Contact:

Privacy Policy

About Health Legal

Our office is located at:
46-48 Boundary Street
South Melbourne Vic 3205
Phone: 03 9865 1300
Fax: 03 9865 1388

Health Legal’s approach to Privacy

Health Legal is subject to the Australian Privacy Principles in the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth). Health Legal takes its obligations under the Privacy Act seriously and has taken all reasonable steps in order to comply with the Act and protect the privacy of any personal information that we hold.

Health Legal respects your privacy and is committed to ensuring that your privacy is maintained.

This Privacy Policy and Disclosure Statement explains in general terms how Health Legal protects the privacy of your personal information under the Australian Privacy Principles. It also sets out the matters which we are required to disclose to individuals under the Australian Privacy Principles. The principles set out our in Privacy Policy and Disclosure Statement will apply to any personal information you provide to Health Legal via our website or under any agreement or arrangement and to information which we collect about you from other sources.

How we collect your personal information

“Personal information” is any information about you that identifies you or information by which your identity can be reasonably determined. For example, your name and address is personal information.

When you access this site, we may make a record of your visit and log information for statistical purposes. This information does not include any personally identifying information but may include your server address and domain name, the operating system used on your computer, the date, time and duration of your visit to this site, the pages you access while at this site, the previous site you visited and the type of web browser you are using. We use this information to analyse our site’s usage and performance and to refine and develop our site.

We generally collect your personal information directly from you. For example, we may collect personal information about you when you deal with us over the telephone, send us correspondence (whether by letter, fax or e-mail) or when you have contact with us in person. As such, personal information is generally collected during the course of our relationship with you.

Generally, the type of personal information we collect about you includes your name, mailing address, telephone number and e-mail address. In most cases we will require you to specifically consent to any collection, use or disclosure of your personal information by Health Legal. Your consent will usually be required in writing, but we may also accept your verbal consent. Sometimes your consent may also be implied through your conduct with us. In some circumstances we may need to collect personal information about you from a third party. For example, we may collect personal information from a company for whom you work, other organisations with whom you have any dealings, a credit reporting agency, an information service provider or from a publicly maintained record.

If we collect personal information about you from a third party, we will take reasonable steps to contact you and ensure that you are aware of the purposes for which we are collecting your personal information and the organisations to which we might disclose your personal information.

Use of cookies

Our web server may send cookies to your web browser in order to improve the functionality of our site. Our site uses cookies to support your current activity on our site by providing a unique identifier in order to allow our web server to distinguish your web browser from any other web browser accessing our site. Our site does not store any personally identifying information in cookies. If you have logged in to our site as a registered user, our site will use cookies for security purposes to track your access to our site.

Why we collect your personal information

Health Legal collects personal information for the following purposes:

  • to provide you (if a client) or your organisation with legal advice;
  • to consider making offers of employment or for employment purposes;
  • to receive services from you or the organisation which employs you; and
  • to advise you of legal developments and to undertake other marketing activities.

You are not obliged to disclose your personal information to us. However, if you do not provide the information requested, we may not be able either to provide you with appropriate legal advice or to fulfil another applicable purpose of collection.

How we use or disclose your personal information

Health Legal may disclose your personal information in certain circumstances. We may disclose your personal information where you have consented to us doing so, and also where we are required or authorised to do so by law. Your consent to the disclosure of your personal information can be made explicitly, either in writing or verbally, or may also be implied from your conduct. Where you have engaged us to provide legal services, and in the provision these services we are required to disclosure your personal information to a third party, you consent to this disclosure will be implied when you engage us unless you tell us otherwise.

Your consent to the disclosure of your personal information can be made explicitly, either in writing or verbally, or may also be implied from your conduct. Where you have engaged us to provide legal services, and in the provision these services we are required to disclosure your personal information to a third party, you consent to this disclosure will be implied when you engage us unless you tell us otherwise.

We will use and disclose personal information for the primary purpose for which it was collected. We may also use and disclose personal information for purposes related or secondary to the main reasons we collect it, such as invoicing, reminder notices, provision of information concerning legal developments and other services offered by us. Health Legal does not disclose your personal information to a third party for the purposes of allowing them to market their products or services to you.

