At Vinc Legal we appreciate the importance of protecting your personal information. Our Privacy Policy complies with the Australian Privacy Principles set out in the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and explains how your personal information will be managed when dealing with our legal firm.

For what purpose do we collect your personal information?

Vinc Legal collects personal information for the primary purpose of advising and representing clients in accordance with client instructions, including for the purposes of legal proceedings. We also collect personal information for marketing purposes.

Personal information that Vinc Legal may collect includes:

• name, address, telephone number, email address;
• your bank account details and credit card information;
• user ID’s and passwords;
• details of any services provided to you;
• records of communications with Vinc Legal;
• personal website usage information, such as your IP address; and,
• other personal information you provide to Vinc Legal when you participate in a promotion, promotional activity, survey, market research, or subscribe to our mailing list.

Information is only collected:

• if necessary for Vinc Legal’s operations;
• by lawful and fair means and not unreasonably obtrusively; and,
• where practicable, only from the individual concerned or a person authorised to act on the individual’s behalf.

Vinc Legal takes reasonable steps to ensure you are aware of:

• the likely use of the information;
• the right of access to the information;
• the identity and contact details of the organisation;
• any law requiring collection of the information; and,
• the main consequences of failure to provide the information.

How might we use and disclose your personal information?

Vinc Legal may use or disclose your personal information:

• for the primary purpose for which it was collected, i.e.: advising and representing clients in accordance with your instructions, including for the purpose of legal proceedings; or,
• you would reasonably expect this; or,
• you have consented; or,
• for direct marketing by Vinc Legal but giving you the opportunity to opt out of direct marketing. Vinc Legal includes its contact details in any direct marketing where the law requires or authorises Vinc Legal to do so; or,
• to third parties who provide services to Vinc Legal, for the primary purposes for which it was collected or for other purposes directly related to the purpose for which the personal information is collected. When Vinc Legal shares your personal information with third party service providers, we require that they use your personal information only for the purpose of providing services to Vinc Legal and subject to terms consistent with this privacy policy.

How is your personal information kept accurate and up-to-date?

Vinc Legal takes steps to ensure your personal information is accurate, up-to-date and not misleading by updating its records whenever changes to the information come to its attention. Vinc Legal disregards information that seems likely to be inaccurate or out-of-date by reason of the time which has elapsed since it was collected or by reason of any other information in its possession.

If you believe your information is incorrect, incomplete or not current, you can ask Vinc Legal to update this information by contacting our Privacy Officer. To contact our Privacy Officer please see contact details below.

Vinc Legal will correct information it has about you if it discovers, or you are able to show to a reasonable standard, that the information is incorrect. If you seek a correction and Vinc Legal disagrees that the information is incorrect, Vinc Legal will provide you with its reasons for taking that view.

Vinc Legal disregards information that seems likely to be inaccurate or out-of-date by reason of the time that has elapsed since it was collected or by reason of any other information in its possession.

Using our website

As with most websites, when you visit the Vinc Legal website or use an application on the Vinc Legal website, Vinc Legal may record anonymous information such as IP address, time, date, referring URL, pages accessed and documents downloaded type of browser and operating system.

Vinc Legal also uses “cookies.” A cookie is a small file that stays on your computer until, depending on whether it is a sessional or persistent cookie, you turn your computer off or it expires. Cookies may collect and store your personal information. You may adjust your internet browser to disable cookies. If cookies are disabled you may still use the Vinc Legal website, but the website may be limited in the use of some of the features.

The Vinc Legal websites may contain links to or from other websites. Vinc Legal is not responsible for the privacy practices of other websites. This privacy policy applies only to the information we collect on the Vinc Legal website. We encourage you to read the privacy policies of other websites you link to from the Vinc Legal website.

Marketing and opting-out

Vinc Legal may use your personal information for:

• promoting and marketing of current and future services;
• informing you of upcoming events and offers; and,
• analysing services so as to improve and develop new services.

Vinc Legal may disclose your personal information to third party marketing services providers so they may assist in improving the marketing and provision of our services to you.

