Privacy Policy

The provision of legal services is a specialised professional activity. The quality of our service depends on information that we collect and the use we make of it in the course of our professional endeavour.

COLLECTING PERSONAL INFORMATION

Carter Capner collects personal information concerning clients needed to perform legal services on clients’ behalves from the client and other persons and organisations. The information is collected so that we may properly assess, assist, and be pro-active in dealing with a person’s legal needs. Its extent depends on the nature of the services to be performed. It includes the client’s identity, all contact details. In some cases such as injury compensation or family law claims medical, employment, medicare, taxation, centrelink, workcover, family, education and other similar data and records are collected. Our collection of information is an ongoing process that will continue throughout the period during which we are providing legal services.

Carter Capner also collects some information from persons who make telephone, email or written enquiries about our services or use our interactive websites and from persons or organisations who supply services to us.

USING AND DISCLOSING YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION

Any personal information which Carter Capner collects will be used and disclosed so that we can:-

• Perform legal services on clients’ behalves. This includes disclosure to expert medical and other personnel, to witnesses (to the extent that such disclosure is reasonable), to opposing parties and their insurers and lawyers, to government agencies, our co-counsel, a client’s barrister, to the court, to a mediator and in documents filed in a court (that may be accessed by the public);
• Conduct the administrative aspects of our practice;
• Provide a client or other person who has made an enquiry of us with newsletters or information about services offered by Carter Capner. If a person would prefer not to receive this information, that person may notify Carter Capner by post to GPO Box 1860 BRISBANE 4001 or email to privacy@cartercapner.com.au and
• Disclose a client’s personal information to external service providers and organisations related to Carter Capner so that they may provide services that are related to the legal services it performs.

ACCESS TO YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION

A person can access personal information that Carter Capner holds about him or her except where access would:-

• Be unlawful (for example, where a record which contains personal information is subject to a claim for legal professional privilege);
• Have an unreasonable impact on other people’s privacy;
• Prejudice negotiations we are having with you;
• Prejudice an investigation of unlawful activity;
• Prejudice a lien which we hold over such records.

If we refuse a person access, we will provide reasons for our refusal. Requests for some information may incur a delay before a response can be given. Requests for records or documents will incur a charge in accordance with our current charge rates.

Generally, if you request us to do so we will amend any personal information about you held by us which is inaccurate, incomplete or out of date. We will not however alter records that pertain to legal proceedings if such alteration would frustrate the legal process.

A PERSON MAY DISCUSS ANY CONCERNS THAT THEY MAY HAVE ABOUT HOW WE COLLECT OR HANDLE ANY PERSONAL INFORMATION. These enquiries should be sent by post to GPO Box 1860 BRISBANE QLD 4001 or email to privacy@cartercapner.com.au