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+{{htmlmetatags>metatag-keywords=(pio, section, fiduciary, RTI Act, RTI Wiki)&metatag-description=(Section 8(1)(e) — Fiduciary Relationship — PIO Framework — Part of the PIO / FAA Knowledge Base.)|Faa knowledge base.)}}
+====== Section 8(1)(e) — Fiduciary Relationship — PIO Framework ======
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+**Need help drafting this RTI?** Use our free **[[:tools:rti-assistant|RTI Assistant]]** — describe your problem, get a ready-to-file Section 6(1) application with your name and address pre-filled. Also handles First Appeal and Second Appeal to the CIC/SIC.
+</WRAP>
+{{page>_snippets:dpdp-banner|Page> snippets dpdp banner}}
+Part of the **[[:pio-faa-knowledge-base|PIO / FAA Knowledge Base]]**.
+<WRAP center round info 95%>
+**In one line.** A fiduciary relationship requires **choice + trust + benefit of the provider** — lawyer/client, doctor/patient, banker/customer, trustee/beneficiary. Information submitted to a public authority under a statutory requirement, employee service records held by the employer, and exam-answer-scripts are **not** fiduciary.
+</WRAP>
+===== Statutory text =====
+>//Information available to a person in his fiduciary relationship, unless the competent authority is satisfied that the larger public interest warrants the disclosure.//
+===== What it means in practice =====
+A fiduciary relationship requires **choice + trust + benefit of the provider** — lawyer/client, doctor/patient, banker/customer, trustee/beneficiary. Information submitted to a public authority under a statutory requirement, employee service records held by the employer, and exam-answer-scripts are **not** fiduciary.
+===== Case law =====
+  * //CBSE v. Aditya Bandopadhyay//, (2011) 8 SCC 497 — evaluated answer scripts are **not** fiduciary; scores are disclosable.
+  * //RBI v. Jayantilal Mistry//, (2016) 5 SCC 136 — the regulator-regulated relationship is not fiduciary.
+  * //ICAI v. Shaunak Satya//, (2011) 8 SCC 781 — examiner identity and model answers are fiduciary.
+===== PIO takeaway =====
+Record why the specific record qualifies as fiduciary. Statutory compliance, employment, or regulation alone do not meet the test.
+===== Quick Answer: §8(1)(e) Fiduciary =====
+  * **Trigger** — information held in a fiduciary relationship is exempt.
+  * **Test** — choice, trust, and benefit of the provider (not the holder).
+  * **NOT fiduciary** — examiner/examinee, regulator/regulated, statutory submissions, employee service records.
+  * **IS fiduciary** — lawyer/client, doctor/patient, trustee/beneficiary, examiner's working notes for moderation (//Shaunak Satya//).
+  * **Override** — §8(2) public interest.
+===== When Is §8(1)(e) Valid? =====
+^ Request ^ Fiduciary? ^ Outcome ^
+| Examination answer-scripts and own marks | **No** | Disclose — //Aditya Bandopadhyay// (SC 2011) |
+| Examiner's moderation working notes | **Yes** | Protected — //Shaunak Satya// (SC 2011) |
+| RBI regulatory inspection reports of banks | **No** | Disclose — //Jayantilal Mistry// (SC 2015) |
+| Individual bank customer account details | **Yes** | Protected — fiduciary bank-customer (qualified by //HDFC v. CIC// 2020) |
+| Employee service records held by employer | **No** | Not fiduciary — //Deshpande// and progeny |
+| Insurance claim file (insurer is public authority) | **Yes** | Fiduciary insurer-insured |
+| Cabinet confidentiality / collegium documents | **No** | §8(1)(i), not §8(1)(e) |
+| Information submitted under a statute by compulsion | **No** | Not fiduciary — absence of "choice" |
+===== PIO Decision Framework — §8(1)(e) =====
+  - **Is the provider's submission voluntary or compelled by law?** Compelled = not fiduciary.
+  - **Was the information given for the provider's own benefit?** If not, not fiduciary.