Vinc Legal will only offer you services, where we reasonably believe that they could be of interest or benefit to you.

At the point Vinc Legal collects information from you, you may be asked to “opt in” to consent to Vinc Legal using or disclosing your personal information. You will generally be given the opportunity to “opt out” from receiving marketing communications. You may “opt out” from receiving these communications by clicking on an unsubscribe link at the end of an email or by contacting Vinc Legal with this request.

General Data Protection Regulation (EU) (‘GDPR’)

Where applicable we may require you to confirm your express, explicit consent when collecting your personal information for the purposes of compliance with the rules set out in the GDPR. For the purposes of the GDRP, you have the following rights regarding your personal information stored with us:

• the right to object to your personal information being processed;
• the right to data portability of your personal information;
• the right to complain or query how we process your personal information;
• the right to object to automated decision making using your personal information; and;
• the right to have your personal information forgotten by us.

You acknowledge that when using our website, you will be deemed to be the data controller in relation to any personal information that you collect and store and will be responsible for how such personal information is collected. You must ensure that you obtain consent and provide notice to any persons as required under the relevant privacy legislation in relation to the collection, storages and use of their personal information.

When you use our website, we act as a data processor only in relation to personal information and data entered, collected and stored by you. We will only access your data in accordance with written instructions given by you, or unless required to do so by the Privacy Act or GDPR.

Is your personal information secure?

Vinc Legal protects personal information from misuse or loss by restricting access to the information in electronic format and by appropriate physical and communications security. Any data destroyed is disposed of in a manner which protects the privacy of information in an appropriate manner.

Your personal information may be stored on a cloud storage system provided by a cloud services provider. Vinc Legal’s cloud service provider and host is located in Australia, and we require that such service provider complies with strict security standards regarding storage of your personal information as well as terms consistent with this privacy policy and the Privacy Act.

Do you have access to your personal information?

Vinc Legal acknowledges that individuals have a general right of access to information concerning them, and to have inaccurate information corrected. Access to information is subject to client confidentiality and legal professional privilege.

Subject to client confidentiality and legal professional privilege, you are able to access the personal information we hold about you by contacting our Privacy Officer. If access is refused to your information, Vinc Legal will give you a notice explaining our decision to the extent practicable and your options.

Can you maintain anonymity when dealing with our firm?

Vinc Legal allows individuals, where it is practicable, the option not to identify themselves when dealing with the firm. In some circumstances this may mean that we are not able to be as effective as we might otherwise be in the provision of our advice and representation.

Dealing with unsolicited information

Vinc Legal takes all reasonable steps to ensure that all unsolicited information is destroyed immediately.

Is your personal information sent overseas?

Whilst Vinc Legal generally stores personal information it collects within Australia, it may from time-to-time store certain of its personal information on a server located in the USA. In such circumstances, Vinc Legal ensures that such disclosures are subject to the same privacy protection as applies within Australia.

Do we collect sensitive information?

Vinc Legal does not collect sensitive information unless it is specifically relevant and necessary for the purpose of advising or representing a client, for the purpose of establishing, exercising or defending legal claims. Vinc Legal does not use government identifiers (e.g., tax file numbers) to identify individuals.

Complaints and disputes

If you have reason to believe that Vinc Legal has not complied with its obligations relating to your personal information under this privacy policy or under the Privacy Act, please refer any complaint to queries to our Privacy Officer.

Vinc Legal will ensure your complaint is handled its Privacy Officer in an appropriate and reasonable manner. A written notice of our decision regarding your complaint will be provided to you.

Who should you contact for further information?

Please refer any queries about Vinc Legal and privacy issues to our:

Vinc Legal

Phone: 02 8076 6016
Email: info@vinclegal.com.au
Level 21/133 Castlereagh Street, Sydney, NSW 2000

How this policy changes

This policy may change from time to time and will be updated on the website or may be obtained free of charge upon request.

Vinc Legal reserves the right to make amendments to this Privacy Policy at any time. If you have objections to the Privacy Policy, you should not access or use the site.