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02 April 2009 / John Cooper KC
Issue: 7363 / Categories: Features , Data protection
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Streets ahead of the law

Does Google’s “Streetview” compromise stretch the boundaries of privacy? John Cooper reports

A few weeks ago, Google launched “Streetview” in the UK. An intricate series of photographs of every street in London can now be accessed by anyone on the internet, revealing almost every home in the capital, right down, one solicitor told me, to the geraniums in her window box.
There has been a significant amount of sabre rattling in this country by those who find their properties and even their images appearing on the Google facility, but, what are the prospects of success against Google as a result of Streetview in the UK?

Last September a few months after Streetview was launched in Europe, officials in the small town of Molfsee in Germany alleged that Google needed a permit in order to take photographic images of their streets and that it would not be granted any. Interestingly, Google deleted the images from this area, but kept the rest of Germany online. The current state of challenge in Europe depends upon

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The Supreme Court has delivered a decisive ruling on termination under the JCT Design & Build form. Writing in NLJ this week, Andrew Singer KC and Jonathan Ward, of Kings Chambers, analyse Providence Building Services v Hexagon Housing Association [2026] UKSC 1, which restores the first-instance decision and curbs contractors’ termination rights for repeated late payment
Secondments, disciplinary procedures and appeal chaos all feature in a quartet of recent rulings. Writing in NLJ this week, Ian Smith, barrister and emeritus professor of employment law at UEA, examines how established principles are being tested in modern disputes
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A High Court ruling involving the Longleat estate has exposed the fault line between modern family building and historic trust drafting. Writing in NLJ this week, Charlotte Coyle, director and family law expert at Freeths, examines Cator v Thynn [2026] EWHC 209 (Ch), where trustees sought approval to modernise trusts that retain pre-1970 definitions of ‘child’, ‘grandchild’ and ‘issue’
Fresh proposals to criminalise ‘nudification’ apps, prioritise cyberflashing and non-consensual intimate images, and even ban under-16s from social media have reignited debate over whether the Online Safety Act 2023 (OSA 2023) is fit for purpose. Writing in NLJ this week, Alexander Brown, head of technology, media and telecommunications, and Alexandra Webster, managing associate, Simmons & Simmons, caution against reactive law-making that could undermine the Act’s ‘risk-based and outcomes-focused’ design
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