Privacy Policy

We take your privacy very seriously. Please read this privacy policy carefully as it 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 or supervisory authorities if 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 UK) 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.

Key terms

It would be helpful to start by explaining some key terms used in this policy:

Data Protection Partner

We are not required under GDPR to appoint a Data Protection Officer (DPO)as we are not a public authority or body, our core activities do not consist of data processing operations that require regular and systematic monitoring of data subjects on a large scale, nor do our core activities consist of large-scale processing of special categories of data (sensitive data such as personal information on health, religion, race or sexual orientation) and/or personal data relating to criminal convictions and offences. We have chosen not to appoint a DPO voluntarily. We have made suitable alternative arrangements by appointing a Data Protection Partner who oversees data protection.

Personal data we collect about you

The table below sets out the personal data we will or may collect in the course of advising and/or acting for you. It also covers data that we will or may collect as part of our business relationship with you, for example in relation to introductions or recommendations.

This personal data is required to enable us to provide our service to you. If you do not provide personal data we ask for, it may delay or prevent us from providing services to you.

How your personal data is collected

We collect most of this information from you. However, we may also collect information:

• from publicly accessible sources, eg Companies House or HM Land Registry;
• directly from a third party, eg:
  • sanctions screening providers;
  • credit reference agencies;
  • client due diligence providers;
• from a third party with your consent, eg:
  • your bank or building society, another financial institution or advisor;
  • consultants and other professionals we may engage in relation to your matter;
  • your employer and/or trade union, professional body or pension administrators;
  • your doctors, medical and occupational health professionals;
• via our website including website enquiry forms - we use cookies on our website (for more information on cookies, please see our cookies policy /site/help/cookie_details.html)  
• We use a tool called Ruler Analytics, this may track your activity on our website and track and record your incoming phone calls.
• via our information technology (IT) systems, eg:
  • case management, document management and time recording systems;
  • door entry systems and reception logs;
  • automated monitoring of our websites and other technical systems, such as our computer networks and connections, CCTV and access control systems, communications systems, email and instant messaging systems.

How and why we use your personal data

Under data protection law, we can only use your personal data if we have a proper reason for doing so, eg:

• to comply with our legal and regulatory obligations;
• for the performance of our contract with you or to take steps at your request before entering into a contract;
• for our legitimate interests or those of a third party; or
• where you have given consent.

A legitimate interest is when we have a business or commercial reason to use your information, so long as this is not overridden by your own rights and interests.

The table below explains what we use (process) your personal data for and our reasons for doing so:

The above table does not apply to special category personal data, which we will only process with your explicit consent.

How and why we use special category personal data

Under data protection law, we can only use special category personal data where:

• we have a proper reason for doing so (see above: How and why we use personal data), AND
• one of the ‘grounds’ for using special category personal data applies

There are ten potential grounds for using special category personal data under data protection law. Generally, where we use special category personal data, we will do so on the ground that this is necessary for establishing, exercising or defending legal claims. This includes using special category personal data, where necessary, for:

• actual or prospective court proceedings;
• obtaining legal advice; or
• establishing, exercising or defending legal rights in any other way.

Where this does not apply, we will seek explicit consent to process special category personal data.

Marketing communications

We may use your personal data to send you updates (by email, text message, telephone or post) about legal developments that might be of interest to you and/or information about our services and events.

We have a legitimate interest in processing your personal data for marketing purposes (see above ‘How and why we use your personal data’). This means we do not usually need your consent to send you marketing communications. However, where consent is needed, we will ask for this consent separately and clearly.

We will always treat your personal data with the utmost respect and never share it with other organisations outside Clarkson Wright & Jakes Ltd and Clarkson Wright & Jakes Services LLP for marketing purposes.

You have the right to opt out of receiving marketing communications at any time by emailing cwj@cwj.co.uk or using the ‘unsubscribe’ link in emails or ‘STOP’ number in texts.

We may ask you to confirm or update your marketing preferences if you instruct us to provide further services in the future, or if there are changes in the law, regulation or the structure of our business.

Who we share your personal data with

We routinely share personal data with:

• professional advisers who we instruct on your behalf or refer you to, eg barristers, medical professionals, accountants, tax advisors or other experts;
• other third parties where necessary to carry out your instructions, eg your mortgage provider or HM Land Registry in the case of a property transaction or Companies House;
• Clarkson Wright & Jakes Services LLP and Clarkson Wright & Jakes Notaries LLP;
• credit reference agencies;
• our insurers and brokers;
• external auditors, eg in relation to ISO accreditation and the audit of our accounts;
• our banks;
• external service suppliers, representatives and agents that we use to make our business more efficient, eg typing services, marketing agencies, document collation or analysis suppliers.

