Ireland is to file a brief before the US court in a data transfer case.

Microsoft is appealing a court order to hand over emails held on an Irish server before the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in New York.

Minister of State for Data Protection and European Affairs Dara Murphy made the announcement this evening.

In a statement, he said: “The right of individuals to the protection of their personal data is an essential foundation for modern society and the growing digital economy. We must ensure that individuals and organisations can have confidence in the rules and processes that have been put in place to safeguard privacy.”

On December 4 Microsoft was served with a criminal search warrant for all content data associated with a specific email account held on servers at its Dublin-based operations.

Ireland will assume the role of “amiscu curiae” of “friend of the court” – someone who is not a party to the case but who offers information related to the case.

“I have given detailed consideration, from an Irish perspective, to the issues raised in this complex case.

"There are important principles of public policy at play. Having engaged in detailed consultation with my colleagues in Government, it was agreed that Ireland should submit an amicus curiae brief to the US court that focuses on the principles involved in this case and that points to the existing process for mutual legal assistance in criminal matters,” Mr Murphy said.

Ireland and the US have a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (2001) in place for the transfer of evidence from one jurisdiction to the other to assist law enforcement authorities in criminal.