Malone v Metropolitan Police Commissioner
[1979] Ch 344
Ratio Decidendi
Telephone tapping by the police, though not specifically authorised by statute, was not illegal because there was no right to privacy recognised at common law. However, the case highlighted the inadequacy of English law in protecting privacy, leading to the Interception of Communications Act 1985.
Facts
Malone, a suspected criminal, discovered that his telephone had been tapped by police on the authority of a warrant issued by the Home Secretary. He sought a declaration that the tapping was unlawful.
Judgment Summary
Megarry V-C held that there was no general right to privacy in English law that would make telephone tapping unlawful. England operated on the basis that anything not prohibited by law is permitted. However, the judge expressed concern about the lack of legal framework and the case led to a successful application to the European Court of Human Rights.
Key Quotes
"England is not a country where everything is forbidden except what is expressly permitted: it is a country where everything is permitted except what is expressly forbidden."
— Megarry V-C
Subsequent Treatment
Led to Malone v UK (1984) at the ECHR, finding a violation of Article 8. Parliament responded with the Interception of Communications Act 1985, later replaced by RIPA 2000 and the Investigatory Powers Act 2016.