Corporations are considered to be persons in the eyes of the law, but does that entitle them to personal privacy? “No”, says a recent Supreme Court decision. The case, FCC v. AT&T, concerned an exemption to the federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) that allows agencies to withhold “records or information compiled for law enforcement purposes,” the disclosure of which “could reasonably be expected to constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy” (5 U.S.C. §552(b)(7)(C)).
In this case, AT&T had provided certain records to the Federal Communications Commission as part of an investigation. When the commission received a FOIA request for those records, it determined that records referring to specific individuals could be withheld because of the personal privacy rights of those individuals. However, it also determined that personal privacy rights did not extend to AT&T itself. The Supreme Court agreed, reversing a decision by the Third Circuit Court of Appeal.
Thus, personal privacy remains unique to human beings. But despite being on the business end of the decision, AT&T, wrote Chief Justice Roberts, should not take it personally.
