Chatham House Rule

English

Alternative forms

• Chatham House rule

Etymology

Named after the headquarters of the UK Royal Institute of International Affairs, based in Chatham House, London, where the rule originated in June 1927.

Proper noun

the Chatham House Rule

1. A rule, applied to some controversial debates and discussion panels, stating that anybody who attends is free to use information from the discussion, but cannot reveal who made any comment.
   • 2014, Louise Corti, Veerle Van den Eynden, Libby Bishop, Matthew Woollard, Managing and Sharing Research Data: A Guide to Good Practice, SAGE, →ISBN, page 112:

     The Chatham House Rule is used to help facilitate free speech and confidentiality at meetings.