In this podcast, Julian Copeman and Maura McIntosh discuss data class actions, which represent a significant risk for businesses, and consider the ways in which such actions can be brought in the English courts.

The podcast looks in particular at the potential for data class actions to be brought on an "opt-out" basis, using the representative action procedure under CPR 19. It considers the avenues by which data claims may still be pursued as representative actions despite the Supreme Court's high profile decision in the Lloyd v Google case, and looks at a very recent High Court decision which could potentially lead to the procedure being used more widely. It also touches on the potential for data claims to be reframed in order to take advantage of the specific regime for competition class actions in the Competition Appeal Tribunal.

The presenters are both authors of Class Actions in England and Wales, a textbook authored by Herbert Smith Freehills lawyers and published by Sweet & Maxwell. This is the fourth in our series of podcasts to mark the launch of the second edition of this leading textbook. Future editions will look at other topics of interest relating to class actions or areas where we expect to see growth.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.