Privacy Policy

At a glance

• We are a criminal defence law practice. Much of the information we collect is sensitive, and we protect it under both the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and our strict professional duties of confidentiality and legal professional privilege.
• We collect information directly from you wherever possible, and only what we need to assess and handle your matter.
• We share your information only with the people and services needed to run your matter and our practice, and never sell it.
• Our Website uses analytics tools (Google Analytics, Microsoft Clarity and the TikTok Pixel) to understand how visitors use it. We do not use them to identify you, and they are not linked to your legal matter.
• You can ask to access or correct your information, and you can complain to us and, if unresolved, to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner.

1. Our commitment to your privacy

Lauren Tye Legal Pty Ltd (ACN 648 556 361, ABN 17 648 556 361) (Lauren Tye Legal, we, us or our) is a Melbourne-based criminal defence law practice. We understand that the people who contact us are often dealing with the most stressful and sensitive circumstances of their lives. Protecting your privacy and keeping your information confidential is fundamental to the way we practise.

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, hold, use and disclose personal information, how you can access and correct it, and how you can make a complaint. We are committed to complying with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) (Privacy Act) and the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs). As lawyers, we are also bound by duties of confidentiality under the Legal Profession Uniform Law as it applies in Victoria and the Legal Profession Uniform Law Australian Solicitors’ Conduct Rules 2015, and by legal professional privilege. Those duties apply to client information regardless of any exemption that might otherwise apply under the Privacy Act.

This Policy applies to our website at laurentyelegal.com.au (Website), to enquiries made by phone, email, in person or through social media, and to the legal services we provide.

2. What is personal and sensitive information?

Personal information is information or an opinion about an identified individual, or an individual who is reasonably identifiable, whether or not the information is true and whether or not it is recorded in material form.

Sensitive information is a category of personal information that receives extra protection under the Privacy Act. It includes information about a person’s criminal record, health (including mental health and drug or alcohol use), racial or ethnic origin, religious beliefs, sexual orientation or practices, political opinions and membership of professional or trade associations, as well as genetic and biometric information.

Because we practise criminal defence law, much of the information we collect from clients and prospective clients is sensitive information. Section 5 explains how we handle it.

3. What personal information we collect

The information we collect depends on how you interact with us. It may include:

• Identity and contact details – your name, date of birth, address, phone number and email address and, where required, identification documents.
• Information about your legal matter – the charges or allegations you face, the police station, court and case details, statements, briefs of evidence, records of interview, bail conditions, court orders, prior convictions and criminal history, and your instructions to us.
• Sensitive information – criminal record and related information, health and medical information (including psychological, psychiatric, and drug and alcohol treatment records relevant to your matter), and other sensitive information relevant to your defence, bail application, plea or sentencing.
• Information about other people – details of co-accused, complainants, witnesses, family members, employers, referees and other people connected with your matter, to the extent relevant.
• Financial information – billing and payment details, information required for costs agreements and payment arrangements and, where relevant, information about your financial circumstances (for example, for bail applications or legal aid eligibility).
• Employment, education and background information – where relevant to bail, character references, sentencing or your instructions.
• Communications – records of your calls, emails, messages, meetings and enquiries with us.
• Website and device information – described in Section 9.

If you contact us through the Website, we generally collect only your name, phone number, email address and a short description of what you need help with.

4. How we collect personal information

Wherever it is reasonable and practicable, we collect personal information directly from you – when you complete an enquiry form on the Website, call us, email us, message us, attend a meeting or provide us with documents.

We may also collect personal information from third parties where this is necessary for your matter or authorised by law, including from:

• Victoria Police, the Office of Public Prosecutions, the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions and other investigating or prosecuting agencies (for example, briefs of evidence and disclosure material);
• courts, tribunals and court registries;
• Victoria Legal Aid;
• barristers, expert witnesses, medical and psychological practitioners, interpreters and other professionals engaged in your matter;
• family members, support people, employers, referees and witnesses who provide information on your behalf or with your authority;
• publicly available sources and registers; and
• people who contact us on your behalf, such as a family member arranging representation for someone in custody.

If you give us personal information about another person (for example, a family member, witness or co-accused), you should make sure you are entitled to do so and, where practicable, let them know that you have provided their information to us and that they can find this Policy on our Website.

You may contact us anonymously or under a pseudonym for a general enquiry, and we will deal with you on that basis where it is lawful and practicable. However, we cannot provide legal advice or act for you without knowing who you are.

5. Sensitive information and your consent

We collect sensitive information only where you consent, where the collection is required or authorised by law, or where another exception under the Privacy Act applies (for example, where the information is necessary to establish, exercise or defend a legal claim).

When you send us information about your matter – including through the Website enquiry form, by phone or by email – you consent to us collecting and holding the sensitive information it contains for the purpose of assessing whether we can act for you and, if we do, providing legal services to you.

We use and disclose sensitive information only for the purpose for which it was collected, for a directly related purpose that you would reasonably expect, with your consent, or where required or authorised by law.

You may withdraw your consent at any time by contacting us. If you do, we may be unable to continue to act for you, and we may still be required by law and our professional obligations to keep information we already hold.

