Privacy statement

By visiting the website www.dlpa.be and possibly filling in your contact details, you consent to and accept the contents of this privacy statement.

Your privacy is important to us.

All personal data we receive from you is processed in accordance with applicable data protection laws, in particular the General Data Protection Regulation (hereinafter: the “GDPR”) of 27 April 2016, as well as this Privacy Statement.

This Privacy Statement provides information on the personal data we process, the purposes for which we process it, how we obtain it, how long we retain it, and with whom it may be shared. It also explains how you can exercise your rights as a data subject.

A. IDENTITY AND CONTACT DETAILS

The Controller of your personal data is the following legal entity (jointly or individually with the lawyers listed on our website www.dlpa.be):

BV DLPA Advocaten, with its registered office at Cotton Park, Spinnerijstraat 99/22, 8500 Kortrijk, Belgium and registered with company number BE 0439.620.727.

If you have any questions concerning the processing of your personal data, you can contact us as follows:

• By post: to the address specified above, with mention of ‘Privacy’ on the envelope
• By email: emily.vandamme@dlpa.be
• By telephone: +32 (0)56 26 81 81

B. PERSONAL DATA

DLPA Advocaten BV, a limited liability company under Belgian law, processes your personal data because you are making use of our services and/or because you are providing or have provided us with this data directly.

Below is an overview of the personal data that we may process, where relevant:

• Surname and first name
• Gender
• Date of birth
• Place of birth
• Address details
• Telephone number
• Email address
• IP address
• Other personal data that you actively provide us with, e.g., by completing a contact form on this website, through your correspondence with us and on the telephone
• Location data
• Data concerning your activities on our website
• Data concerning your browsing behaviour across a diversity of websites (e.g., because your company is part of an advertising network)
• Bank account number

DLPA Advocaten may process the following special and/or sensitive personal data, where relevant:

• Criminal record, acts or charges
• Data belonging to persons under the age of 16
• Personal data revealing a data subject’s race or ethnic origin, political convictions, religious or philosophical beliefs, or membership of a trade union, and, for processing purposes, genetic data, biometric data intended for the unique identification of a person, health data, or data concerning a person’s sexual life or sexual orientation

We do not knowingly collect data from visitors under the age of 16 through our website, unless we have obtained explicit consent from their parents or guardians, or are required to do so to comply with our legal obligations.

However, it is not possible for us to determine if a visitor is indeed older than 16. We recommend that parents monitor their children’s online activities to prevent data belonging to them from being collected without parental permission.

If you are convinced that we have collected personal data from a minor without the required permission, please contact us at advocaten@dlpa.be.

C. PURPOSES AND LEGAL BASIS

C.1. CLIENTS

We process your personal data for one or more of the following purposes:

• The provision of legal services to our clients
• Compliance with anti-money laundering and anti-fraud legislation
• The performance of agreements
• The organisation of seminars and events
• Newsletters and other forms of commercial communication
• Invoicing and accounting
• Dispute management

Below, we have set out, categorised by purpose, the types of personal data we process, the purposes for which we process it, how we obtain it, how long we retain it, and with whom it may be shared.

C.1.1. Legal services provided to our clients

For the purpose of providing our clients with legal services, we may process your personal identification data (name, business or home address, email address, telephone number), identification data issued by public authorities (ID card number, passport number, driving licence number, pension number, vehicle registration number, company number, VAT number), personal characteristics (gender, date and place of birth, language, nationality), family data (which may include data relating to minors), financial data (bank account number, payment method) and any other information provided to us for the handling of your case. This may include special categories of personal data such as personal data revealing your race or ethnic origin, political convictions, religious or philosophical beliefs, trade union membership, genetic data, biometric data, health data, data concerning your sexual life or sexual orientation. We may also process personal data in relation to criminal charges and offences for this purpose.

The processing of this personal data enables us to provide legal advice, draft legal instruments and documents, represent our clients in court, in arbitration proceedings or before administrative or similar bodies, assist in negotiations and/or the conclusion of contracts, provide assistance in mediation, provide assistance during police hearings or similar interviews, accept mandates (such as acting as a curator, debt mediator, administrator, etc.), offer training programmes in the legal profession, ensure continuity in the event of a cessation of our activities, etc.

The legal basis for the processing of your personal data is as follows:

• In the case of a private client: the conclusion and performance of an agreement for the provision of legal services with the client (Article 6(1)(b) GDPR). [If we share your personal data with banks, insurance companies, technical experts, civil-law notaries, court-appointed administrators or other judicial representatives at the request of these third parties, we will obtain your consent to do so (Article 6(1)(a) GDPR), unless a court order requires us to disclose such data. If we share your personal data with a successor lawyer in the event of a cessation of our professional activities, we will ask for your consent before doing so Article 6(1)(a) GDPR)].
• In the case of a professional client or other parties: our legitimate interest in providing our client with legal services (Article 6(1)(f) GDPR).

