PRIVACY POLICY

 Introduction

This Privacy Policy prepared by The Governance Law Firm (“TGLF” or the “Firm”) describes the use of personal data of the visitors of TGLF’s website www.thegovernancelawfirm.com, of the TGLF’s clients and prospective clients, of other contact persons of TGLF (such as suppliers of goods or services) and of any other persons about whom TGLF obtains personal data, including through communications via the contact form on TGLF’s website, via e-mail and/or other channels the client agree to in line with this Privacy Policy. Should the client not agree with any part of this Privacy Policy, the he or she needs to inform the Firm and discontinue using TGLF’s website. In this case, TGLF may not be able to provide any further legal or related services to him or her.

I. COLLECTION OF PERSONAL DATA BY TGLF

  1. What is “personal data” for the purpose of this policy?

Personal data (“Personal Data”) are any information which – either in isolation or combined with other information held by TGLF – relates to an identified or identifiable individual or legal entity. 

  1. What sources may such Personal Data come from?

TGLF collects data from various sources, either directly from the data subjects, clients, suppliers of goods or services, or from publicly available sources. Clients and suppliers of goods or services providing data to TGLF about their employees, customers, agents, suppliers or other individuals or legal entities are responsible for ensuring that such transfer is made in compliance with applicable data protection laws. 

  1. When may TGLF collect the client’s Personal Data?

 TGLF collects data when: 

  • a client entrusts the Firm with a mandate;
  • the Firm provides legal services (legal advice, representation before courts, etc.);
  • an individual attends an event or a conference organised by the Firm;
  • a person contacts the Firm through its website thegovernancelawfirm.com or via e-mail; 
  • a person follows the Firm on The Governance Law Firm – LinkedIn page; and/or
  • a supplier of goods or services provides data to the Firm. 
  1. Which Personal Data may TGLF process? 

TGLF processes the following Personal Data: 

  • Basic information: name, gender, title, organisation, e-mail address, phone number, language preference, and other basic information pertaining to clients (and prospective clients) of the Firm, persons with whom the Firm enters into contractual relationships and pertaining to other persons whose Personal Data are communicated to the Firm by clients or counterparties (e.g. employees of such clients or counterparties);
  • Identification data: passport or other identifications documents, date of birth, beneficial ownership data and due diligence data pertaining to clients of the Firm, persons with whom the Firm enters into contractual relationships and pertaining to other persons whose Personal Data are communicated to the Firm by the Firm’s clients or counterparties;
  • Job applicant data:data provided by job applicants or others on TGLF’s website or otherwise, in connection with employment opportunities; 
  • Registration data and marketing data: data communicated to the Firm within newsletter requests and event/seminar registrations, data about participants to conferences and in-person seminars, including association membership;
  • Financial information: data provided by the concerned person for the provision of the Firm’s legal services or for the payment of goods or services by the Firm;
  • Client-related data: data received from clients of the Firm in respect of such client’s employees, customers, agents, suppliers or other persons known to such client, as well as invoicing details and payment history;
  • Sensitive data(in limited circumstances and when such information is provided by the concerned person or is necessary for the provision of the Firm’s legal services): data on legal proceedings and criminal convictions, health data, data on social security measures, religious, ideological, or political data, data pertaining to trade union-related views or activities, intimate sphere data, data on racial origin; 
  • Other information: other general information collected by the Firm for any new mandate or collected from third parties for the account of clients of the Firm, including data enabling conflict checks. 
  1. What are the purposes of TGLF’s data processing activities?

The main purposes for which TGLF processes Personal Data are the following: 

  • providing legal services to clients of the Firm;
  • managing client relationships, including for billing purposes;
  • communicating with clients, including the provision of any information the clients they may request from the Firm;
  • ensuring security and effective functioning of the website thegovernancelawfirm.com and the Firm’s information technology system;
  • considering individuals for employment and managing on-boarding procedures;
  • considering individuals and legal entities for contractor purposes and managing the related contractual relationship;
  • complying with the rules, laws and regulations applicable to TGLF.

TGLF also collects data for marketing purposes: subject to consent of the concerned person, TGLF may send publications from the Firm (newsletters, legal updates, etc.) and other communications on the activities of the Firm, conferences, seminars or events organised by the Firm, or any other information related to the Firm’s activities. The client can withdraw his or her consent to such marketing communication at any time by sending an e-mail to julien.dif@tglf.ch or to his or her contact person at the Firm.  

  1. With whom TGLF may share the client’s Personal Data?

TGLF may share the client’s Personal Data with the following categories of recipients: 

  • Suppliers and service providers: for the purpose of performing specific tasks or functions entrusted by the Firm and under the Firm’s instructions, in particular in order to carry out the purposes set out in this Privacy Policy (see point 5 hereabove).They include infrastructure and IT service providers, accounting Firms, auditors, consultants who provides the Firm with support relating to marketing, and providers or external venues where it hosts conferences, events, or other meetings. TGLF requires such third parties to provide reasonable security to ensure confidentiality of the client’s Personal Data, including against any unauthorised access or use of such Personal Data as well as against the accidental loss or deletion of such Personal Data. Furthermore, access to client data is strictly limited and the strictest confidentiality is applied to such data in compliance with professional rules applicable to the Firm and its members.
  • Financial institutions: for the purpose of invoicing and payments.
  • Courts, authorities, bodies, opposing parties, counterpartiesand legal protection firms: when and to the extent required for the provision of legal services to specific clients, in particular within the context of a mandatory disclosure and/or a legal claim, especially upon a court order, a regulator’s, other governmental body’s or authority’s request, or upon any other legally enforceable demand, or for the purpose of protecting the Firm’s rights, property or safety of the rights, property or safety of others, or for the purpose of defending legal claims. 

