Microsoft cannot be compelled to turn over customer emails stored outside the U.S.

27. July 2016

Last week the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit held that Microsoft Corporation cannot be compelled to turn over customer emails stored outside the U.S. to U.S. law enforcement authorities.

The original case addressed a search warrant concerning the contents of all emails, records and other information regarding one of Microsoft’s email users. Although Microsoft generally complied, it refused to turn over the contents of the emails stored on a server in Ireland. Microsoft opinion was that U.S. courts are not authorized to issue such warrants. However, in April 2014 a judge in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York held that Microsoft has to turn over the contents of the emails to U.S. law enforcement in case of search warrant is issued under the Stored Communications Act and although the data is stored outside of the U.S.

The Second Circuit ruled that “Congress did not intend the (Stored Communications Act’s) warrant provisions to apply extraterritorially…(and) the Stored Communications Act does not authorize a U.S. court to issue and enforce an Stored Communications Act warrant against a United States‐based service provider for the contents of a customer’s electronic communications stored on servers located outside the United States.”