+  - **Was there choice of confidant?** Statutory monopoly provider means no choice.
+  - **Does the holder owe a higher duty of care?** Lawyer / doctor / trustee — yes.
+  - **Is there §8(2) public interest override?** Record reasoning either way.
+===== Landmark case law =====
+  * **//Central Board of Secondary Education v. Aditya Bandopadhyay//** (SC 2011) — examiner-examinee is NOT fiduciary; candidates can inspect own answer-scripts.
+  * **//Institute of Chartered Accountants v. Shaunak Satya//** (SC 2011) — examiner's moderation notes ARE fiduciary and exempt.
+  * **//Reserve Bank of India v. Jayantilal Mistry//** (SC 2015) — regulator-regulated is NOT fiduciary; RBI inspection reports of banks are disclosable.
+  * **//HDFC Bank v. CIC//** (SC 2020) — qualified //Jayantilal Mistry// on individual customer account data.
+  * **//Girish Ramchandra Deshpande v. CIC//** (SC 2013) — service records not strictly fiduciary; §8(1)(j) applies.
+===== FAQs =====
+**Q1. Are an employee's own service records fiduciary?**
+No. Service records are held by the employer in an employer-employee relationship, not in fiduciary capacity. An employee can access their own record directly under §2(f).
+**Q2. Are bank inspection reports fiduciary?**
+No. The Supreme Court in //Jayantilal Mistry// held that the RBI and a commercial bank are in a regulator-regulated relationship, which is not fiduciary.
+**Q3. What about an examiner's scoring?**
+The examiner-examinee relationship is not fiduciary (//Aditya Bandopadhyay//). But internal moderation working notes are fiduciary (//Shaunak Satya//).
+**Q4. Does public interest override §8(1)(e)?**
+Yes. §8(2) permits disclosure if public interest in disclosure outweighs the harm to the protected relationship. The PIO must record this balancing in writing.
+**Q5. Is the lawyer-client privilege fiduciary under §8(1)(e)?**
+Yes. But legal advice rendered by in-house government counsel in their official capacity, on matters of public policy, can lose privilege post-decision. Case-by-case.
+===== What Should You Do Next? =====
+  * **Sibling exemption frameworks:** [[:pio-section-8-1-j-framework|§8(1)(j) personal information]] · [[:pio-section-11-third-party|§11 third-party procedure]].
+  * **Answer-script RTIs specifically:** see illustrations in [[:pio-rti-reply-guide|PIO Reply Guide — nine templates]].
+  * **Bank/finance RTIs:** [[:pio-banking-financial-rti|Banking & financial records under RTI]].
+  * **Full Act section text:** [[:act:section-8|Section 8 of the RTI Act]].
+  * **Case-law search:** [[:cases|310+ RTI rulings database]].
+===== Deep dive =====
+  * **[[:explanations:grounds-for-rejection#e-fiduciary-relationship|Full treatment on the Grounds for RTI rejection page]]**
+  * **[[:pio-rti-reply-guide|PIO RTI Reply Guide]]** — how to write a reasoned reply that passes First Appeal review.
+  * **[[:pio-faa-knowledge-base|PIO / FAA Knowledge Base]]** — the hub.
+===== Related reading =====
+  * [[:act:section-8#8-1-e|§e of the Act]]
+  * [[:explanations:grounds-for-rejection|All 10 grounds for RTI rejection]]
+  * [[:faa-appellate-review-checklist|FAA appellate-review checklist]]
+  * [[:faa-first-appeal-timelines|First Appeal timelines]]
+  * [[:pio-rti-reply-guide|PIO RTI Reply Guide]]
+  * [[:why-rti-gets-rejected|Why RTI gets rejected]]
+===== Sources =====
+  * Right to Information Act, 2005 — §8-1-e
+  * Cases cited above (Supreme Court of India and High Courts)
+  * Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 — §44(3)
+----
+//Last reviewed: 24 April 2026.//
+{{tag>pio-faa section-8-1-e rti framework}}

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