When performing duties as a court-appointed representative, the legal basis is the performance of a task carried out in the public interest arising from the judicial appointment and the relevant statutory provisions (Article 6(1)(e) GDPR).]

The legal basis for processing special categories of personal data and/or personal data relating to criminal convictions and offences is, respectively, the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims (Article 9(2)(f) GDPR) and the defence of our clients’ interests (Article 10 of the GDPR in conjunction with Article 10(1)(2) of the Personal Data Protection Act).

We obtain this personal data directly from you when your case file is created and/or in the course of handling of your case, and/or indirectly from a third party.

For the purposes of providing our clients with legal services, we retain your personal data for up to ten years after your case has been closed (plus an additional one-year verification period).

We share this personal data only when necessary with third parties with whom we cooperate in the context of providing our legal services, such as courts and law enforcement authorities, bailiffs, lawyers representing opposing parties or professional opposing parties acting without legal counsel, successor lawyers, banks and insurance companies, healthcare institutions, technical experts, court-appointed psychologists, experts, or court-appointed representatives (such as a civil-law notary or court-appointed administrator) appointed pursuant to a judgement or ruling. In addition, third parties engaged by us for the storage and management of our data also have access to this personal data (IT providers). A list of these third parties is available upon written request.

C.1.2. Compliance with anti-money laundering and anti-fraud legislation

For the purpose of ensuring compliance with anti-money laundering and anti-fraud legislation, we may process your personal identification data (name, business or home address, email address, telephone and fax number), national registration number, identification data issued by public authorities (identity card number, passport number, company number, VAT number), financial data (transactions carried out on behalf of the client), personal characteristics (date and place of birth, gender, language, nationality), judicial data (criminal convictions and ongoing disputes), and, where necessary, other information that we are required to request and/or receive in this context.

The processing of this personal data allows us to comply with, among other things, anti-money laundering and anti-fraud legislation.

The legal basis for the processing of your personal data is the statutory obligation as described in the Act of 18 September 2017 on the Prevention of Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism (Article 6(1)(c) GDPR) – and, insofar as the processing goes beyond what is strictly necessary to comply with these statutory obligations (e.g., in the context of the general obligation to verify identity) – our legitimate interest, in the context of providing our legal services, to remain vigilant against money laundering practices (Article 6(1)(f) GDPR).

We obtain this personal data directly from you when your case file is created and/or indirectly from a third party (such as a third-party referrer).

For the purposes of compliance with anti-money laundering and anti-fraud legislation, we retain your personal data for up to ten years after your last case has been closed (plus an additional one-year verification period), unless we are required to retain this data for longer in connection with a specific criminal offence.

We share this personal data only when necessary with third parties with whom we cooperate in the context of compliance with anti-money laundering and anti-fraud legislation (government agencies, courts and law enforcement authorities, lawyers, the President of the Bar). In addition, third parties engaged by us for the storage and management of our data also have access to this personal data (IT providers). A list of these third parties is available upon written request.

C.1.3. The organisation of seminars and events, newsletters

For the organisation of seminars and events, we may process your personal identification details (name, business or home address, email address, telephone number), information relating to your profession and employment (job title), financial details (bank account number, method of payment), and video or photographic material.

The processing of this personal data enables us to organise training courses in the legal profession, seminars and other events. Video recordings and photographs taken during a seminar or event may be used to communicate about the event via our website and social media channels.

The legal basis for processing personal data is the conclusion or performance of an agreement concerning participation in the seminar or event with the participant (Article 6(1)(b) GDPR) or, if you are the contact person of a professional client, our legitimate interest in fulfilling our obligations under the agreement with that client (Article 6(1)(f) GDPR). If we take specific photographs or make video recordings of you during a seminar or event and wish to share these on our website or social media channels, we will request your consent before doing so (Article 6(1)(a) GDPR).

We obtain this personal data directly from you and/or indirectly from a third party.

For the purposes of organising seminars and events, we retain your personal data for up to ten years after the seminar or event has taken place (plus an additional one-year verification period).

We share this personal data only when necessary with third parties with whom we cooperate in the organisation of training courses and events (co-organisers of seminars and/or events, photographers, sponsors and the providers of any external venues where our seminars and/or events are held). In addition, third parties engaged by us for the storage and management of our data also have access to this personal data (IT providers). A list of these third parties is available upon written request.