6. Why we collect, hold, use and disclose personal information

We collect, hold, use and disclose personal information for the following purposes:

• to respond to your enquiry and assess whether we can act for you, including carrying out conflict-of-interest checks;
• to provide legal advice and representation, including preparing your defence, bail applications, pleas, appeals and negotiations with police and prosecutors;
• to communicate with you about your matter, court dates and our services;
• to prepare costs disclosures and costs agreements, issue invoices, receive payments and manage payment arrangements and trust money in accordance with the Legal Profession Uniform Law;
• to engage barristers, experts, interpreters and other service providers in your matter;
• to comply with our legal, professional and regulatory obligations, including obligations to courts, the Victorian Legal Services Board and Commissioner and our professional indemnity insurer, and record-keeping and trust accounting requirements;
• to manage and improve our practice, our Website and the services we offer;
• to protect our lawful interests, including recovering unpaid fees and responding to complaints, claims or audits; and
• for any other purpose to which you consent or that is required or authorised by law.

We do not sell personal information. We do not use the information you provide to us as a client or prospective client for marketing purposes without your consent (see Section 10).

7. Who we disclose personal information to

We disclose personal information only where it is necessary for the purposes described above, and always subject to our duties of confidentiality and legal professional privilege. Depending on your matter, we may disclose personal information to:

• barristers and counsel briefed in your matter;
• expert witnesses, forensic specialists, psychologists, psychiatrists, doctors and other health practitioners, and report writers;
• interpreters, translators, process servers, investigators and other professionals assisting with your matter;
• courts, tribunals and court registries and, as required for the conduct of your matter and on your instructions, police, prosecuting agencies and other parties to the proceedings;
• Victoria Legal Aid, where you apply for or receive legal aid;
• Corrections Victoria, youth justice services and custodial facilities, where you are in custody;
• lawyers and agents in other states and territories, where your matter or a related matter is heard outside Victoria;
• our professional indemnity insurer, the Victorian Legal Services Board and Commissioner, auditors and other regulators, where required;
• our service providers, including IT, cloud hosting, email, telephony, document management, practice management and accounting software providers, our website and digital marketing agency, and payment providers, all of whom are engaged under confidentiality obligations and may use the information only to provide services to us;
• debt collection agencies or lawyers, if fees remain unpaid; and
• any other person you authorise us to share your information with, such as a family member or support person.

We may also disclose personal information where required or authorised by law, including under a court order, subpoena, warrant or statutory notice.

8. Overseas disclosure

We are based in Melbourne and hold most information in Australia. However, some of the third-party providers we use – including cloud hosting, email, document storage and website analytics providers – may store or process information on servers located outside Australia, including in the United States, Singapore and other countries in which those providers or their data centres operate.

Where we disclose personal information to an overseas recipient, we take reasonable steps to ensure it is handled in accordance with the Australian Privacy Principles, including by using reputable providers with appropriate security and contractual protections. We do not otherwise send client files or confidential matter information overseas unless it is required for your matter (for example, to an interstate or overseas witness or lawyer) and you are aware of it.

9. Cookies, analytics and Website data

When you visit the Website, we and our service providers automatically collect certain information about your device and your use of the Website, such as your IP address, browser type and version, operating system, device type and screen size, the pages you visit, the date, time and length of your visit, how you interact with pages (including scrolling, mouse movement and clicks), the website that referred you, and general location information derived from your IP address.

We collect this information using cookies, pixels, tags and similar technologies. A cookie is a small text file stored on your device that allows a website or a third party to recognise your browser. The Website uses the following tools:

• Google Analytics 4 and Google Tag Manager (Google LLC) – to measure and analyse Website traffic and how visitors use the Website.
• Microsoft Clarity (Microsoft Corporation) – to produce heatmaps and session recordings that show how visitors interact with pages, so that we can improve the Website’s usability. Clarity masks the content of form fields, so the details you type into our enquiry forms are not captured in recordings.
• Google Maps (Google LLC) – to display our office location. Google may set cookies when the map loads.
• Trustindex – to display our Google reviews on the Website.

These third parties may collect information about your use of the Website directly, using their own cookies and identifiers, and may combine it with other information they hold about you in accordance with their own privacy policies. Some of these providers are located outside Australia. We do not use Website analytics information to identify you personally, we do not link it to your enquiry or legal matter, and we do not share the details you enter in our enquiry forms with advertising platforms.

Your choices. You can control cookies through your browser settings, including by blocking or deleting them, although some parts of the Website may not function properly without them. You can also opt out of specific tools:

• Google Analytics: install the Google Analytics opt-out browser add-on at tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout, and manage ad personalisation at adssettings.google.com.
• Microsoft Clarity: see the Microsoft Privacy Statement at privacy.microsoft.com/privacystatement.
• TikTok: manage your advertising and data settings in the TikTok app, or see tiktok.com/legal/privacy-policy.
• Interest-based advertising generally: youronlinechoices.com.au.

By continuing to use the Website with cookies enabled in your browser, you consent to our use of cookies and similar technologies as described in this Policy.

