// Netherlands · Right to be forgotten

Court Denies GDPR Removal Request for Anonymized Judicial Decision

Rechtbank Amsterdam · 2 April 2020

ECLI:NL:RBAMS:2020:2112

The case

The applicant sought removal of an anonymized court decision from rechtspraak.nl under Article 17 GDPR. The court denied this because judicial decisions as legal analyses do not qualify as personal data under GDPR, and because publication is necessary for the public administration of justice.

What the court considered

01The judicial decision as legal analysis falls outside the GDPR scope as it cannot be controlled for accuracy or corrected
02Article 17(3)(b) GDPR blocks deletion as publication is necessary for performing a task in the public interest (public access to justice)
03Publication meets proportionality and subsidiarity requirements through application of anonymization guidelines
04The societal interest in public justice outweighs the applicant's privacy interest

What this means in practice

Individuals cannot enforce the removal of anonymized court decisions through the right to be forgotten, even if they are potentially identifiable, provided that anonymization guidelines have been followed. This ruling confirms that the right to be forgotten has limits in public adjudication and that court decisions have special status under the GDPR.

Legal basis

Artikel 17 AVG
Artikel 17 lid 3 onder b AVG
Artikel 4 lid 1 AVG
Artikel 6 EVRM
Artikel 121 Grondwet

Right to be forgotten

Related rulings

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