaries.
If you think you have a claim arising out of this programme or any other fly-on-the-wall documentary, please contact us at mediadisputes@hamlins.com.