Privacy Policy

 

 

THIS ADINE ABRO ATTORNEYS INC. PRIVACY POLICY (“PRIVACY POLICY”)

APPLIES TO HOW WE COLLECT, USE AND PROCESS YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION

1
What and who does this Privacy Policy apply to?
1.1 Introduction and scope
1.1.1 ADINE ABRO ATTORNEYS (“AAA” or “we” or “us” or “our”) conducts its business as a law firm with offices in Johannesburg at 2 Bruton Road, Nicol Main Office Park (Block C), Bryanston. AAA is a responsible party (or data controller, in some jurisdictions) in respect of your Personal Information (as defined in clause 3.1 below).

1.1.2 AAA is committed to protecting and respecting your privacy. We strive to ensure that our use of your Personal Information is lawful, reasonable, and relevant to our business activities, with the ultimate goal of improving our services and your experience.

1.1.3 We have appointed an Information Officer who is responsible for overseeing questions in relation to the Privacy Policy.
You may contact our Information Officer, Adine Abro on adine@adine-abro.co.za or +27 10 300 0970, alternatively our Deputy Information Officer, Sumari Benade on sumari@adine-abro.co.za or +27 10 300 0970, to discuss this Privacy Policy. 1.1.4 This Privacy Policy describes how we will treat your Personal Information, whether provided by you to us, or collected by us through other means when you engage with us, in your ordinary use of our products and services, in providing us with your products and services, or in accessing our website (the “Website”)

1.2 Your consent to the Processing of your Personal Information
1.2.1 We may collect, get, receive, record, organise, collate, store, update, change, retrieve, read, process, use and share your Personal Information in the ways set out in this Privacy Policy. When we do one or more of these actions with your Personal Information, we are “Processing” your Personal Information (and “process” has a corresponding meaning).

1.2.2 We may, where permitted or required to do so by applicable law, process your Personal Information without your knowledge or permission, if sufficient grounds of justification are present, and we will do so in accordance with the further provisions of this Privacy Policy.

2
What and who does this Privacy Policy apply to?
2.1 This Privacy Policy applies to the processing by us or on our behalf, and our successors-in-title, of the Personal Information relating to you, being a user who accesses and/or uses our Website or our products and services, or a provider of products and services to us, clients, suppliers, former employees, prospective employees and other data subjects that engage with us. This Privacy Policy applies regardless of the device which you use to access our Website or to engage with us, which device is capable of using, or enabled to use, the Website including, but not limited to, internet-connected mobile devices and tablets (“Access Device”).

2.2 This Privacy Policy does not apply to the processing of Personal Information by other third parties relating to or by means of other parties’ websites, products or services, such as websites linked to, from or advertised on the Website or through our products and services, or sites which link to or advertise the Website or our products, services and lawyers.

3
What is Personal Information?
3.1 Personal Information
3.1 “Personal Information” refers to private information about an identifiable living natural person or, where applicable, an identifiable existing juristic person.
Personal Information does not include information that does not identify you (including in instances where that information has been de-identified so that it does not identify a person). The Personal Information that we collect about you may differ on the basis of your engagement with us or the products and services that you receive from AAA or that you provide to AAA.
3.2 We may process various types of Personal Information about you, as follows:
3.2.1 Identity Information, which includes information concerning your name, username or similar identifier, marital status, title, occupation, interests, date of birth, gender, race and legal status, as well as copies of your identity documents, photographs, identity number, registration number and your qualifications;

3.2.2 Contact Information, which includes your billing addresses, delivery addresses, e-mail addresses and telephone numbers;

3.2.3 Financial Information, which includes bank account details; details of funds which we invest and hold on your behalf for a matter, insurance information, financial statements, tax clearance certificates and VAT registration numbers;

3.2.4 Transaction Information, which includes details about payments made to or received from you and company information, which may consist of financial activity;

3.2.5 Technical Information, which includes your internet protocol (IP) address, your login data, browser type and version, time zone setting and location, browser plug-in types and versions, operating system and platform, and other technology on the devices you use to access the Website or to use our products and services or engage with us;

3.2.6 Usage Information, which includes information as to your access to and use of the Website, products and services, such as what links you went to, what content you accessed, the amount of content viewed and the order of that content, as well as the amount of time spent on the specific content and what products and services you access and use when engaging with AAA;

3.2.7 Location Information, which includes geographical information from your Access Device (which is usually based on the GPS or IP location); and

3.2.8 Marketing and Communications Information, which includes your preferences in respect of receiving marketing information from us and your communication preferences.

