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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:

"Agencies can refuse to share your personal info if it reveals a trade secret or hurts a business."

Illustration for Privacy Act 2020

If you ask for personal information, an agency can refuse to give it to you if sharing it would reveal a trade secret. They can also refuse if sharing the information would unfairly harm the business of the person who gave the information or is the subject of it. This means the agency is protecting the person's business.

The agency does not have to refuse the information, though, if it is more important for the public to know it. In some cases, the agency might decide it is better to share the information even if it hurts someone's business. You can find more information about this in the Privacy Act.

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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.

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Money and consumer rights > Consumer protectionRights and equality > PrivacyBusiness > Industry rulesBusiness > Fair trading
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51: Security, defence, international relations as reason for refusing access to personal information, or

"When you ask for personal info, it might be kept secret to protect New Zealand's safety or friendships with other countries."

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

"When you can't get your personal information from an agency for special reasons"

Part 4Access 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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