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Trademark certification bodies are public authorities, UK judgment says

By Douglas Clarke-Williams ( January 28, 2026, 17:04 GMT | Insight) -- Entities empowered by the UK government to issue certification trademarks attesting to the origin of certain goods are now classified as public authorities and required to respond to Freedom of Information Act requests, following a recent tribunal decision.On Monday a UK tribunal found that Soil Association Certification should be considered a public authority due to its special power to certify products as organic, obliging the organization to accede to requests under the Freedom of Information Act and bringing a group of similar entities under the same requirement....

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