4
How we collect your Personal Information
4.1 We collect your Personal Information in the following ways:
4.1.1 through direct or active interactions with you;

4.1.2 through automated or passive interactions with you;

4.1.3 from third parties and public sources

4.2 Direct or active collection from you
4.2.1 We may require that you submit certain information:

4.2.1.1 to enable you to access portions of the Website;

4.2.1.2 to subscribe to our publications;

4.2.1.3 to request marketing or information about our events to be sent to you;

4.2.1.4 to apply for job opportunities;

4.2.1.5 to make contact with our partners and employees;

4.2.1.6 to grant you access to our premises;

4.2.1.7 to enable you to facilitate the conclusion of an agreement with us; and

4.2.1.8 that is necessary for our fulfilment of our statutory or regulatory obligations.

5
How we use your Personal Information
5.1 We use your Personal Information for the following purposes:
5.1.1 to provide legal services to our clients;

5.1.2 in relation to matter-related documents and information, for legal research, referencing and drafting (i.e. documents are re-used for know-how purposes);

5.1.3 to invest funds on behalf of our clients;

5.1.4 to comply with our regulatory reporting obligations;

5.1.5 to conduct the recruitment and hiring processes, including the capturing of a job applicant’s details and providing status updates to job applicants;

5.1.6 in relation to supplier information, to create supplier profiles on our systems, pay suppliers, and for general supplier administration;

5.1.7 to maintain and improve the Website and to improve the experience of our Website users, including by requesting feedback from our Website users on our products and services and to facilitate the procurement of our products and services.

5.1.8 to retain and make information available to you on the Website;

5.1.9 to maintain and update our client, or potential client databases;

5.1.10 to maintain and update our supplier database;

5.1.11 to operate, administer, secure and develop the Website and the performance and functionality of the Website;

5.1.12 to detect, prevent or manage actual or alleged fraud, security breaches or the abuse, misuse or unauthorised use of our systems and files, the Website and/or contraventions of this Privacy Policy;

5.1.13 to inform you about any changes to the Website, this Privacy Policy or other changes that are relevant to you;

5.1.14 to create user profiles, compile and use statistical information (including non-personal information) about you and other users and their access to the Website and to analyse and compare how you and other users make use of the Website, including (without limitation) their browsing habits, click-patterns, preferences, frequency and times of use, trends and demographic information including recommendations to users and tailoring information and content for users;

5.1.15 to conduct market research surveys;

5.1.16 to offer you information and content which is more appropriately tailored for you as far as reasonably possible;

5.1.17 to provide you with the latest information about our products and services or events provided that you have agreed to receive such information;

5.1.18 for security, administrative and legal purposes;

5.1.19 to communicate with you and retain a record of our communications with you and your communications with us;

5.1.20 to fulfil any contractual obligations that we may have to you or any third party;

5.1.21 to invite you to webinars, functions or events that we may host; and

5.1.22 for other activities and/or purposes which are lawful, reasonable and adequate, relevant and not excessive in relation to the provision of our services and/or the use of the Website, our business activities or such other purpose for which it was collected.

5.1 We use your Personal Information for the following purposes:

6
Compulsory Personal Information and consequences of not sharing it with us
6.1 The following information is compulsory Personal Information:
6.1.1 your name and surname;

6.1.2 your contact details, such as your email address and/or your telephone number.

6.2 Depending on the nature of your engagement or relationship with us, other types of Personal Information may be necessary, including:
6.2.1 financial (including bank account details, tax information);

6.2.2 names and registration numbers as contained in documents issued by the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission and the South African Revenue Service; and

6.2.3 information which may be necessary to ensure our compliance with the Financial Intelligence Centre Act, 38 of 2001.