For the purpose of sending newsletters and other forms of commercial communication, we may process your personal identification details (name, business or home address, email address, telephone number).

The processing of this personal data enables us to send newsletters and other forms of commercial communication, such as updates on developments concerning legal matters, information about products and services offered by lawyers, Christmas cards, invitations to events, etc.

The legal basis for the processing of your personal data is our legitimate interest for promoting our products and services among clients and their contacts (Article 6(1)(f) GDPR). Subscribers to our newsletter have automatically granted their consent for receiving our commercial communications (Article 6(1)(a) GDPR).

We obtain this personal data directly from you and/or indirectly from a third party.

For the purposes of sending newsletters and other forms of commercial communication, we retain your personal data for as the entire duration of our relationship with you as a client, i.e. up to ten years after your last case has been closed. Naturally, you may unsubscribe from our communications at any time, in which case we will stop processing your personal data.

We share this personal data only when necessary with third parties with whom we cooperate in connection with sending newsletters and other forms of commercial communication (software providers we engage for sending commercial communications, and providers of marketing tools). In addition, third parties engaged by us for the storage and management of our data also have access to this personal data (IT providers). A list of these third parties is available upon written request.

C.1.4. Invoicing and accounting

For the purpose of meeting our invoicing and accounting obligations, we may process your personal identification details (name, business or home address, email address, telephone number), identification data issued by public authorities (company number, VAT number), financial data (bank account number, payment method) and work performed and/or services supplied.

The processing of this personal data enables us to prepare invoices, carry out accounting tasks, and comply with our accounting obligations, including the preparation of annual financial statements. This processing is necessary to comply with our accounting obligations.

The legal basis for the processing of your personal data consists of various statutory obligations, as set out in the Belgian Code of Economic Law (CEL) (Articles I.1, III.82, III.89, and III.90 CEL), the Royal Decree on double-entry bookkeeping under the Companies and Associations Code (CAC), the Companies and Associations Code (Article 3:1 CAC), and the Income Tax Code (Article 320 ITC) (Article 6(1)(c) GDPR), and – insofar as the processing goes beyond what is strictly necessary to comply with these statutory obligations – our legitimate interest in maintaining our financial accounts (Article 6(1)(f) GDPR).

We obtain this personal data directly from you and/or indirectly from a third party.

For invoicing and accounting purposes, we retain your personal data for up to ten years after the end of the relevant financial year (plus an additional one-year verification period).

We share this personal data only when necessary with third parties with whom we cooperate in connection with our invoicing and accounting activities (our accountancy firm, external auditor, government agencies, banks and insurance companies). In addition, third parties engaged by us for the storage and management of our data also have access to this personal data (IT providers). A list of these third parties is available upon written request.

C.1.5. Dispute management

For the purpose of managing potential disputes, we may process your personal identification details (name, business or home address, email address, telephone number), identification details issued by public authorities (ID card number, passport number, driving licence number, pension number, vehicle registration number, etc.), information relating to your profession and employment, financial details, judicial data, and any other information relevant to the management of a potential or actual dispute.

The processing of this personal data enables us to defend our legitimate interests in all forms of dispute resolution and to maintain the related administrative records.

The legal basis for the processing of your personal data is our legitimate interest in safeguarding the contractual, non-contractual, statutory and other rights of our law firm (Article 6(1)(f) GDPR).

We obtain this personal data directly from you and/or indirectly from a third party.

For the purposes of dispute management, we retain your personal data for up to five years after the expiration of the last term for appeal (and longer if necessary, e.g., to meet certain statutory obligations) (plus an additional one-year verification period).

We share this personal data only when necessary with third parties with whom we cooperate in connection with our dispute management (external legal advisors), and with other parties when required (government agencies, courts and law enforcement authorities, banks and insurance companies, our accountancy firm, bailiffs and debt-collection agencies). In addition, third parties engaged by us for the storage and management of our data also have access to this personal data (IT providers). A list of these third parties is available upon written request.

C.1.6. Access control and camera surveillance

For the purpose of safeguarding the security of our offices, we may process your personal identification details (name, business or home address, email address, telephone number), data relating to your profession and employment (job title, company name), time and date of your presence or visit, and video or photographic material.

The processing of this personal data enables us to safeguard the security of our offices through, for example, visitor registration and camera surveillance.

The legal basis for the processing of your personal data is our legitimate interest in safeguarding the security of our employees, visitors and offices (Article 6(1)(f) GDPR). Camera surveillance is clearly indicated at the entrance by means of the appropriate pictogram.

We obtain this personal data directly from you when you register at the reception desk and through images recorded by our camera surveillance system.

