Privacy Policy

E J Moyle LLP Privacy Policy and Notice

This Privacy Policy sets out how we, E J Moyle LLP, will use and protect any information that you give to us.

We are committed to ensuring that your privacy is protected. 

As an essential part of our business, we collect and manage Client and Non-Client data.  We act as “Data Controller” in respect of the information we gather and process.

Our use of your Personal Information is regulated under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), and any information by which you can be identified when using our website or supplied by you prior to or during the course of a matter on which you instruct us, can only be used in accordance with this Privacy Policy and GDPR.

We may need to change this Policy occasionally to keep up to date with the latest Data Protection Law.  This will be done by updating our webpage and therefore you should refer back to that page from time to time to ensure that you have no objection to any changes we may need to make.

What Information we collect from you

Depending on the nature of the service you ask us to provide, we may collect the following “personal data” information:

• Your Name
• Your Date of Birth
• Your Home Address
• Your Email Address
• Your telephone contact numbers
• Financial Information
• National Insurance Number

We will only process special category personal data with your explicit permission.

Please note that all the Personal Information we receive from you is treated with the strictest of confidentiality.

How we use your Personal Information

We use the information you give us to understand your needs so as to provide you with the service you require.  It is therefore used for the following reasons:

• To set you up as a client, open a client file for you, provide you with our legal services, administer and manage our relationship with you
• To carry out regulatory and compliance checks, including verifying
• To ensure the billing of any procured services by you, and obtain payment
• To contact you about legal updates that may be of interest to you
• To communicate with you via telephone, email, and in writing
• To carry out Client Satisfaction Surveys at the conclusion of your matter
• To process and respond to any complaints in order to meet our legal obligations
• To monitor and record information relating to the use of our services, to include our website
• To bring or defend legal proceedings

The information that we need for these purposes is “personal data”.  We may also process sensitive classes of information which includes:

• Physical or mental health details
• Racial or ethnic origin details
• Civil Partnership or relationship details
• Details of your partner, civil partner or spouse
• Religious or other beliefs

The use of the above is subject to your instructions, Data Protection, and our duty of confidentiality. 

Security Measures we have in place to protect your Personal Information

We have appropriate security measures to prevent your Personal Information from being accidentally lost, used or accessed in an unauthorised way, altered or disclosed.  These measures include:

• Protecting against potential breaches of confidentiality
• Ensuring all IT facilities are protected against damage, loss or misuse
• Increasing the awareness and understanding of the requirements of information security, and the responsibility of our colleagues to protect the confidentiality and integrity of the information that they handle on behalf of E J Moyle LLP
• Ensuring optimum security on our website.

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

Who we share your Personal Information with

We will always treat your Personal Information with the utmost respect, and will never sell or share your Personal Information with other organisations.  However,we may need to share your personal data with trusted third parties, such as:

• Professional Advisers who we want to instruct on your behalf or refer to, for example, Counsel, Medical professionals, Accountants, Tax Advisers or other Experts
• Other Third Parties where necessary to carry out your instructions, for example, HM Land Registry in the case of a property transaction, Companies House, your Mortgage lender, Lender Exchange and Lender Panels
• Our Insurers and Broker for the purpose of our Professional Indemnity Insurance
• The Auditors of our Accounts
• Our bank
• External service providers, representatives and Agents we use to ensure our business is efficient, for example, typing services
• Our IT support and service providers
• Law Enforcement Agencies and Regulatory Bodies to comply with our legal and regulatory obligations

We only allow our service providers to handle your personal data if we are satisfied that they take appropriate measures to protect your personal data.

Use of our Website

If you fill in a form on our website, or contact us via another means, we will collect that information you provide when you contact us, such as, your name and contact details.  We will use this information to:

• Send to you the information you have requested
• Respond to your enquiry

Money Laundering

We will receive personal data from you for the purposes of our Money Laundering checks, such as, photographic and address identification.  These will be processed for the purpose of preventing Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing, or as otherwise permitted by law or with your express consent.

Your Obligations

If you forward to us personal data about anyone other than yourself, you will be required to ensure that you have the appropriate consents to do so, so that we may use that personal data for the purpose for which you have provided it to this Firm.

Do you have to provide us with your Personal Information?

Where we have stated that your Personal Information is used to comply with the Statutory requirements, carry out a contract with you or to take steps to enter into that contract, we will need you to provide the Personal Information requested.  If you do not provide your Personal Information we need when we ask for it, we may not be able to respond to you, enter into a contract with you, meet our obligations under the contract, or comply with our legal obligations.  If you have any concerns about whether you need to provide your Personal Information, please contact our Data Protection Officer (details at end of Policy).

How Long we retain your Personal Information for

E J Moyle LLP will only keep your personal data about your matter for as long as is it required to do so in connection with your matter, which is a minimum of 6 years from the date of the matter concluding and will be subject to the type of matter that you are instructing us upon. This is so that we are able to comply with any legal, accounting or reporting/regulatory requirements. 

