Betts Law Company Privacy Policy

This document sets out the way in which Betts Law Company (we, us) collects, uses, stores and discloses personal information in accordance with our obligations under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth), including the Australian Privacy Principles.

Definitions

In this policy:

• Personal Information has the meaning given under the Privacy Act but, in short, means information or an opinion about an individual that can be used to identify that individual.
• Privacy Act means the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) including the Australian Privacy Principles (as amended from time to time).
• Sensitive Information has the same meaning as under the Privacy Act.
• Services means the legal and related services that we provide.
• Website means www.bettslawco.com and any other websites or social media channels where you interact with us.
• Words like includes, including, such as or for example are not words of limitation.

What Personal Information do we collect and why?

To provide you with our Services, we need to collect Personal Information. If any of the Personal Information you provide is incomplete or inaccurate, we may be unable to provide Services to you, or the quality of those Services and the accuracy of our advice may be affected.
The Personal Information we collect will depend on our relationship with you, the Services you require and the particular circumstances of your matter. This may include:

• your name, email address, phone numbers and postal address;
• Personal Information (including Sensitive Information) provided to us by you or third parties during a matter;
• your bank account or payment details;
• information contained in a CV if you apply for a position with us;
• other information relevant to the matter in which we are acting for you.

How do we collect Personal Information?

We prefer to collect Personal Information directly from you. For example, when you communicate with us, during meetings, by telephone or when you provide us with documents or information.
We may also collect Personal Information:

• from third parties we refer you to or who refer you to us;
• from credit reporting and fraud-checking agencies;
• from debt collection agencies if you default in payment to us;
• through our Website or other electronic communications (including emails or online forms);
• from publicly available sources;
• or where required or permitted by law (including the Privacy Act).

How do we use your Personal Information?

We use the Personal Information we collect to provide our Services.
We may also use your Personal Information:

• to comply with our contractual and legal obligations;
• for insurance, risk management and governance purposes;
• (unless you tell us otherwise, see Marketing below) to provide you with information about our services, legal updates or invitations to events;
• or otherwise as permitted under the Privacy Act.

If you default in payment to us, we may use your Personal Information to recover any outstanding amounts.

Marketing

We do not provide your Personal Information to third parties for marketing purposes.
From time to time, we may use your Personal Information to send you legal updates or invite you to briefings and events we hold. We do not use Sensitive Information for marketing.
If you do not wish to receive marketing communications from us, please contact our Privacy Officer ([email protected]) and we will remove your details from our marketing database.

Disclosing Personal Information

Legal Professional Privilege:
When you provide us with Personal Information in the course of seeking or receiving legal advice, that information may be protected by legal professional privilege. If so, it is protected from disclosure except where required by law, a court order, or where you instruct us to disclose it.

Disclosure to third parties:
We may disclose your Personal Information to third parties in circumstances such as:

• where you have consented to the disclosure;
• when required for the purpose for which it was collected (e.g. to provide our Services);
• where you would reasonably expect it to be disclosed (e.g. in court proceedings, briefing counsel or experts);
• where required or permitted by law (including the Privacy Act) or court order;
• to investigate fraud or unlawful activity;
• or to prevent or lessen a serious threat to someone's life or health.

Disclosing Personal Information overseas

We do not routinely store Personal Information offshore or in offshore cloud services.
However, in some matters, we may need to disclose Personal Information overseas - for example, where your matter involves foreign jurisdictions, transactions with an international element or where we need advice from overseas counsel or experts. You will be informed if this applies to you.
Overseas recipients may not be subject to the Australian Privacy Principles or equivalent laws on legal professional privilege. In some circumstances, foreign laws could compel disclosure of your information.
If you consent to us disclosing Personal Information overseas in these situations, you acknowledge that we may not take steps to ensure the overseas recipient complies with Australian privacy laws, and you may not be able to seek redress under the Privacy Act.

Sending information electronically

When you send us information by email or through our Website, that information (including Personal Information) may be stored on our systems in line with our policies.
While we take reasonable steps to protect Personal Information, no data transmission over the internet is fully secure. Sending information to us electronically is at your own risk.
If you access other websites via our Website, your Personal Information will be handled according to that website's policies.
We recommend you take steps to protect your own information, including:

• closing your browser when finished;
• avoiding providing Personal Information on public computers.

Please contact us immediately if you believe your Personal Information has been compromised or you have any concerns about our privacy practices.

How we protect and retain your Personal Information

We aim to keep our systems secure from unauthorised access. Our staff are trained in confidentiality obligations and privacy compliance.
We use physical, electronic and procedural safeguards, including secure storage and password protection.
We generally retain matter files for at least seven years after closure, but some electronic information may be kept indefinitely for legal, governance or insurance purposes. Personal Information may also be retained in backups, for debt recovery or dispute resolution, or where required by law.

Personal Information of Job Applicants

If you apply for a position with us, we will collect Personal Information such as your contact details and CV, and we may collect Sensitive Information (e.g. about prior criminal convictions) where relevant.
We may collect this information directly or from third parties (such as referees or recruitment agencies) or publicly available sources. We will only use it:

• to consider your job application;
• to create an employment relationship with you if successful;
• or as otherwise permitted by law.

Updating or correcting your Personal Information

You can request access to your Personal Information or ask us to correct it if it is inaccurate or out of date by contacting our Privacy Officer (details below). For security, we may ask you to verify your identity.
If we have collected Personal Information from third parties, you may ask for the source of that information.
If we lawfully refuse access or correction under the Privacy Act, we will notify you in writing and explain your options for lodging a complaint.

How to make a privacy complaint

If you believe we have breached the Australian Privacy Principles, please contact our Privacy Officer first. If we cannot resolve your complaint, you can contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner.

Changes to our Privacy Policy

This document sets out our current Privacy Policy. We may update this Policy from time to time; the latest version will always be available at www.bettslawco.com.

Contact us

If you have any questions about this Policy or our handling of your Personal Information, please contact:
Privacy Officer
Email: [email protected]
Website: https://bettslawco.com/
Office of the Australian Information Commissioner:
Website: www.oaic.gov.au
Post: GPO Box 5218 Sydney NSW 2001
Email: [email protected]