// Netherlands · Right to be forgotten

Dentist's bid to scrub online disciplinary records fails in court ruling

Rechtbank Amsterdam · 23 December 2019

ECLI:NL:RBAMS:2019:9887

The case

A dentist who appeared on TV programs asked Google to remove search results about his disciplinary convictions. The court denied the request because as a public figure he must tolerate more and there is a compelling public interest in access to factually correct information about his professional conduct.

What the court considered

01Applicant is public figure due to TV appearances and must tolerate more than average citizen
02Information about disciplinary measures is factually correct and current within legal publication period
03Compelling public interest in access to information about dentist's professional conduct
04Search results are not inaccurate, irrelevant, excessive or outdated
05Public interest outweighs applicant's privacy interests

What this means in practice

Healthcare providers who seek media attention must be aware that this affects their privacy rights. Google can reject removal requests if the information is current and relevant to the public role of the person concerned, even if this causes reputational damage. This ruling demonstrates that healthcare providers who publicly profile themselves receive significantly less privacy protection in right to be forgotten cases, particularly when it concerns disciplinary information that is still within the statutory publication period.

Legal basis

Artikel 17 AVG (recht op vergetelheid)
Artikel 6 lid 1 onder f AVG (gerechtvaardigd belang)
Artikel 12 AVG (transparantie)
Wet BIG (BIG-register publicatietermijn)

Right to be forgotten

Related rulings

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