Enquiry forms. Information you submit through our enquiry forms is transmitted over an encrypted (HTTPS) connection and is stored on our website platform and in our email system so that we can respond to you.

Links. The Website contains links to third-party websites, including social media platforms. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those websites, and we encourage you to read their privacy policies.

10. Direct marketing

We do not use the personal information you provide when you enquire about or receive legal services to send you marketing communications, unless you have asked to receive them or consented to us doing so. If we do send you marketing communications, we will comply with the Spam Act 2003 (Cth) and the Do Not Call Register Act 2006 (Cth), and each message will include a simple way to opt out. You can also opt out at any time by contacting us using the details in Section 17.

11. How we keep your information secure

We take reasonable steps to protect the personal information we hold from misuse, interference and loss, and from unauthorised access, modification or disclosure, including:

• password-protected, access-controlled practice management, document and email systems;
• physical security at our office and secure storage of hard-copy files;
• restricting access to client information to the lawyers and staff who need it for your matter, all of whom are bound by confidentiality obligations;
• encrypting information in transit on our Website (HTTPS);
• using reputable third-party providers with appropriate security measures; and
• securely destroying or de-identifying information when we are no longer required to keep it.

No method of transmission over the internet or of electronic storage is completely secure. Email in particular can be intercepted or misdirected. If you are concerned about sending sensitive information by email, please call us or ask us about alternative arrangements.

How long we keep your information. We are required by law and our professional obligations to keep client files and records for at least 7 years after a matter is completed, and some records (including trust account records) must be kept for longer. We may also keep information for longer where it is relevant to a possible appeal, review, complaint, claim or ongoing legal obligation, or where you ask us to. Information from prospective clients who do not become clients is kept for as long as reasonably necessary for conflict-checking and record-keeping purposes and is then securely destroyed or de-identified. Website analytics data is retained in accordance with the settings of the relevant tool.

12. Accessing and correcting your personal information

You have the right to request access to the personal information we hold about you, and to ask us to correct it if it is inaccurate, out of date, incomplete, irrelevant or misleading.

To make a request, contact our Privacy Officer using the details in Section 17. We may ask you to put your request in writing and to verify your identity before we release information, to protect your privacy and the privacy of others. We will respond within 30 days, or sooner if we can. We do not charge a fee for making a request, but we may charge a reasonable fee to cover the cost of locating, copying and providing large volumes of information.

In some circumstances the law allows or requires us to refuse access – for example, where giving access would reveal information about another person, would prejudice legal proceedings or law enforcement, or would be unlawful. Some material on a client file, such as our internal notes and working papers, may also belong to the practice rather than the client. If we refuse a request, we will tell you why in writing and how you can complain. Our clients’ rights to their file documents under the Legal Profession Uniform Law and our costs agreement are not affected by this Policy.

13. Data breaches

We have processes in place to identify, assess and respond to data breaches. If a breach involving your personal information is likely to result in serious harm to you, we will notify you and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner in accordance with the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme under the Privacy Act, and tell you what steps you can take to protect yourself.

14. Children and young people

We represent young people in the Children’s Court of Victoria and in other youth matters. Where a client or prospective client is under 18, we will usually collect personal information from, and communicate with, the young person’s parent or guardian as well as the young person, and we will seek consent from a parent or guardian where the young person does not have the capacity to consent themselves. We handle young people’s information with particular care and in accordance with our legal and professional obligations to child clients.

If you are under 18 and need help, we encourage you to ask a parent, guardian or trusted adult to contact us with you.

15. Automated decision-making

We do not use computer programs or automated systems to make decisions that could significantly affect your rights or interests, including decisions about whether we act for you. Decisions about your matter are made by our lawyers. If this changes, we will update this Policy to describe the kinds of personal information used and the decisions involved, as required by the Privacy Act.

16. Complaints

If you believe we have breached the Australian Privacy Principles or mishandled your personal information, please contact our Privacy Officer using the details in Section 17 and provide as much detail as possible so that we can investigate. We will acknowledge your complaint promptly, investigate it and aim to respond within 30 days. If a complaint is complex, we will keep you informed of our progress.

If you are not satisfied with our response, you may complain to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC): oaic.gov.au | 1300 363 992 | GPO Box 5288, Sydney NSW 2001.

Complaints about the conduct of our lawyers or our legal costs may be made to the Victorian Legal Services Board and Commissioner: lsbc.vic.gov.au | 1300 796 344 | Level 27, 500 Bourke Street, Melbourne VIC 3000 | GPO Box 492, Melbourne VIC 3001.

17. Contact us

Privacy Officer Lauren Tye Legal Pty Ltd The Exchange Tower, 530 Little Collins Street, Melbourne VIC 3000
Phone: 03 9108 1125
Email: lauren@laurentyelegal.com.au
ABN 17 648 556 361

18. Changes to this Policy

We review this Policy regularly and may update it from time to time to reflect changes in the law, our practice or the technology we use. The current version will always be available on the Website, with the date it was last updated. We encourage you to check this page periodically.