Lloyd –v- Google LLC (formerly Google Inc)

Tuesday 16th and Wednesday 17th July 2019

Court 73

This is an appeal by the Claimant against an order made in the High Court that dismissed his application for permission to serve a representative action for damages under the Data Protection Act 1998 (the DPA) on the Defendant out of the jurisdiction.

The claim alleges breach of the duty imposed by s 4(4) of the DPA in that it is alleged that over some months in 2011-2012 Google acted in breach of that duty by secretly tracking the internet activity of Apple iPhone users, collating and using the information it obtained by doing so, and then selling the accumulated data. The method by which Google was able to do this is generally referred to as “the Safari Workaround”.

Mr Lloyd is the only named claimant. However, he sues not only on his own behalf, but also in a representative capacity on behalf of a class of other residents of England and Wales who are also said to have been affected by the Safari Workaround in this jurisdiction.

Read the full lower court Judgment.

View hearing:

Day 1

Part 1

Part 2

Day 2

Part 1

Part 2

Press Summary of Judgment delivered on 2 October 2019

Full Court of Appeal Judgment