6.3 All other Personal Information is optional.
If you do not agree to share the above-mentioned compulsory Personal Information with us, then you will not be able to engage with us, supply your products or services to us or make full use of our products and services and/or the features that are offered to Website users, including products and services which are available on the Website. If you do not agree to share your optional information with us, then you might not be able to engage with us fully, be paid for your products and services or receive complete and accurate products and services from us or enjoy all of the features and functionality on the Website, including certain content and products and services.

In the clause above, you agree and accept that there is certain compulsory Personal Information you must provide us with if you want to engage with us fully, supply your products or services to us and/or enjoy all of the features and functionality on the Website. If you decide not to provide us with such compulsory Personal Information, you agree that we may limit our engagement with you, our procurement of your goods and services and certain features and functionality on the Website.

7
Sharing of your Personal Information
7.1 We will not intentionally disclose your Personal Information, whether for commercial gain or otherwise, other than with your permission, as permitted by applicable law or in the manner as set out in this Privacy Policy.
7.2 You agree and give permission for us to share your Personal Information under the following circumstances:
7.2.1 with our agents, advisers and suppliers that have agreed to be bound by applicable data protection legislation and this Privacy Policy or similar terms, which offer the same level of protection as this Privacy Policy;

7.2.2 with our employees, suppliers, consultants, contractors and agents if and to the extent that they require such Personal Information in order to process it for us and/or in the provision of services for or to us, which include know-how and research, pitching to other clients to obtain further instructions; reporting purposes (e.g. the South African Revenue Service); hosting, development and administration, technical support and other support services relating to the Website or the operation of our business. We will authorise any Personal Information processing done by a third party on our behalf, amongst other things by entering into written agreements with those third parties governing our relationship with them and containing confidentiality; non-disclosure and data protection provisions. Such persons may be disciplined, their contracts terminated or other appropriate action taken if they fail to meet their obligations;

7.2.3 to enable us to monitor web traffic: web servers serving the website automatically collect information about pages you visit. This information is used for internal review, to tailor information to individual visitors and for traffic audits;

7.2.4 to protect our rights, property or safety or that of our clients, employees, contractors, suppliers, agents and any other third party;

7.2.5 with governmental agencies and other regulatory or self-regulatory bodies, if required to do so by law or when we reasonably believe that such action is necessary to:

7.2.5.1 comply with the law or with any legal process;

7.2.5.2 protect and defend the rights, property or safety of AAA, or our clients, employees, contractors, suppliers, agents or any third party;

7.2.5.3 detect, prevent or manage actual or alleged fraud, security breaches, technical issues, or the abuse, misuse or unauthorised use of the Website and/or contraventions of this Privacy Policy; and/or

7.2.5.4 protect the rights, property or safety of members of the public (if you provide false or deceptive information or misrepresent yourself, we may proactively disclose such information to the appropriate regulatory bodies and/or commercial entities).

7.3 We will get your permission before disclosing your Personal Information to any third party for any other purpose, if we are required by law to do so.
8
Storage and transfer of your Personal Information
8.1 We store your Personal Information on:
8.1.1 our premises, in the form of hard copies;

8.1.2 the premises of third party service providers such as document storage service providers;

8.1.3 on the servers of our third party service providers, such as IT systems or hosting service providers.

8.2 In the event of the scenarios contemplated in clauses 8.1.2 and 8.1.4, we will ensure that we have entered into written agreements with those third party service providers governing our relationship with them that require them to secure the integrity and confidentiality of Personal Information in their possession by taking appropriate, reasonable technical and organisational measures.
9
Security
9.1 We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to secure the integrity of your Personal Information and using accepted technological standards to prevent unauthorised access to or disclosure of your Personal Information, and protect your Personal Information from misuse, loss, alteration and destruction.
9.2 We review our information collection, storage and processing practices, including physical security measures periodically, to ensure that we keep abreast of good practice.
9.3 We also create a back-up of your information for operational, business continuity and safety purposes and we have a back-up disaster recovery program.
9.4 Despite the above measures being taken when processing Personal Information and Special Personal Information, subject to the provisions of this clause 9.4, as far as the law allows, we will not be liable for any loss, claim and/or damage arising from any unauthorised access, disclosure, misuse, loss, alteration or destruction of your Personal Information.
9.5 AAA has implemented policies and procedures to address actual and suspected data breaches and undertakes to notify you and the relevant regulatory authorities of breaches in instances in which AAA is legally required to do so and within the period in which such notification is necessary.

