The ruling is particularly relevant for Chile in light of the Data Protection Act, which expressly recognizes the processing of personal data as lawful when necessary for the establishment, exercise, or defense of a right before the courts or public bodies.
The Court of Justice of the European Union, in its June 18, 2026, ruling (C-484/24), analyzed the limits on the processing of a former employee’s personal data when such data is used as background information or evidence in legal proceedings.
Indeed, the ruling acknowledges that the protection of personal data is not an absolute right and must be balanced against other fundamental rights, particularly the right to effective judicial protection and to a fair trial.
In this context, personal data may be processed and used when necessary to support a claim or defense and to enable the court to rule on the evidence submitted by the parties.
The latter also constitutes a basis for lawfulness under the new data protection law that will take effect in December of this year in our country.
Thus, the mere fact that certain documents, communications, or other evidence contain personal data does not, in and of itself, preclude their use in court, as the information may be examined and considered when it is relevant to the case.
This treatment, however, is not absolute, as the principle of data minimization must be strictly observed, limiting the use and, in particular, the disclosure of information to only those data that are adequate, relevant, and necessary for the judicial purpose sought.
As an additional but no less important point, the Court even noted that any irregularity or unlawfulness in the initial collection of certain data does not automatically mean that such data is excluded from the legal proceedings, without prejudice to the consequences that such a violation may entail in terms of data protection.
However, from a labor law perspective, this ruling is particularly significant for employers who must file lawsuits or defend themselves against employee claims,
as it highlights that the protection of personal data must be reconciled with the effective exercise of the right to defense, always in accordance with the principles of necessity and data minimization.
Likewise, the ruling is also particularly relevant for Chile in light of the upcoming entry into force of Law No. 21,719 on December 1, 2026, which strengthens data protection obligations and expressly recognizes the processing of personal data as lawful when necessary for the formulation, exercise, or defense of a right before the courts or public bodies.
For more information on these issues, please contact our Labor Group:
Jorge Arredondo | Partner | jarredondo@az.cl
Jocelyn Aros | Director Labor Group | jaros@az.cl
Felipe Neira | Senior Associate | fneira@az.cl
Palmira Valdivia | Associate | pvaldivia@az.cl
Manuel Sepúlveda | Associate | msepulveda@az.cl
Catalina Díaz | Associate | cdiazp@az.cl
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