Privacy Policy

• As part of our business acceptance processes and about you and others as necessary in the course of providing legal services
• While monitoring our technology tools and services, including our websites and email communications sent to and from Family Law Partners
• When you provide it to us, or interact with us directly, for instance engaging with our services
• Other sources, such as keeping the contact details we already hold for you accurate and up to date using publicly available sources

• To provide and improve this website, including auditing and monitoring its use
• To provide and improve our services to you and to our clients, including handling the personal information of others on behalf of our clients
• To provide information requested by you
• To manage and administer our relationship with you and our clients
• To fulfil our legal, regulatory and risk management obligations, including establishing, exercising or defending legal claims
• For the purposes of recruitment

For legal work
We collect, create, hold and use personal information in the course of and in connection with the services we provide to our clients. We will process identification and background information as part of our business acceptance, finance, administration and marketing purposes, including anti-money laundering, conflict, reputational and financial checks. We will also process personal information provided to us by or on behalf of our clients for the purposes of the work we do for them. The information may be disclosed to third parties reasonably necessary in connection with that work.

We will use your information for the specific purpose(s) for which it has been provided to or collected by us, for example:

• to provide information that you may request regarding the services that we offer e.g. whether we can assist with certain legal advice
• to contact you to introduce you to our expert lawyers
• to provide our clients with legal services including referring them to other specialist advisers both in the UK and overseas
• to comply with our statutory and regulatory obligations
• to verify your identity for anti-money laundering or anti-fraud purposes
• to administer your application for a vacancy
• to deal with your feedback, query or complaint
• to contact you for feedback on our services
• we are carrying out necessary steps in relation to a contract to which you are party or prior to you entering into a contract e.g. because you wish to instruct us to carry out legal services for you
• Compliance with a legal obligation to which we are subject e.g. anti-money laundering requirements including carrying out electronic ID checks
• to protect your vital interests e.g. if you were unfortunate enough to fall ill or suffer an injury on our premises
• for legitimate business purposes

If we process any special categories of information i.e. information revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs or trade union membership, processing of genetic or biometric data for the purpose of uniquely identifying individuals, health data, or data concerning your sex life or sexual orientation, we must have a further lawful basis for the processing. We assert that the lawful basis is provided by GDPR Art. 9(2)(f) which permits us to process your data for the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims. This may include:

• where you have given us your explicit consent to do so
• where the processing is necessary to protect your vital interests or someone else’s vital interests
• you have made the information public
• the processing being necessary for the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims
• the processing being necessary for reasons of substantial public interest

We also use your information to administer, support, improve and develop our business generally and to enforce our legal rights.

Your personal information will be retained based on the applicable data protection laws and the purpose for which the information is collected, used, taking into account legal and regulatory requirements to retain the information for a minimum period, limitation periods for taking legal action, good practice and Family Law Partners business purposes.

• Third party organisations which process data for us and on our behalf.
• Other organisations or professional advisers who we are working on client matters or who we are referring you for additional or separate advice.
• Disclosure, if required, under certain laws or by court order or other competent regulatory body
• Under applicable data protection laws

We take all steps reasonably necessary to ensure that your data is treated securely and in accordance with this privacy policy.

We do not sell, rent or otherwise make personal information commercially available to any third party, except with your prior permission.

• Administrative, technical and physical measures on our website and internally designed to guard against and minimise the risk of loss, misuse or unauthorised processing or disclosure of the personal information that we hold.
• Where data is transferred to third parties we ensure they meet or exceed the relevant legal or regulatory requirements for transferring data to them and keeping it secure.
• If data is transferred to an organisation outside of the UK/EEA we will comply with the relevant legal rules governing such transfers
• We keep your personal information no longer than is necessary for the purpose for which it was collected. Information for clients is provided in our engagement letter and terms of business including details on how we keep secure personal data received from clients about their tenants, employees, third parties or similar individuals.

• Our Website is hosted on servers in the United Kingdom so none of the information that we collect, process or store as a result of this website is transferred outside of the European Economic Area (EEA).
• If data is transferred to an organisation outside of the UK/EEA during the course of your matter or relationship with us we will comply with the relevant legal rules governing such transfers.
• All of the firm’s IT systems are located in the UK.

• Provide you with a copy of your personal information that we hold
• Update your personal information where it is out-of-date or incorrect
• Delete personal information that we hold
• Restrict the way in which we process your information
• Consider any valid objections to our processing of your personal information
• Provide information you have given to us to a third party provider of services (where our lawful basis for processing is consent and where processing is automated)

We will respond to your request (including providing information on whether the rights apply in the particular circumstances) within the applicable statutory time period. If we are not sure of your identity, we may require you to provide further information in order for us to confirm who you are.

We may make changes to this policy from time to time as our business and internal practices and/or applicable laws change.  We will not make any use of your personal information that is inconsistent with the original purpose(s) for which it was collected or obtained (if we intend to do so, we will notify you in advance wherever possible) or otherwise than is permitted by applicable law.

If you would like to get in touch to discuss this policy, how we use your personal information, to exercise your rights or to provide feedback or make a complaint about use of your information, please contact us as follows:

Robert Williams, Family Law Partners, 5 Clifton Mews, Clifton Hill, Brighton BN1 3HR

You can also contact the Information Commissioner’s Office via https://ico.org.uk/  for information, advice or to make a complaint.