The Master of the Rolls has issued with the approval of the Lord Chancellor a new Practice Direction for a pilot scheme to record statistical data in relation to certain non-disclosure injunctions.
This implements the Super-Injunctions Committee’s recommendation, contained in its report published in May 2011 that such data be collected and published. The Committee was responding to concerns expressed in Parliament and the media about the lack of available data concerning the number of super-injunctions and anonymised injunctions applied for and granted in privacy proceedings.
The Practice Direction establishes a procedure through which Ministry of Justice’s the Chief Statistician is notified of such orders in order for statistical data to be analysed and then published. It will come into force on 1st August 2011.
The Master of the Rolls has also issued the Practice Guidance for Interim Non-Disclosure Orders. This was originally published in draft form in an Annex to the Super-injunction Committee’s report. The Practice Guidance sets out the process recommended to be followed in the conduct of such cases. This guidance will come into effect on 1 August 2011.
