// Netherlands · Right to be forgotten
Real estate directors lose bid to scrub Google search results on money laundering probe
Rechtbank Gelderland ·
ECLI:NL:RBGEL:2018:5600
The case
Two directors of a real estate company demanded Google remove search results linking to an article about a FIOD investigation into money laundering in which they are suspects. The court denied the claim because the public interest in information outweighs their privacy, given their status as public figures and the societal importance of the information.
What the court considered
- 01Plaintiffs are public figures who play a role in public life through their own actions as directors of a real estate company
- 02The information concerns professional activities (FIOD investigation into money laundering) and not private actions, which is of societal importance
- 03No evidence that the published information is incorrect; the mere fact that plaintiffs are dissatisfied is insufficient
- 04The publication is relatively recent and current, the investigation is concluded but unclear what will happen with the criminal case
- 05Insufficient evidence that plaintiffs suffer concrete harm from the publication
What this means in practice
Business executives and other persons in public office will find it difficult to enforce removal of search results when it concerns their professional activities, particularly in the context of ongoing legal proceedings. This ruling demonstrates how the right to be forgotten is limited when it comes to public figures and information of societal importance, even in ongoing criminal proceedings.
Legal basis
- Artikel 17 AVG
- Artikel 6 sub f AVG
- Artikel 21 AVG
- Artikelen 7 en 8 Handvest van de Grondrechten EU
- Artikel 11 Handvest van de Grondrechten EU
Related rulings
- French top court: naming person in article on criminal conviction may standFrance · 3 June 2026
- Dutch real estate entrepreneur loses bid to remove criminal conviction article from Google search resultsNetherlands · 28 August 2025
- Google Defeats Legal Firm's Search Ranking Complaint Over Casino TermsNetherlands · 28 May 2025
- Court Denies Wealthy Heir's Bid to Scrub Criminal Past From Google Search ResultsNetherlands · 26 March 2024
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