- Latest available (Revised)
- Original (As enacted)
Justice Act (Northern Ireland) 2015, Paragraph 4 is up to date with all changes known to be in force on or before 13 December 2024. There are changes that may be brought into force at a future date. Changes that have been made appear in the content and are referenced with annotations.
Revised legislation carried on this site may not be fully up to date. Changes and effects are recorded by our editorial team in lists which can be found in the ‘Changes to Legislation’ area. Where those effects have yet to be applied to the text of the legislation by the editorial team they are also listed alongside the legislation in the affected provisions. Use the ‘more’ link to open the changes and effects relevant to the provision you are viewing.
Whole provisions yet to be inserted into this Act (including any effects on those provisions):
4—(1) If a person to whom this paragraph applies discloses without lawful authority any information—N.I.
(a)acquired in the course of that person's employment,
(b)which is, or is derived from, information provided under this Schedule, and
(c)which relates to a particular person,
that person is guilty of an offence.
(2) This paragraph applies to any person who is—
(a)employed in a body prescribed under paragraph 1 or 2 or in the provision of services to such a body;
(b)employed in the Department or in the provision of services to the Department; or
(c)employed by the Board or in the provision of services to the Board.
(3) It is not an offence under this paragraph to disclose information which has previously been disclosed to the public with lawful authority.
(4) It is a defence for a person charged with an offence under this paragraph to show that at the time of the alleged offence—
(a)that person believed that the disclosure in question was made with lawful authority and had no reasonable cause to believe otherwise; or
(b)that person believed that the information in question had previously been disclosed to the public with lawful authority and had no reasonable cause to believe otherwise.
(5) A person who is guilty of an offence under this paragraph is liable—
(a)on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum;
(b)on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or to a fine or to both.
(6) For the purposes of this paragraph a disclosure of information by a person is to be regarded as made with lawful authority if, and only if, it is made—
(a)in the course of and for the purposes of that person's employment in a prescribed body;
(b)in accordance with that person's official duty as a civil servant or as an employee of the Board;
(c)in accordance with an authorisation given by the Department, the Board or the prescribed body;
(d)in accordance with any statutory provision or order of a court;
(e)for the purposes of any criminal proceedings; or
(f)with the consent of the person to whom the information relates.
(7) In this paragraph “employment”—
(a)includes employment as a volunteer; and
(b)in relation to a particular person, shall be construed in accordance with sub-paragraph (2).
The Whole Act you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
The Whole Act you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download.
Would you like to continue?
The Whole Act you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
The Schedules you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
Latest Available (revised):The latest available updated version of the legislation incorporating changes made by subsequent legislation and applied by our editorial team. Changes we have not yet applied to the text, can be found in the ‘Changes to Legislation’ area.
Original (As Enacted or Made): The original version of the legislation as it stood when it was enacted or made. No changes have been applied to the text.
Geographical Extent: Indicates the geographical area that this provision applies to. For further information see ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.
Show Timeline of Changes: See how this legislation has or could change over time. Turning this feature on will show extra navigation options to go to these specific points in time. Return to the latest available version by using the controls above in the What Version box.
Text created by the Northern Ireland Assembly department responsible for the subject matter of the Act to explain what the Act sets out to achieve and to make the Act accessible to readers who are not legally qualified. Explanatory Notes accompany all Acts of the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item from this tab. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
This timeline shows the different points in time where a change occurred. The dates will coincide with the earliest date on which the change (e.g an insertion, a repeal or a substitution) that was applied came into force. The first date in the timeline will usually be the earliest date when the provision came into force. In some cases the first date is 01/02/1991 (or for Northern Ireland legislation 01/01/2006). This date is our basedate. No versions before this date are available. For further information see the Editorial Practice Guide and Glossary under Help.
Use this menu to access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
Click 'View More' or select 'More Resources' tab for additional information including: