Privacy Statement

We value and respect the privacy of the people we deal with, and are committed to protecting your privacy and complying with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) (Privacy Act) and other applicable privacy laws and regulations.

This Privacy Policy (Policy) describes how we collect, hold, use and disclose your personal information, and how we maintain the security of your personal information.

What is personal information?

“Personal information” means any information about an identified individual or an individual who is reasonably identifiable. In general terms, this includes information that personally identifies you either directly (e.g. your name) or indirectly.

What personal information do we collect?

We collect personal information that is necessary to provide or reasonably assists in providing legal advice and representation for our clients. We may maintain records concerning your personal information electronically, in hard copy files, or both.

The personal information we collect depends on the nature of your dealings with us and what you choose to share with us. The information we collect is used by us in our capacity as your legal representative and you agree that this information may be provided to external parties (for example, Barristers, Courts, Accountants, Medical Practitioners, and others involved in the course of the provision of our legal services to you).

The types of personal information we collect is dependent on the nature of work we are undertaking and may include, but is not limited to:

• name;
• mailing and/or street address;
• date of birth;
• email address;
• phone number;
• tax file number;
• company name
• ACN and ABN;

Under certain circumstances, we may need to collect sensitive information about you. This might include any information about your racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, political association, religious or philosophical beliefs, membership of a trade union or other professional body, sexual preferences, criminal record, or health information.

If we collect your sensitive information, we will take appropriate measures to protect the security of that information, and will only disclose it with your consent, if it is necessary to prevent a serious and imminent threat to life or health, or as otherwise required or authorised by law.

You do not have to provide us with your personal information. However, if you choose not to provide us with your personal information, we may not be able to provide you with our services or otherwise interact with you.

How do we collect your personal information?

We collect your personal information directly from you when you:

• interact with us over the phone;
• interact with us in person;
• interact with us online;
• participate in surveys or questionnaires;
• attend an event organised by us;
• apply for a position with us as an employee, contractor or volunteer.

Collecting personal information from third parties

We may also collect information from third parties from interviews with witnesses, witness statements, searches with ASIC and other sources.

We collect information from third parties in our capacity as your legal representatives, or otherwise as a result of your connection to a legal matter we act in respect of.

How do we use your personal information?

We use personal information for many purposes in connection with our engagement as your legal representatives, including:

• providing legal services and disclosures as required by law;
• deliver to you a more personalised experience and service;
• improving the quality of the services we offer;
• internal administrative purposes.

Disclosure of personal information to third parties

We may be required to disclose your personal information to third parties in accordance with this Policy in circumstances where you would reasonably expect us to disclose your information. For example, we may be required to disclose your personal information to:

• our third party service providers;
• government regulatory bodies;
• our professional services advisors.

How do we protect your personal information?

We will take reasonable steps to ensure that the personal information that we hold about you is kept confidential and secure, including by:

• maintaining robust physical security of our premises and databases/records;
• taking measures to restrict access to only personnel who need that personal information to effectively provide services to you;
• maintaining technological security measures in place.

How to access and correct your personal information

We will endeavour to keep your personal information accurate, complete and up to date. We rely on the accuracy of the personal information we collect from you and third parties.

We ask that you advise of any changes or corrections to your personal information as soon as practically possible.

If you wish to make a request to access and / or correct the personal information we hold about you, you should advise the person who has carriage of your matter either verbally or in writing.