A MAN whose wife (36) allegedly died as a result of suicide is not entitled to access to information concerning her medical and psychiatric treatment, the High Court has ruled.
The man, whom Mr Justice Michael White noted had denied he was separated from his wife, had sought the information under provisions of the Freedom of Information Act 1997.
He said he needed the information for an application to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Tribunal for compensation for himself and the couple’s five children arising from his wife’s death in 2009.
It was alleged she killed herself as a consequence of trauma suffered as a result of witnessing the murder two years earlier of one of her brothers.
Before her death, the woman was treated for a psychiatric illness and her husband sought her medical records from two health service providers.
Partial access was granted by one while no access was permitted by the second. The man appealed to the Information Commissioner who, in November 2010, upheld the refusal of access.
Because it was personal information relating to a dead person, it fell within categories of information exempt from release under the Act except in specific circumstances.
Personal material relating to dead people may or may not be released to their next of kin after a balanced assessment of all factors.
These include the public interest in preserving confidentiality of personal information and the public interest in ensuring personal information held by public bodies is accurate.
In this woman’s case, the commissioner concluded the information should not be released on grounds of the strong public interest in protecting sensitive personal information and the good name and character of people who had died.
The commissioner referred to regulations made in 2009 by the Minister for Finance under the 1997 Act relating to the public interest and the confidentiality of personal information and to ministerial guidance notes concerning access to records relating to deceased persons.
She also took into account that records released under the 1997 Act are released without restriction on this use, plus the fact the Criminal Injuries Compensation Tribunal had authority itself to obtain medical reports.
In his High Court proceedings, the man had argued that the addition of a public interest test in the 2009 regulations was made in excess of the Minister’s powers under the 1997 Act.
If the regulations and guidance notes were not invalid, he argued section 28.6 of the 1997 Act – providing for the Minister to make regulations governing disclosure of personal information – constituted an unauthorised delegation of legislative power.
In his judgment, Mr Justice White said the Oireachtas had decided there was no automatic right to personal information relating to a dead person, which was specified as such in section 28, which also provided such information could be released in certain circumstances.
