Lex Conscientia (UK) Limited is committed to safeguarding the privacy of visitors to our website. Please read the following Policy to understand how your information will be treated. This Policy contains important information on who we are and how and why we collect, store, use and share your personal data. It also explains your rights in relation to your personal data and how to contact us in the event you have a complaint.
When we use your personal data, we are regulated under the General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) which applies across the European Union (including in the United Kingdom) and we are responsible as ‘controller’ of that personal data for the purposes of the GDPR. Our use of your personal data is subject to your instructions, the GDPR, other relevant UK and EU legislation and our professional duty of confidentiality.
To clarify, “personal data” is defined to include, “any information relating to an identified or identifiable individual.” Such personal data is required to enable us to provide our service to you. If you do not provide the personal data we ask for, it may delay or prevent us from providing services to you.
Collecting and using your personal information
- You are not required to provide any personal information on the public areas of this website. However, there are opportunities throughout the website to submit your contact details and other information about yourself or your organisation, or to send us emails which will identify you.
- In each case, the purpose for which you are invited to give us information is clear.
- We will not use your information for purposes that are not clear when you provide your details.
- We will not disclose your personal information outside Lex Conscientia, except to service providers or consultants acting on our behalf who are contractually bound by obligations of confidentiality, or in other very limited circumstances, for example, with your agreement or where we are legally obliged to do so.
- Submitting personal data to this website constitutes an acceptance of our general terms and conditions published on this website and the terms and conditions set out in this Privacy Policy.
How long your personal data will be kept
We will keep your personal data after we have finished advising or acting for you. We will do so for one of these reasons:
- We will keep your personal data after we have finished advising or acting for you. We will do so for one of these reasons:
- to respond to any questions, complaints or claims made by you or on your behalf;
- to show that we treated you fairly;
- to keep records required by law.
We will not retain your data for longer than necessary for the purposes set out in this Policy. Different retention periods apply for different types of data. When it is no longer necessary to retain your personal data, we will delete or anonymise it.
Data security
- Our team members work primarily at their homes or in public places with Wi-Fi, through a virtual office. This means that we use our computers using standard office software, and internet and cloud-based communication and document storage including Office 365, Google Mail and many other cloud-based applications. We rely on the security of those cloud-based applications and on the security of public Wi-Fi systems.
- We maintain virtual files both on our computers and through cloud-based applications. Occasionally, we create paper files that we store at home. We keep these files confidential but do not keep them under lock and key. When we do not have further use for our paper files, we shred and recycle them.
Information and unsubscribing
- If we propose to use your details to send you information from Lex Conscientia about events or legal and business developments, which we believe may be of interest to you (other than information that you have specifically requested), we give you an opportunity to tell us that you do not wish to receive such information by ticking a box or by sending an email to: support@lexconscientia.co.uk
Cookies
- Our website uses cookies. Cookies are small text files that are placed on your computer by websites you visit. By using the Lex Conscientia website you are agreeing to our use of these cookies. Cookies allow us to distinguish you from other users of our website. This helps us to provide you with the best experience and allows certain parts of our site to function correctly. To see what cookies have been set and how to delete them, visit www.allaboutcookies.org
- You may refuse the use of these cookies via the settings in your browser.
Analytics
- We use analytics programmes to help us analyse how users use our site.
- Unless you provide us with your personal information, the analytics programmes we use will not be able to identify you though they may be able to identify your organisation.
- The proprietors of the analytics programmes will use the information on behalf of Lex Conscientia for evaluating your use of the website, compiling reports on website activity for us and providing us with other services relating to website activity and internet usage.
Confidentiality of your information
- We acknowledge that the information you provide may be confidential. We will maintain the confidentiality of, and protect, your information in accordance with our normal working procedures and applicable laws.
- Please assist us to comply with our obligation to keep your personal data accurate and up to date by ensuring that you inform us of any changes to your information.
Transferring your personal data out of the EEA
To deliver services to you, it is sometimes necessary for us to share your personal data outside the European Economic Area (“EEA”), eg:
- with your and our service providers that may be located outside the EEA;
- if you are based outside the EEA;
- where there is an international dimension to the matter in which we are providing a service to you
These transfers are subject to special rules under European and UK data protection law.
Your rights
You have the following rights, which you can exercise free of charge:
Access
The right to be provided with a copy of your personal data
Rectification
The right to require us to correct any mistakes in your personal data
To be forgotten
The right to require us to delete your personal data—in certain situations
Restriction of processing
The right to require us to restrict processing of your personal data—in certain circumstances, eg if you contest the accuracy of the data
Data portability
The right to receive the personal data you provided to us, in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format and/or transmit that data to a third party—in certain situations
To object
The right to object:
—at any time to your personal data being processed for direct marketing (including profiling);
—in certain other situations to our continued processing of your personal data, eg processing carried out for our legitimate interests.
Not to be subject to automated individual decision-making
The right not to be subject to a decision based solely on automated processing (including profiling) that produces legal effects concerning you or similarly significantly affects you.
For further information on each of those rights, including the circumstances in which they apply, please contact us or see the Guidance from the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) on individuals’ rights under the General Data Protection Regulation.
If you would like to exercise any of those rights, please:
- email, call or write to our Data Protection Officer; and
- let us have enough information to identify you (eg your full name, address and client or matter reference number);
- let us have proof of your identity and address (a copy of your driving licence or passport and a recent utility or credit card bill); and
- let us know what right you want to exercise and the information to which your request relates.
Further Information on this Policy
- This Privacy Policy was last updated on 1 July 2022.
- We may change this Policy from time to time by updating this page. You should check this page from time to time to ensure you are happy with any changes.
- If you have any questions about our Privacy Policy or any of our terms and conditions, want to exercise your right to see a copy of the information that we hold about you, or think that information we hold about you may need to be corrected, want to delete all or any part of it or to object to the processing on legitimate grounds, please contact us at support@lexconscientia.co.uk, or alternatively, send a signed letter addressed to the Managing Director who acts as our Data Protection Officer. See the “About Us” section of our website for contact details.
How to complain
- We hope that our Data Protection Officer can resolve any query or concern you may raise about our use of your information.
- The General Data Protection Regulation also gives you the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority, in particular in the European Union (or European Economic Area) state where you work, normally live or where any alleged infringement of data protection laws occurred. The supervisory authority in the UK is the Information Commissioner who may be contacted at ico.org.uk/concerns or telephone: 0303 123 1113.