The Firm may transfer Personal Data to third parties located in Switzerland or abroad. It is important to note that cross-border transfers may be made to countries that may not provide the same level of data protection than in Switzerland or the client’s domicile (e.g. United States). Any transfers of Personal Data by TGLF to a third party is made in compliance with applicable rules governing data protection. 

TGLF does not sell or otherwise transfer the client’s Personal Data to third parties except with the client’s prior consent or as it is required under applicable law or regulation. TGLF does not subject the client to profiling or automated decision-making.

  1. For how long may TGLF keep the client’s Personal Data?

The client’s Personal Data are kept for as long they are necessary for the purposes mentioned in this Privacy Policy (see point 5 hereabove) and as required by legal obligations of TGLF. Personal Data collected based on the consent of the data subject are no longer kept by TGLF in case of withdrawal of such consent, except in limited circumstances where the processing of such Personal Data is necessary for exercising or defending a right or for compliance with legal obligations of TGLF (in this event, the client will be informed accordingly). Personal Data relating to communications will be saved for as long as the client is a business contact to TGLF subject to any applicable legal or regulatory retention obligations. The destruction of Personal Data is made according to TGLF’s internal procedures and processes. 

  1. What is the basis for processing the client’s Personal Data?

When processing Personal Data for the purposes described herein, TGLF relies on the client’s consent to this Privacy Policy, TGLF’s legitimate interests in communicating with the client, as a business contact, about TGLF’s operations and events and/or performance of any contract or another ground for lawful processing of the client’s Personal Data under the applicable laws and regulations. 

  1. What are the client’s choices and rights with respect to his or her Personal Data?

Under Swiss law, the client is entitled, free of charge, to:

  • Access: request information from TGLF as to whether TGLF processes any data concerning the client; the client may request a copy of such Personal Data;
  • Deletion or rectification: request deletion, subject to exceptions (e.g. compliance by TGLF with its legal obligations) of the client’s Personal Data processed by TGLF or the amendments of such Personal Data when inaccurate;
  • Information about transfer: request information on the transfer of the client’s Personal Data by TGLF to third parties.

As mentioned above, the client may inform TGLF at any time of his or her consent withdrawal for any marketing communication made by the Firm to his or her attention.

For all aforementioned requests, the client should send an e-mail to julien.dif@tglf.ch or to his or her contact person at the Firm. 

II. SECURITY AND ORGANISATIONAL MEASURES; CONFIDENTIALITY OF THE CLIENT’S PERSONAL DATA

TGLF restricts the use of, and access to, the client’s Personal Data to those who have an absolute need-to-know to provide the client with access to TGLF’s website and/or communicate with the client. It maintains appropriate technical and organisational measures to preserve the confidentiality and integrity of the client’s Personal Data, including against unauthorised access or use of such Personal Data as well as against the accidental loss or deletion of such Personal Data. TGLF regularly reviews its security policies and procedures to ensure its systems are secure and protected, while ensuring full compliance with all applicable data protection and security laws.

III. COOKIES

Cookies are small text files that are downloaded to the client’s device by visiting TGLF’s website www.thegovernancelawfirm.com or opening TGLF’s marketing-related e-mails. Cookies (including third-party cookies, such as tracking technologies provided by Google Analytics Inc.) are in particular used to improve the website or for general marketing purposes by providing information on interaction of unique browser-device pairs with the website (such as number of sessions and time spent); statistical information on interaction with the website (including referrals thereto, popularity of certain content, accessing users’ categories, markets, regions, languages, demographics, browser and device types and similar information); or statistical information on interaction with TGLF’s marketing e-mails (such as if they have been opened or forwarded or links have been clicked on).

Third-party service providers such as Google may track the client’s use of TGLF’s website, combine this information with information from other websites the client has visited (and which they also track) and use such combined information for their own purposes. If the client has registered with the respective service providers, they may be able to identify the client. In these instances, their processing of the client’s Personal Data will be governed by their privacy policies.

The client may change his or her browser settings to delete and block cookies (or to deactivate Google Analytics alternatively download and install the browser add-on from Google). By continuing to use TGLF’s website without changing his or her settings (or using the add-on, as applicable), the client consents to the Firm’s and its third-party service providers’ use of cookies.

There are no cookies placed by TGLF. 

Contacts

For any questions or comments regarding this Privacy Policy or TGLF’s data privacy practice, the client should contact: 

THE GOVERNANCE LAW FIRM  

Me Julien DIF 

2, rue Saint-Léger 

CH-1205 Geneva 

julien.dif@tglf.ch 

This Privacy Policy is dated August 2024 and may be amended from time to time. Any amendment will be included in a new version of this policy posted on the website www.thegovernancelawfirm.com and will be effective as of the date written above.