48

Investigatory Powers Act 2016 (c. 25)
Part 2 — Lawful interception of communications
Chapter 3 — Other provisions about interception

(i)

(b)

in contemplation of, or in connection with, any legal
proceedings, and
(ii) for the purposes of those proceedings;
a disclosure made—
(i) by a professional legal adviser (“L”) to L’s client or a
representative of L’s client, or
(ii) by L’s client, or by a representative of L’s client, to L,
in connection with the giving, by L to L’s client, of advice about the
effect of the relevant provisions (see subsection (7)).

(6)

But a disclosure within Head 3 is not an excepted disclosure if it is made with
the intention of furthering a criminal purpose.

(7)

In subsection (5)(b) “the relevant provisions” means—
(a) in the case of a warrant under Chapter 1 of this Part, the provisions of
this Part;
(b) in the case of a warrant under Chapter 1 of Part 1 of RIPA, the
provisions of that Chapter.

(8)

Head 4 is—
(a) a disclosure that—
(i) is made by a postal operator or a telecommunications operator
in accordance with a requirement imposed by regulations made
by the Secretary of State, and
(ii) consists of statistical information of a description specified in
the regulations;
(b) a disclosure of information that does not relate to any particular
warrant under Chapter 1 of this Part or under Chapter 1 of Part 1 of
RIPA but relates to any such warrants in general.

(9)

Nothing in this section affects the operation of section 56 (which, among other
things, prohibits the making of certain disclosures in, for the purposes of or in
connection with legal proceedings).

59

Offence of making unauthorised disclosures
(1)

A person who fails to comply with section 57(1) commits an offence.

(2)

A person who is guilty of an offence under this section is liable—
(a) on summary conviction in England and Wales—
(i) to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months (or 6
months, if the offence was committed before the
commencement of section 154(1) of the Criminal Justice Act
2003), or
(ii) to a fine,
or to both;
(b) on summary conviction in Scotland—
(i) to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months, or
(ii) to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum,
or to both;
(c) on summary conviction in Northern Ireland—
(i) to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months, or
(ii) to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum,

Select target paragraph3