Other people’s information which you provide to us

If you provide personal information to us about someone else (such as one of your board members or employees or someone with whom you have dealings) you must ensure that you are entitled to disclose that information to us and that, without us taking any further steps required by privacy laws, we may collect, use and disclose such information for the purposes described above. For example, you should take reasonable steps to ensure the individual concerned is aware of the various matters detailed in this Privacy Policy and Disclosure Statement as those matters relate to that individual, including our identity, how to contact us, our purposes of collection, our information disclosure practices, the individual’s right to obtain access to the information and the consequences for the individual if the information is not provided.

Our duty of confidentiality and obligations of non-disclosure

We have a duty to maintain the confidentiality of our clients’ affairs, including personal information. Our duty of confidentiality applies except where disclosure of a client’s personal information is:

  • with that client’s consent;
  • compelled by law; or
  • for the sole purpose of avoiding the probable commission or concealment of a criminal offence.

Health Legal may be subject to obligations of non-disclosure in respect of personal information which it holds arising from the fiduciary duties it owes its clients, or as a result of professional conduct rules which apply to Health Legal.

In many cases, information which we hold will be subject to legal professional privilege and will therefore not be liable to disclosure.

Ensuring your personal information is up-to-date

We take reasonable steps to ensure that your personal information is accurate, complete, and up-to-date whenever we collect or use it. If any of the personal information we hold about you is inaccurate, incomplete or out-of-date, please contact us immediately and we will take reasonable steps to correct this information or, if necessary, we will discuss alternative action with you.

Security of your personal information

We protect any personal information that we hold from misuse, loss, unauthorised access, modification and disclosure.

Your personal information may be stored either in hard copy documents or as electronic data in Health Legal’s software or systems. We maintain physical security over our paper and electronic data stores and premises, such as locks and security systems. We also maintain computer and network security. For example, we use firewalls (security measures for the Internet) and other security systems such as user names and passwords to control access to our computer system.

Gaining access to information we hold about you

We will, on request, provide you with access to the personal information we hold about you unless there is an exception which applies under the Privacy Act such as where we have a legal duty of confidentiality or non-disclosure as mentioned above.

Your request to obtain access will be dealt with as quickly as possible and we will endeavour to process any request for access within 30 days after receiving it. However some requests may take longer than this depending on the nature of the personal information being sought. In certain circumstances, a fee may be charged to cover Health Legal’s reasonable cost of providing you with access. If we refuse to provide you with access to the information, we will provide you with reasons for the refusal.

Commonwealth identifiers

Commonwealth identifiers are numbers assigned by the Commonwealth government or a Commonwealth government agency to uniquely identifying an individual for the purposes of the organisation’s operations. For example, a Tax File Number or Medicare Number.

Health Legal does not use Commonwealth identifiers as a means of identifying you.

Anonymity

Whenever it is lawful and practicable, you may have the option of not identifying yourself when dealing with us. For example, when making an enquiry about the type of products or services we offer. However, the nature of the provision of legal services is such that you will not be able to remain anonymous when dealing with us.

Transfer of information to foreign countries

Generally speaking, Health Legal does not transfer your personal information to foreign countries. Health Legal will only transfer your personal information overseas where it is authorised to do so by law, or you have consented to it.

How to contact us

If you wish to gain access to your personal information or make a complaint about a breach of your privacy or if you have any query relating to Health Legal’s Privacy Policy and Disclosure Statement, please contact our Privacy Officer:

Phone: 03 9865 1300
Mail: 46-48 Boundary Street, South Melbourne VIC 3205
Fax: 03 9865 1388
Email: [email protected]

We will respond to your query or complaint as soon as possible.

If you are not satisfied with the result of your complaint to us, you can contact the Australian Information Commissioner.
Phone: 1300 363 992
Mail: Director of Complaints, Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, GPO Box 5218, Sydney NSW 2001
Fax: (02) 9284 9666
Email: [email protected]