To safeguard the security of our offices, we retain your personal data for up to one month after your visit (plus an additional two-week verification period), unless the data must be retained for longer as evidence in connection with a specific criminal offence or damage incident, or to identify a potential perpetrator, victim or witness.

We share this personal data with third parties only when necessary (courts and law enforcement authorities, banks and insurance companies, lawyers, experts or other involved parties). In addition, third parties engaged by us for the storage and management of our data also have access to this personal data (IT providers). The supplier of the authentication system may only access the system if necessary and with our prior approval. A list of these third parties is available upon written request.

C.2. SUPPLIERS AND SUBCONTRACTORS

We collect and process the identity and contact details (name, business or home address, email address, telephone number, job title and company name) of our suppliers, their personnel, employees, staff and other relevant contacts. The purposes of this processing are the execution of this agreement, supplier management, accounting and direct marketing activities, such as sending promotional or commercial information. The legal bases for this processing are the performance of the agreement, compliance with statutory, regulatory and/or deontological obligations, and/or our legitimate interest.

The personal data is retained and processed by us for the period necessary to fulfil the purposes of the processing and to support the relationship we have with you, whether contractual or non-contractual.

After seven years from the definitive termination of the agreement or project, the personal data is deleted from our systems, except for data we are required to retain longer due to specific legal obligations or where retention is necessary for an ongoing dispute.

C.3. EMPLOYEE DATA

We process the personal data of our employees, as well as that of prospective employees and/or job applicants, in connection with staff management and payroll administration. Given the specific nature of this data, it is managed separately in consultation with each employee.

C.4. OTHER DATA

Apart from the data we collect from clients, suppliers and staff, we also process personal data from others, such as potential new clients, relevant contacts within our sector, networking contacts, experts, bailiffs, civil-law notaries, etc. The purposes of this processing are to support our activities, direct marketing and public relations. The legal basis for this processing is our legitimate interest or, in some cases, the performance of an agreement.

The personal data is retained and processed by us for the period necessary to fulfil the purposes of the processing and to support the relationship we have with you, whether contractual or non-contractual.

D. SECURITY

We have implemented appropriate technical and organisational measures to safeguard the confidentiality of your personal data and to protect it against accidental or unlawful destruction, loss, alteration, unauthorised disclosure or access.

We have made the necessary contractual arrangements with third parties with whom we cooperate and will not transfer your personal data outside the European Economic Area (EEA) unless we can guarantee an equivalent level of protection.

E. RIGHTS

You can always contact us to exercise the following rights:

• To request access to and review of your personal data;
• You have the right, free of charge, to view the data we hold about you and to verify the purposes for which it is used.
• You have the right to have any incorrect or incomplete personal data corrected or completed.
• You have the right to have your personal data deleted in the cases listed in the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). We may refuse the deletion of your personal data in specific cases, for example when it is required for the exercise or defence of a legal claim or to comply with a statutory obligation to retain certain data.
• You have the right to request the restriction of the processing of your personal data under the conditions set out in the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
• You have the right to object to the processing of your personal data on serious and legitimate grounds. Please note that you cannot object to the processing of personal data that we require for compliance with a statutory obligation, the performance of the agreement or the pursuit of our legitimate interest, for as long as this data is necessary for the purposes for which it was collected.
• You may withdraw your consent for the future processing of your personal data at any time, without affecting the lawfulness of processing based on your consent before its withdrawal

To execute your rights, you can contact the following person at all times:

• Contact person: Emily Van Damme;
• By post: to the address specified at the top of this Privacy Statement, with mention of ‘Privacy’ on the envelope
• By email: emily.vandamme@dlpa.be
• By telephone: +32 (0)56 26 81 81

We respect all rights related to your personal data to which you are entitled under the applicable law.

For those purposes where the legal basis for processing personal data is a legitimate interest, you may always request further information about the balancing of interests we have conducted in this context (for more information, see ‘Purposes’ and ‘Legal Basis’).

For those purposes where the legal basis for processing personal data is a task carried out in the public or a legitimate interest, you may at any time exercise your right to object to the processing of your personal data, specifying the reasons relating to your particular situation (for more information, see ‘Legal Basis’). We will cease processing your personal data unless we demonstrate compelling legitimate grounds that override the interests, rights and freedoms you have asserted.

To properly process and respond to your requests, we will process your personal data based on our legal obligations under Chapter III in conjunction with Article 5(2) GDPR (Article 6(1)(c) GDPR). We may ask you to provide a reason for your request and/or proof of identity, such as a copy of the front of your identity card.

F. UPDATES

This Privacy Statement may be amended from time to time, subject to the restrictions of applicable data protection legislation. You can always access the most up-to-date version via www.dlpa.be