Where we obtain documentary evidence of ID we are required under the Money Laundering Regulations to retain such evidence for a minimum statutory period of 5 years from the conclusion of your matter. 

Further, in accordance with the SRA rules, we must store all accounting records securely and retain these for at least 6 years, but as a Firm, we usually retain these for 7 years. 

To comply with our regulatory requirement to have systems to ensure that we are able to identify and assess potential conflicts of interest, etc., we will keep sufficient data so that we can identify the nature and content of our Retainer with you.

How long do we retain your Client Files for

As your Solicitors we have a duty to retain files for a minimum period of time dependent on the type of matter we are dealing with on your behalf.  For example:

We will retain a conveyancing sale file for a minimum period of 6 years, but the conveyancing purchase file must be retained for a longer period of time. 

If you require details of how long your file will be retained for by E J Moyle LLP, please can we ask that you speak to your Lawyer.

Your rights in connection with your Personal Information

You may at any time request us to rectify or erase your Personal Information held by us.  Should you believe that any information we are holding on you is incorrect or incomplete, please write to our Data Protection Officer so that appropriate action can be taken.

If you would like to exercise your rights, we will need sufficient information in order to identify you which may include, if necessary, proof of your identity and address.

We will not sell, distribute or lease your Personal Information to third parties unless we have your permission or are required by law to do so.

Right to be Informed

This Privacy Policy and Notice fulfils our obligation to tell you about the ways in which we use your Personal Information.

Right to Access

You may request details of Personal Information which we hold about you under the Data Protection Act 1988.  A small fee will be payable.  If you would like a copy of the information held on you, please write to our Data Protection Officer.

Right to Rectification

If any of the Personal Information that we hold about you is inaccurate, you have the right to ask us to correct any errors in your Personal Information.  Please contact our Data Protection Officer.

Right to be Forgotten

You have the right to ask us to delete your Personal Information where:

• We do not need your Personal Information anymore
• You withdraw your consent to our use of your Personal Information and we have no other legal basis to keep your Personal Information
• You have asked us to review and explain our legitimate interests to you and we do not actually have a valid legitimate interest to do what we are doing
• Our use of your Personal Information is illegal
• We have to delete your Personal Information to comply with our legal obligations

Right to Object

You have the right to object to the continued use of your data for any purpose listed above for which consent is identified as the lawful basis for processing, that is, you have the right to withdraw your consent at any time.  The continued use of your data for any purpose listed for which the lawful basis of processing is that it has been deemed legitimate.

Right to Restrict Processing

You have the right to ask us to restrict our use of your Personal Information where:

• You do not think that the Personal Information we hold about you is correct, so that we can check if it is correct
• You believe our data processing is unlawful, but you do not want your data erased
• You want us to retain your data in order to establish, exercise or defend a legal claim
• You wish to object to the processing of your data, but we have yet to determine whether this is appropriate.

Right to Data Portability

You have the right to ask us to provide you with a copy of your Personal Information you have provided us with in a structured, commonly used and machine readable format, and the right to transfer that information to another party where:

1. We are using your Personal Information on the basis of your consent or on the basis that is necessary to perform a contract with you, and
2. The use we are making of your Personal Information is carried out by automated means.

If you would like to move, copy or transfer the electronic Personal Information that we hold about you to another organisation, please contact our Data Protection Officer.

Right to withdraw Consent

Where we are using your Personal Information based on your consent, you have the right to withdraw that consent at any time by contacting our Data Protection Officer.  Once your file has been opened and you then wish to withdraw your consent, we will no longer process your information for the purpose or purposes you originally agreed to.  We are, however, legally obliged to retain your details for the periods specified herein or, alternatively, subject to bullet point 2 above “Right to be forgotten”.

Right to make a Complaint

You have the right to make a complaint at any time to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), who is the UK regulator for Data Protection issues.

We would, however, appreciate the opportunity of dealing with your compliant before you approach the ICO in order to try and resolve any issues or concerns that you may have.

Overseas Transfers

None of the information that we collect, process or store as a result of our website is transferred outside of the European Economic Area.  This includes information that is exchanged with any third party organisation.

HOW TO CONTACT OUR DATA PROTECTION OFFICER

Our Data Protection Officer is Ms. Sharon Lyon, who is also our Risk and Compliance Partner, and Head of Family Law.  If you have any questions or concerns relating to this Policy, please contact her, as follows:

Ms Sharon Lyon, Data Protection Officer

E J Moyle LLP

15 Beach Road

Littlehampton

West Sussex

BN17 5HZ

or email: dataprotection@moyle.co.uk

If you feel that we have not dealt with your request appropriately, you have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office at Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF

or email at ico.org.uk

Helpline number:  0303 123 1113. 

Date: 19.11.21

Amended: 03.02.22

Amended: 04.07.22

Amended: 16.08.22

Reviewed and amended: 17.07.24