We only allow our service providers to handle your personal data if we are satisfied they take appropriate measures to protect your personal data. We also impose contractual obligations on service providers relating to ensure they can only use your personal data to provide services to us and to you.

We may disclose and exchange information with law enforcement agencies and regulatory bodies to comply with our legal and regulatory obligations.

We may also need to share some personal data with other parties, such as potential buyers of some or all of our business or during a restructuring. Usually, information will be anonymised but this may not always be possible. The recipient of the information will be bound by confidentiality obligations.

Where your personal data is held

Information may be held at our offices, third party agencies, service providers, representatives and agents as described above (see ‘Who we share your personal data with’).

Some of these third parties may be based outside the European Economic Area. For more information, including on how we safeguard your personal data when this occurs, see below: ‘Transferring your personal data out of the UK and EEA’.

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:

• 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. For further details on this please contact our data protection partner.

When it is no longer necessary to retain your personal data, we will delete or anonymise it.

Transferring your personal data out of the UK and EEA

To deliver services to you, it is sometimes necessary for us to share your personal data outside the UK and/or European Economic Area (EEA), eg:

• with your and our service providers located outside the UK/EEA;
• if you are based outside the UK/EEA;
• where there is an international dimension to the matter in which we are advising you.

These transfers are subject to special rules under European and UK data protection law. This means we can only transfer your personal information to a country or international organisation outside the UK/EEA where:

• the European Commission has issued an ‘adequacy decision’ in relation to that country or international organisation; or
• there are appropriate safeguards in place, together with enforceable rights and effective legal remedies for data subjects; or
• a specific exception applies under data protection law

These are explained below.

European Commission adequacy decision

The European Commission has the power to determine whether a country or international organisation provides an adequate level of protection for personal information and, if it does, to issue an ‘adequacy decision’. The effect of such a decision is that personal information can flow from the UK/EEA to that country without any further safeguards being necessary.

It can take several years for the European Commission to issue an adequacy decision and only a small number of countries currently benefit from one.

Some countries we may transfer personal information to do not have the benefit of an adequacy decision. This does not necessarily mean they provide inadequate protection for personal information, but we must look at alternative grounds for transferring the personal information, such as implementing safeguards or relying on an exception, as explained below.

Transfers with appropriate safeguards

We may transfer your data to a third country or international organisation on this ground where we are satisfied the transfer complies with data protection law, appropriate safeguards are in place, and enforceable rights and effective legal remedies are available for data subjects.

The safeguards will usually include using standard data protection contract clauses approved by the European Commission.

To obtain a copy of the standard data protection clauses and further information about relevant safeguards, see https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-data-protection/guide-to-the-general-data-protection-regulation-gdpr/international-transfers/

Transfers under an exception

In the absence of an adequacy decision or appropriate safeguards, we may transfer personal information to a third country or international organisation where an exception applies under relevant data protection law, eg;

• you have explicitly consented to the proposed transfer after having been informed of the possible risks;
• the transfer is necessary for the performance of a contract between us or to take pre-contract measures at your request;
• the transfer is necessary for a contract in your interests, between us and another person; or
• the transfer is necessary to establish, exercise or defend legal claims.

We may also transfer information for the purpose of our compelling legitimate interests, so long as those interests are not overridden by your interests, rights and freedoms. Specific conditions apply to such transfers and we will provide relevant information if and when we seek to transfer your personal information on this ground.

Your rights

You have the following rights, which you can exercise free of charge:

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 us—see below: ‘How to contact us’; 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.

Keeping your personal data secure

We have appropriate security measures to prevent personal data from being accidentally lost, or used or accessed unlawfully. We limit access to your personal data to those who have a genuine business need to access it. Those processing your information will do so only in an authorised manner and are subject to a duty of confidentiality.

We also have procedures in place to deal with any suspected data security breach. We will notify you and any applicable regulator of a suspected data security breach where we are legally required to do so.

How to complain

We hope that we can resolve any query or concern you may raise about our use of your information.

The General Data Protection Regulation also gives you 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 https://ico.org.uk/concerns or telephone: 0303 123 1113.

Changes to this privacy policy

This privacy policy was initially published on 1 May 2018. The date of the most recent update is shown in the footer below.

We may change this privacy policy from time to time, when we do, we will inform you via email.

How to contact us

Please contact us by post, email or telephone if you have any questions about this privacy policy or the information we hold about you.

Our contact details are shown below:

Do you need extra help?

If you would like this policy in another format (for example audio, large print, braille) please contact us (see ‘How to contact us’ above).

24.09.2020