Bit of an odd one, but I would appreciate some legal advice if anyone can help.

I am a union rep and I am in the process of assisting somebody at work who is under a disciplinary investigation. Part of the investigatory paperwork includes private letters that were sent to the "accused", whilst they are not directly related to the case, they are being used to create a stronger case. They are such letters as overdue bills and final demands etc.

It appears the person moved house a few months ago, his landlord brought a number of letters to his work place and left them there. They were not seen by the addressee as he was absent from work. At some point these letters were opened and read by a person unknown. The letters were then brought to the attention of the investigating officer who was looking into other issues, who then photocopied the letters and attached them to the investigation file.

I cannot confirm who opened the letters, the landlord, a work colleague or investigating officer. I do know who copied the letters though. The guy under investigation has reported the matter to the police who are presently investigating the ase.

Meanwhile the copied letters are still on the file and can be read by who knows how many people. I was even sent copies by email when I asked for a copy of the file so I could prepair my representation.

What I am trying to find out is this: is it illegal to read somebody else's mail? Is it illegal to copy somebody else's mail? I am aware it is illegal to intercept or knowingly delay somebody else's mail, so could I rightly argue that any evidence obtained in this way should be in-admissible in an employment disciplinary investigation?

I would normally look for advice through other channels but I do not have much time to check things out. No longer FF owner but still interested. Present car Jaguar XE
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All I can say is ring your FTO as I am sure it is completely illegal and even if it were has no baring on your case.

If you FTO is not available, then your union should have a help desk number.

If all else fails a union solicitor. If you struggle drop me a PM and I'll give you the name of my local solicitors, who are VERY union frendly.

I am shocked that you appear to being left out on a limb by your union.

Simple case of the mail still bein in transit as it had not reached its intended destination, the recipient, and thus whoever broke it has broke a few very strong laws without the correct authority to do so.. Intercepting mail, interfering with mail, possibly gaining fr intercepting that mail. Iirc the fact they have copied it and are now handling it is along the same kind of lines as stolen goods.... FFRR MY06 facelift With TDV8 Alloys Zeros/ATR's
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http://www.findlaw.co.uk/law/criminal/othe...00355.html

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We don't know precisely what the case is, and what work the employee does. Unless your represented person is a police officer, I'd be requesting exclusion of the correspondence on grounds of relevance. Personal financial dexterity is rarely a component of someone's ability to do their job.

Copyright usually remains with the sender, so I wouldn't at this stage be seeking to get the creditors involved. I'd probably be challenging the company for abusing the data protection principles of consent, privacy, and relevancy of their data gathering. This ought to see the letters deleted from the file.

I seem to recall that mail stops being mail once it drops through the letterbox, so interception and delaying are not relevant. In any event, these are criminal matters and i should think you'll want to focus on the disciplinary process and getting the letters excluded. (Actually, I now see that opening someone's post intentionally to their detriment is an offence, so that's handy, too!).

Good luck with this - it sounds interesting!  2003 4.4 HSE Epsom Green / Sand. Lovely!

Last edited by steviebabes on 23rd Jul 2012 9:31pm. Edited 1 time in total

Hello there

As an ex-union rep and an employer here's my two-penneth !

I'm sure that your Union HQ will have a legal department that can help. For further advice you could contact ACAS who can give you legal facts too. I agree with the others here, it seems wholly inappropriate and illegal to intercept an employees private mail. It should not form any part of their case and I am sure that he will be able to make a claim against his employers should it go to arbitration.

Good luck with your support to this guy.

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I'm pretty sure this will fall under tampering with HM mail offence. Anything found therein under these circs would not be admissible in a criminal matter, probably civil too. The addressee may have grounds for seeking damages from this action and its consequences. Seek proper legal advice my friend. Not really my area anymore. First time FFRR owner

As many others have said, separate the two things out. The private mail appears to have nothing to do with the employment situation, even thought it has something to do with the employee concerned, so get it removed, disregarded, whatever, and focus on the allegations made by the employer against the employee that have breached his contract of employment.

There may probably be a clever way to get the allegations dropped if the employer continues to seek to use these letters as a part of the management case, but if management are intent on pursuing this, any such claim may fall on deaf ears. Then it can move to Employment Tribunal, depending on the outcome.

Get the full-time branch official in to support/advise. .
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Thanks for all the suggestions. I managed to get the go ahead to speak to The union solicitors later today. No longer FF owner but still interested. Present car Jaguar XE
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Previous LR- Disco 300TDi Auto