According to Filippo Noseda, partner with Mishcon de Reya, the case hinges on fundamental rights and an individual’s relationship with the state.
The majority of UK bank account holders living in 100 plus countries, which have signed up to the common reporting standard (CRS), will be affected.
Beneficial owners register
The complaint lodged with the UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office also covers the publication of beneficial owners registers.
Under the rules, as they stand, anyone owning a substantial interest in a private company based in Europe (or with a European subsidiary) will see their details published, regardless of where they are resident, the nature of the business or the nature of their involvement in that business.
A wealth of evidence
Noseda said: “After more than three years of assiduous campaigning… the time has come to take action.
“There is a wealth of objective evidence supporting our proposition not least the comparisons made between the CRS and the data retention directive – the latter of which was effectively declared illegal by the European Court of Justice in 2016.
“In a democratic society, the rights to privacy and data protection are an essential safeguard to protect compliant citizens against potential abuses and must be treated with the appropriate seriousness by the authorities.”
The argument
The case will be decided on the proportionality of the risk to the sensitive personal data against the measures’ effectiveness against tax evasion.
It is expected Noseda’s team will use general data protection legislation to argue that the publication of sensitive data concerning the internal governance and ownership of private companies by the beneficial ownership registers is not necessary to fight tax evasion.
Similarly, they will argue exchange of information under the CRS is excessive and indiscriminate, affecting all account holders regardless of the size of the account.
