This privacy policy sets out how we collect, use, store and disclose the personal information of people we deal with. We may modify this policy from time to time by updating it on our website.

1.      What personal information do we collect?

1.1       Personal information is any information about, or an opinion about a person who is identified or can reasonably be identified.

1.2       We may collect your personal information if:

• you enquire about, or engage us to provide legal services, for you, your employer or an organisation associated with you;
• you are involved in a matter we are handling;
• you are an employee or contractor of Conrad Law;
• you apply for a role at Conrad Law, participate in a work experience or internship program, or work for us on a temporary or contract basis.

1.3       Some of the types of personal information we may collect include:

• information such as your name, job title, phone number, address and email address;
• for current and potential clients, or someone giving instructions on behalf of a client, or directors or ultimate owner of a client and entities involved in matters we are conducting or advising on: full name, date of birth, home address, identity documents (including government ID numbers and expiry dates), your photo identifciation and the results of inspection or search of internet history, public record searches and sanctions lists.
• for employees, information needed in connection with your employment, including emergency contacts, pay and benefits information, performance and training records;
• if you apply for a position with us: your work history, references, background check information, identity documents and your right to work in Australia;
• where needed for the matter we are working on: your name, identity documents such as a passport or driver’s licence, photo and signature;
• your or your organisation’s financial, tax and billing information, including bank account and payment card details;
• your communication preferences;
• device identifiers and internet service provider details when you access our website or online services;
• usernames and passwords for our website or systems; and
• with your consent, sensitive information including: health information, information needed to give you legal advice, your memberships of associations or boards for conflict-checking or regulatory purposes; your gender, ethnicity and other sensitive details collected directly or from third parties.

2.  How do we collect your personal information?

2.1       We will usually collect information directly from you. In some cases we collect it from other sources including:

• your employer, business contacts, regulatory bodies, credit reporting agencies, suppliers or public records;
• recruitment consultants, former employers, universities or training providers (where you apply for a role with us); or
• search and technology providers including InfoTrack and our identity verification and client onboarding systems

3.  Why do we collect, use and disclose your personal information?

3.1       We may use your personal information to:

• carry out client identity checks, fraud prevention procedures and new client onboarding processes;
• verify your identity;
• provide and our legal services;
• our internal operations;
• communicate with you and our clients associated with you;
• comply with our legal, regulatory and professional obligations, including where we are required by law to report matters to regulatory authorities without your knowledge or consent;
• comply with court orders and protect or defend our legal rights; and
• handle your requests, enquiries or complaints.

3.2       We are also bound by professional obligations of confidentiality to our clients. We will treat all client information, including personal information, in accordance with those obligations.

3.3       In some circumstances, our legal and regulatory obligations may override our obligation of confidentiality to you.

4.  To whom do we disclose your personal information?

4.1       We may disclose your information to:

• our clients, where we collected your information in the course of providing services to them;
• barristers, legal consultants and other specialists and experts involved in your matter;
• our suppliers, contractors and agents who help us provide our services;
• third parties you have authorised to receive your information; and
• government agencies, regulators, law enforcement bodies and courts, as required or permitted by law.

4.2       Some of these parties are located overseas, including in New Zealand, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Singapore and the European Union.  For example, IT providers may store your information in overseas locations.

5.  Using our Website, Electronic Messages and Cookies

5.1       When you visit our website, we and our internet service provider may collect information such as the pages you visit, the time and date of your visit, your device identifier, the documents you download, time spent on a page or webinar, how you arrived at the site, and the type of device and browser you use. This information may be used to improve our services and for website development and statistics.

5.2       We may also use cookies — small files stored on your device — to track your activity on our website and send you information that may interest you. Cookies may store a unique identifier to recognise whether you have visited a page before.

5.3       Most browsers accept cookies by default. You can change your browser settings to block cookies or to notify you each time one is sent.

5.4       If you access our website by clicking a link in an email or message from us, we may collect information about your website activity before and after that visit. Subject to your communication preferences, we may contact you based on that activity. You can opt out of marketing emails at any time using the contact details below or by clicking Unsubscribe.

6.  How do we store and protect your information?

6.1       We hold your personal information in electronic and/or hard-copy form. We use physical and electronic security measures to protect it from misuse, loss or unauthorised access, including restricting physical access to our offices, using firewalls, secure databases, password protection, up-to-date anti-virus software, cyber security services and data integrity checks. All staff are bound to keep your personal information secure and confidential.

6.2       We cannot guarantee the security of information transmitted over the internet. If you send us information online, including by email, you do so at your own risk.

6.3       Our website and electronic communications may contain links to third-party websites. We are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of those sites. Their privacy policies may differ from ours. You should read them before using those websites.

6.4       We will update, retain and delete your data in accordance with our policies, our client agreement with you, applicable laws and your instructions where relevant.

6.5       We store and process your information both on-site and using cloud services software, products and tools (including Artificial Intelligence) provided by:

• Microsoft;
• Anthropic;
• Abbey FineReader PDF;
• Silq;
• Xero; and
• InfoTrack.

6.6       We endeavour to use cloud services that commit to storing and processing information in Australia and to adhere to the Australian Privacy Principles set out in the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth). However most of these organisations advise that some data provided to them may in some circumstances be shared offshore. We are unable to confirm the extent to which that will be the case. As a result, we cannot say for sure that none of your information may be stored or processed outside Australia by these organisations.

6.7       Whilst we understand that the Artificial Intelligence services we use, store and use the data we submit to them only for the purposes of processing our AI requests, we are unable to verify that will always be the case.  We cannot be certain for example, that your data will not be used by Microsoft or Anthropic for AI training or other purposes.

6.8       We use Adobe Acrobat Sign for distribution of documents for electronic signature. Adobe use data centres located in North America, Europe and other Asia-Pacific countries. As a result, copies of documents uploaded to Adobe for signature, audit trail and signature metadata will likely be held and processed by Adobe outside Australia.

7.  Do you have to provide your personal information?

7.1       You may deal with us without providing your personal information, but this may limit the services we can offer.

7.2       However, Regulatory requirements we must comply with may make it impossible for us to accept an engagement from you, or to restrict the scope of services we can provide to you, if you do provide requested personal information to us.

7.3       Further information about what personal information we may collect as part of our client identity checks, fraud prevention procedures and new client onboarding processes is available on request.

8.  Accessing or correcting your personal information

8.1       Under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth), you have the right to:

• request access to the personal information we hold about you; and
• ask us to update or correct any information that is inaccurate, incomplete or out of date.

8.2       To do either, contact our Privacy Officer using the details below. We may need to verify your identity before actioning your request. In some circumstances we may have valid grounds to refuse, and if so, we will explain why.

11.  Making a complaint

11.1     If you believe we have breached the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth), or wish to complain about how we have handled your personal information, contact us using the details below. Please include your name, email address and phone number, and describe your complaint clearly.

11.2     Your complaint will be investigated by our Privacy Officer and we will communicate the outcome to you as soon as possible.

11.3     If you are not satisfied with our response, you may lodge a complaint with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) at enquiries@oaic.gov.au, on 1300 363 992, or via their website at https://www.oaic.gov.au/.

 Conrad Business & Succession Law Pty Ltd

Street address:            Level 4A, 122 Walker Street, Townsville, Qld, 4810
Postal address:           PO Box 1400, Townsville, Qld, 4810
Telephone:                  07 4772 2333
Email:                          enquiries @ conradlaw.com.au