1. Introduction
1.1 We take your privacy seriously and we ask that you read this privacy notice carefully. It contains important information on who we are, how and why we collect, store, use and share personal information, your rights in relation to your personal information and on how to contact us and supervisory authorities in the event you have a complaint.
1.2 When we use your personal data we are regulated under the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and we are responsible as 'controller' of that personal data for these purposes. Our use of your personal data is subject to your instructions, the UK GDPR, other relevant UK legislation and our professional duty of confidentiality.
2. Key Terms
| We, us, our: | Wykes O'Donnell Williams (a partnership). |
| Personal Data: | Any information relating to an identified or identifiable individual. |
| Sensitive Personal Data: | All data within the Special Category below with the addition of data relating to your finances, social and family circumstances. |
| Special Category Personal Data: | Personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious beliefs, philosophical beliefs or trade union membership. Genetic and biometric data, data concerning health, sex life or sexual orientation. |
3. The information we collect from you and use
We primarily process data for our business of supplying legal services. The list below sets out the personal data we will or may collect in the course of dealing with your enquiry, advising and/or acting for you, or during the course of your employment (if you are an employee in our business):
- Your name, address and telephone number
- Information to enable us to check and verify your identity, e.g. your date of birth or passport details
- Your National Insurance number and tax details
- Your bank and/or building society details
- Details of your online presence
- Details of your partner/spouse, dependants, or other family members
- Electronic contact details, e.g. your email address and mobile phone number
- Information relating to the matter in which you are seeking our advice/representation
- Information to enable us to undertake a credit or other financial checks on you and your financial details so far as relevant to your instructions, e.g. the source of your funds if you are instructing on a purchase transaction, if we are giving you advice, or required as an employee for management purposes
- Your employment status and details including salary and benefits, where relevant, records relating to sickness and attendance, performance, training, disciplinary, conduct and grievances
- Details of your pension arrangements
- Your racial or ethnic origin, gender and sexual orientation, religious or similar beliefs, e.g. if they are relevant to a family case, required under a legal or regulatory obligation as an employee
- Your medical records
- Your police records, information from the Courts, Local Authority or Legal Aid Agency, if relevant to your case
This 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.
4. How we obtain your personal data
We collect most of this information from you, direct. However, we may also collect information:-
4.1 from publicly accessible sources, e.g. Companies House or HM Land Registry;
4.2 directly from a third party, e.g.
(a) HM Home Office Sanctions screening providers;
(b) credit reference agencies;
(c) client due diligence providers;
4.3 from a third party with your consent, e.g.
(a) your bank or building society, another financial institution or adviser;
(b) consultants and other professionals we may engage in relation to your matter;
(c) your employer or pension administrators;
(d) your doctor, medical or occupational health professionals;
(e) the Legal Aid Agency, the police, Courts or Local Authorities;
4.4 via our website—
(a) when you contact us through our online enquiry and information request
(b) When you use our website for acquiring information
(c) we use cookies on our website (our Cookie Policy is available on request).
(d) website links - our website may contain links to other websites. Please note that we are not responsible for the privacy practice of such other websites and advise you to read the privacy statements of each website you visit which collects personal data;
(e) via our information technology (IT) systems, e.g.
- case management, document management and time recording systems;
(f) automated monitoring of our website and other technical systems, such as our computer networks and connections, communications systems, and email/messaging systems
5. How we use your personal data
We only use your personal data if we have a proper reason for doing so, e.g.
- to comply with our legal and regulatory obligations;
- to facilitate the performance of our contract with you, to deal with your enquiry, 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.
5.1 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.
5.2 The table below explains what we use (process) your personal data for and our reasons for doing so:
| What we use your personal data for | Our reasons |
|---|---|
| To deal with your initial enquiry and provide legal advice services to you | For the performance of our contract with you or to take steps at your request before entering into a contract |
| Conducting checks to identify and verify identity | To comply with our legal and regulatory obligations and for our legitimate interests in the performance of our contract with you. |
| Screening for financial and other sanctions or embargoes | To comply with our legal and regulatory obligations and for our legitimate interests in the performance of our contract with you. |
| Other processing necessary to comply with professional, legal and regulatory obligations that apply to our business, e.g. under health and safety regulation or rules issued by our professional regulator | To comply with our legal and regulatory obligations and for our legitimate interests in the performance of our contract with you. |
| Gathering and providing information required by or relating to audits, enquiries or investigations by the ombudsman or regulatory bodies | To comply with our legal and regulatory obligations |
| Ensuring business policies are adhered to, e.g. policies covering security and internet use | For our legitimate interests or those of a third party, i.e. to make sure we are following our own internal procedures so we can deliver the best service to you |
| Operational reasons, such as improving efficiency, training and quality control | For our legitimate interests or those of a third party, i.e. to be as efficient as we can so we can deliver the best service for you at the best price |
| Ensuring the confidentiality of commercially sensitive information | For our legitimate interests or those of a third party, i.e. to protect our intellectual property and other commercially valuable information. To comply with our legal and regulatory obligations. |
| Statistical analysis to help us manage our practice, e.g. in relation to our financial performance, client base, work type or other efficiency measures | For our legitimate interests or those of a third party, i.e. to be as efficient as we can so we can deliver the best service for you at the best price |
| Preventing unauthorised access and modifications to systems | For our legitimate interests or those of a third party, i.e. to prevent and detect criminal activity that could be damaging for us and for you |
