Plain language law

New Zealand law explained for everyone

Privacy Act 2020

Access to and correction of personal information - Access to personal information

52: Trade secret as reason for refusing access to personal information

You could also call this:

“Organisations can refuse access to your personal information if it reveals trade secrets or harms business interests”

You can ask an organisation for your personal information. Sometimes, the organisation might say no to giving you this information. They can do this if sharing the information would reveal a trade secret or might unfairly hurt the business of the person who gave the information or the person the information is about.

However, even if sharing the information might reveal a trade secret or hurt someone’s business, the organisation might still have to give it to you. This can happen if there’s a good reason why the public should know this information. In this case, the organisation needs to think about what’s best for everyone, not just the business.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=LMS23396.

Topics:
Rights and equality > Privacy
Business > Fair trading
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51: Security, defence, international relations as reason for refusing access to personal information, or

“Personal information can be withheld if sharing it might affect national security or foreign relations”

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53: Other reasons for refusing access to personal information, or

“When your request for personal information can be denied”

Part 4 Access to and correction of personal information
Access to personal information

52Trade secret as reason for refusing access to personal information

  1. An agency may refuse access to any personal information requested if the information needs protecting because making the information available would—

  2. disclose a trade secret; or
    1. be likely to unreasonably prejudice the commercial position of the person who supplied the information or who is the subject of the information.

      1. Subsection (1) does not apply if, in the circumstances of the particular case, the withholding of that information is outweighed by other considerations that make it desirable, in the public interest, to make the information available.

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