Privacy Policy

Who we are:

Innes Johnston LLP (“We”) are providers of legal services in Scotland and are regulated by The Law Society of Scotland. We are a limited liability partnership and our Registered Number is SO305487. Our head office is at 95-99 Esplanade, Kirkcaldy, Fife, KY1 1RF and we have offices at 14 North Street, Glenrothes, Fife, KY7 5NA and 5-7 Commercial Road, Leven, Fife, KY8 4LE.

Our purpose in using or processing your information:

We use or process your information in order to provide legal services. The legal basis for our holding or processing your information will be:-

  • because it is necessary in order to perform our contract with you;
  • because it is within our legitimate interest as a provider of legal services (for example because we have a responsibility to act as an Officer of the Court, to
  • meet a requirement imposed by The Law Society of Scotland or to prevent a fraud);
  • or because we have a legal obligation to hold or process your information (for example, in order to meet our obligations in regard to Money Laundering Requirements).

IP Addresses and Cookies

We may collect information about your computer, including where available your IP address, operating system and browser type, for system administration and to report aggregate information to our advertisers. This is statistical data about our users’ browsing actions and patterns, and does not identify any individual.

For the same reason, we may obtain information about your general internet usage by using a cookie file which is stored on the hard drive of your computer. Cookies contain information that is transferred to your computer’s hard drive. They help us to improve our site and to deliver a better and more personalised service. They enable us:

  1. To estimate our audience size and usage pattern.
  2. To store information about your preferences, and so allow us to customise our site according to your individual interests.
  3. To speed up your searches.
  4. To recognise you when you return to our site.

You may refuse to accept cookies by activating the setting on your browser which allows you to refuse the setting of cookies. However, if you select this setting you may be unable to access certain parts of our site. Unless you have adjusted your browser setting so that it will refuse cookies, our system will issue cookies when you log on to our site.

Please note that our advertisers may also use cookies, over which we have no control.

Who will we share your information with:

We may share your information with some or all of the following:-

  • Our client(s) if you are not our client
  • Any other client instructing us along with you
  • Anyone that you authorise us to share your information with while we provide you with legal services
  • Your spouse, civil partner or partner unless you tell us otherwise or inform us that you are separated from them
  • Your attorney, guardian or parent
  • The Law Society of Scotland as our regulatory and professional body
  • The Scottish Legal Aid Board if our client has applied for legal aid
  • If we are buying a property for you and we also act for your mortgage provider we will share your information with them
  • A credit search agency
  • We receive assistance from persons or businesses in carrying out legal services and may share your information with them. We use specialist IT service providers, specialist cashroom service providers, a wage services provider, accountants, an offsite shredding company, Law Society recommended Money Laundering management system providers, and if we elect to use one an offsite data storage company. If you would like to know who we use in this regard, please contact us.

Retention and destruction of your information:

We will retain and use your information while carrying out work for you or our client. After we have completed that work we will retain that information for a period of time. The amount of time that we hold your information may vary depending on the nature of the work we have carried out for you (see below) and whether we have any other reason for holding on to your information, for example in order to meet a requirement imposed by The Law Society of Scotland.

You can ask that we remove any of your information at any time. However, please be aware that there may be some circumstances whereby we will continue to hold some or all of that information, despite a request for it to be removed, to include but not restricted to performing the contract for services, ensuring payment for our services, meeting any complaint or claim or potential complaint or claim to include from a 3rd party, meeting a regulatory requirement imposed by The Law Society of Scotland or meeting our obligations in terms of Money Laundering Regulations. If we have acted for more than one person or organisation, we may insist on each client confirming their consent to remove information before doing so. If you are not our client and we have lawfully obtained your information then we may continue to hold your information as part of our services to our client.

The period of time that we retain information is in accordance with recommendations made by The Law Society of Scotland. Please note that once the time period has expired your information may not be removed immediately but will be within a short period thereafter which we anticipate to be within a period of 6 months. If you do not want your information removed you should inform us. Otherwise, we will remove it in accordance with the below timescales. We shall retain a record of any files destroyed.

The time periods that we retain client information depending on the type of work we do is as follows:-

Simple Debt Collection – On completion i.e. after the time for appeal has elapsed.

Divorce and Consistorial Matters – Ten years after final completion, e.g. after decree has been granted or proceedings have been dismissed. maintenance, residence and contact orders, etc., have ceased to have effect, or children have reached majority.

Civil Court Cases – Ten years after completion.

Executries – Ten years after completion. Relevant documents and papers might be sent to the Executor for safekeeping since prior rights and legal rights only prescribe if not claimed in 20 years after becoming enforceable.

Continuing Trusts – Ten years after the termination of the Trust.

Conveyancing Transactions:

Purchase – Ten years after completion-although the file may be of use until the property is subsequently disposed of. We will retain title deeds on behalf of clients until requested by them or their representative or the property is subsequently sold.

Sale – Three years after completion (i.e. from the date of entry although we may retain some files for longer if there is a delay in registering the title). We may retain a sale file along with a corresponding purchase file.

Company Work – Ten years after completion.

Wills and Powers of Attorney – Ten years after completion. If a client leaves their original will with us we will retain it until we are informed a new will has been completed, or it is requested by their executor, or it is removed by the client or someone authorised by them or such time as we learn of their death and that the will is not needed or requested by the Executor or next of kin, whichever occurs first.

Other Correspondence Files – Five years after completion of the business.

Anti Money Laundering regulations records – Remainder of the financial year of the practice unit and a further six financial years.

Please note that our file retention policies were reviewed on 23 May 2018. Any completed files held prior to that date may be retained for a period of ten years notwithstanding the subject matter and notwithstanding the subsequent change of policy.

How we use your information to make automated decisions:

We do not use your information for automated decisions.

Sending data outside of the EEA:

We will only send information outside of the EEA if you ask us to carry out work which clearly involves sending information outside of the EEA.

Marketing:

We will not use any information you provide us for marketing purposes. If we hold your titles or wills, we may write to you at your last known address with a view to updating your personal information, updating your will or to offer services directly related to our holding of your will.

Letting us know if your personal information is incorrect:

You have the right to question any information we have about you that you think is wrong or incomplete. Please contact us if you want to do this. If you do, we will take reasonable steps to check its accuracy and correct it.

Changes to our privacy policy:

We will update our privacy policy from time to time. It is your responsibility to check our website for any changes that may have been made. We will not notify you directly of any changes, to our processes or to timings of destruction of files.

Who to contact:

If you would like to get in touch in regard to how we handle your personal data, or with a personal data access request, please contact Mark Alder, who is a partner in the Leven office, on 01333 429320, by e-mail to [email protected] or by post to 5-7 Commercial Road, Leven KY8 4LE.

If you think there is a problem with how we manage your information then you have a right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). Their website address is www.ico.org.uk and their contact telephone number is 03031231113.

Innes Johnston Solicitors Fife | Leven | Glenrothes | Kirkcaldy

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