| Updating and enhancing client records | For the performance of our contract with you or to take steps at your request before entering into a contract To comply with our legal and regulatory obligations For our legitimate interests or those of a third party, e.g. making sure that we can keep in touch with our clients about existing and new services |
| Statutory returns | To comply with our legal and regulatory obligations |
| Ensuring safe working practices, staff administration and assessments | To comply with our legal and regulatory obligations For our legitimate interests or those of a third party, e.g. to make sure we are following our own internal procedures and working efficiently so we can deliver the best service to you |
| Marketing our services and those of selected third parties to: existing and former clients; prospective clients who have previously expressed an interest in our services; prospective clients with whom we have had no previous dealings but who may be interested in our services. | For our legitimate interests or those of a third party, i.e. to promote our business to existing and former clients and non-clients who may be interested in our services |
| Credit reference checks via external credit reference agencies | For our legitimate interests or a those of a third party, i.e. for credit control and to ensure our clients are likely to be able to pay for our services |
| External audits and quality checks, e.g. for quality accreditations such as, but not limited to SQM and the audit of our client and office accounts | For our legitimate interests or a those of a third party, i.e. to maintain our accreditations so we can demonstrate we operate at the highest standards To comply with our legal and regulatory obligations |
| Where processing is necessary for the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims | To comply with our legal and regulatory obligations and for our legitimate interests in the performance of our contract with you. |
| Where processing is necessary to protect the vital interests of the data subject or of another natural person where the data subject is physically or legally incapable of giving consent. | To comply with our legal and regulatory obligations and for our legitimate interests in the performance of our contract with you |
6. Sharing information
We routinely share personal data with:
- other third parties where necessary to carry out your instructions e.g. the Courts, CAFCASS, the Legal Aid Agency, your mortgage provider and HM Land Registry (in the case of a property transaction), estate agents or Companies House;
- AML checking providers/credit reference agencies;
- our insurers and brokers;
- external auditors, e.g. in relation to accreditations and the audit of our client records and transactions;
- our bank;
- external service suppliers, representatives and agents that we use to make our business more efficient, e.g. support services, or analysis suppliers;
6.1 We only allow service providers we instruct to handle your personal data if we are satisfied they take appropriate measures to protect your personal data.
6.2 We may disclose and exchange information with other solicitors and legal professionals, law enforcement agencies, ombudsmen and regulatory and professional bodies to comply with our legal and regulatory obligations.
6.3 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 re-structuring. Usually, information will be anonymised but this may not always be possible. The recipient of the information will be bound by confidentiality obligations.
7. Where your data is held
7.1 Information may be held at our offices and third party agencies, service providers, representatives and agents as described above (see 'Sharing information').
7.2 Some of these third parties may be based outside of the UK or the European Economic Area (EEA). For more information, including on how we safeguard your personal data when this occurs, see below: 'Transfer of your information out of the EEA'.
8. How long we keep your information
We will keep your personal data after we have finished dealing with your enquiry, advising or acting for you or your employment has ceased. We will do so for one of these reasons:
- to show that we treated you fairly;
- to keep records required by law.
8.1 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. A copy of our retention periods schedule is available on request.
8.2 When it is no longer necessary to retain your personal data we will delete it.
9. Transfer of your information out of the EEA
To deliver services to you, it is sometimes necessary for us to share your personal data outside the of the EEA, e.g.
- with your and our service providers located outside the UK or EEA;
- if you are based outside the EEA;
- where there is an international dimension to the matter in which we are advising you.
9.1 These transfers are subject to special rules under UK data protection law.
9.2 We will transfer your data if the government has decided that a particular country ensures an adequate level of protection under Article 45 (known as an 'adequacy regulation') or under an appropriate transfer mechanism under Article 46.
10. 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 (the right of access) |
| Rectification | The right to require us to correct any mistakes in your personal data |
| Erasure | The right to require us to delete your personal data—in certain situations |
| Restrict processing | The right to require us to restrict processing of your personal data—in certain circumstances, e.g. 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; —in certain other situations to our continued processing of your personal data, e.g. processing carried out for the purpose of our legitimate interests. |
If you would like to exercise any of those rights, please:-
10.1 Make a written data subject request. You can email, call or write to us and ensure that you;
- let us have enough information to identify you e.g. 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.
11. Keeping your personal information safe
11.1 We have appropriate security measures in place to prevent personal information from being accidentally lost, or used or accessed in an unauthorised way. We limit access to your personal information to those who have a genuine business need to know it. Those processing your information will do so only in an authorised manner and are subject to a duty of confidentiality.
11.2 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.
12. How to complain
12.1 We hope that we can resolve any query or concern you raise about our use of your information with you directly.
12.2 If you feel that your data has not been handled correctly you have a right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner, who may be contacted at https://ico.org.uk/concerns/ or by telephone: 0303 123 1113.
13. Changes to this privacy notice
This privacy notice was published on 4 March 2024. We may change this privacy notice on occasion. You should check this policy to ensure you are aware of the most recent version.
14. How to contact us
Please contact our Data Protection Officer, David Williams, if you have any questions about this privacy notice or the information we hold about you.
Contact details are as follows:-
By email: davewilliams@wykesilkeston.co.uk
By letter: David Williams, Wykes O'Donnell Williams, 14/15 Street, Ilkeston, Derbyshire, DE7 5GT
By telephone: 01159 328776
15. Do you need extra help?
If you would like this notice in another format (for example: audio, large print, braille) please contact us (see 'How to contact us' above).