In this clause, you acknowledge that you know and you accept that technology is not absolutely secure and there is a risk that your Personal Information will not be secure when processed by means of technology. We do not promise that we can keep your Personal Information completely secure. To the maximum extent permitted by law, you will not be able to take action against us if you suffer losses or damages in these circumstances.

10
Retention of your Personal Information
10.1 We may keep your Personal Information for as long as you continue to engage with us, provide services or products to us, access the Website and content and/or use our products and/or services or for as long as reasonably necessary or until you contact us and ask us to destroy it.
10.2 Aside from clause 12.1 above and any other clause in this Privacy Policy, we may retain and process some or all of your Personal Information if and for as long as:
10.2.1 we are required or permitted by law, a code of conduct or a contract with you to do so;

10.2.2 we reasonably need it for lawful purposes related to the performance of our functions and activities;

10.2.3 we reasonably require it for evidentiary purposes; or

10.2.4 you agree to us retaining it for a specified further period.

10.3 To determine the appropriate retention period for Personal Information, AAA will consider, among other things, the nature and sensitivity of the Personal Information, the potential risks or harm that may result from its unauthorised use or disclosure, the purposes for which we process it and whether those purposes may be achieved through other means. AAA will always comply with applicable legal, regulatory, tax, accounting or other requirements as they pertain to the retention of Personal Information.
11
Maintenance of your Personal Information
11.1 Where required by law, AAA will take all reasonable steps to ensure that your Personal Information is accurate, complete, not misleading and up to date.
11.2 We also acknowledge that you may have rights of access to, and the right to rectify, your Personal Information, and rights to object to the processing of your Personal Information in certain circumstances (clause 12 below contains further information about these rights).
11.3 You must let us know if any of the Personal Information that we have about you is incorrect, incomplete, misleading or out of date, by notifying us at the contact details set out in clause 1.1.3 above.
11.4 Where required by law, we will take reasonable steps to correct or update your Personal Information accordingly, having regard to the purpose for which such Personal Information was collected or used.
12
Your rights
12.1 Data protection legislation may confer certain rights on you in respect of your Personal Information. We aim to be clear about what Personal Information we collect so that you can make meaningful choices about what Personal Information you make available to us. You may, for example:
12.1.1 Block all cookies, by setting your browser to do so, including cookies associated with our products and services or to indicate when a cookie is being sent by us.

12.1.2 Request access to your Personal Information (commonly known as a “data subject access request”), which indicates what Personal Information we have about you.

12.1.3 Request the correction of your Personal Information, in order to ensure that any incomplete or inaccurate Personal Information is corrected.

12.1.4 Request erasure of your Personal Information, where there is no lawful basis for the retention or continued processing of it.

12.1.5 Object to the processing of your Personal Information for a legitimate interest (or those of a third party) and there is something about your particular situation which makes you want to object to processing on this ground as you feel it impacts on  your fundamental rights and freedoms.

12.1.6 Request restriction of processing of your Personal Information. This enables you to ask AAA to suspend the processing of your Personal Information in limited circumstances, which may differ by jurisdiction.

12.1.7 Withdraw consent which you previously gave to the processing of your Personal Information at any time. You may withdraw your consent for us to process your Personal Information at any time.

13
Changes to this Privacy Policy
To the extent allowed by the law, this Privacy Policy may be amended and updated from time to time in our sole discretion, without notice, provided that if we do so, we will post the revised policy on the Website and we will take reasonably practicable steps to inform you of the updated Privacy Policy.
Welcome to the Abro Way.

Way beyond the ordinary. Way beyond the status quo. Way beyond your contract challenges.