Pre-Action Protocol correspondence: pseudonymise before letter before action review – UK GDPR-compliant anonymisation
Pre-action protocol correspondence — including the letter before action required by most CPR pre-action protocols — sets out the factual basis of the claim and often names third parties such as witnesses or medical practitioners; anonym.legal pseudonymises those identifiers in draft letters so solicitors can conduct internal review without unnecessary third-party data exposure.
When this applies
Applies when a solicitor is drafting pre-action protocol letters, schedule of losses, or supporting documents for internal review before sending to the opposing party.
How anonym.legal handles it
- Upload draft pre-action protocol letters and any enclosures (e.g. medical reports, schedule of loss) in DOCX or PDF.
- Configure the party-names allow-list to retain your client's name and the opponent's name in clear.
- anonym.legal pseudonymises third-party names, witnesses, and medical practitioners referenced in the correspondence.
- Factual allegations, financial figures, and legal basis are preserved in full.
- A reversible mapping is stored with EU data residency.
- Re-identify before sending the letter to the opponent.
What you provide
- Draft letter before action or pre-action protocol letter (DOCX or PDF)
- Enclosures: medical reports, schedule of loss, expert opinions (optional)
- Party-names allow-list
Limitations & cautions
- Compliance with the specific pre-action protocol applicable to the dispute (e.g. Personal Injury Protocol, Professional Negligence Protocol) must be confirmed by the solicitor.
- anonym.legal does not advise on the content, tone, or legal adequacy of the correspondence.
FAQ
Does the letter before action need to comply with a specific protocol?
Yes — the applicable pre-action protocol depends on the type of claim. The solicitor must ensure the letter meets the protocol requirements. anonym.legal handles only the personal-data pseudonymisation step.
Can I process the protocol response letter from the opponent?
Yes — you can process any incoming correspondence through the same workflow to pseudonymise third-party data before circulating it internally.
What if the pre-action letter includes medical or health data?
Health data is special-category data under UK GDPR Article 9. anonym.legal identifies and pseudonymises medical identifiers; you should record the processing basis in your data-processing register.