We are the Law Society of Ireland of Blackhall Place, Dublin 7, Ireland (the “Law Society”, “we”, “us”, “our”). We are the educational, representative and regulatory body of the solicitors' profession in Ireland.
We take our responsibilities under applicable data protection law, including the General Data Protection Regulation and implementing legislation such as the Data Protection Act 2018 very seriously. The purpose of this notice is to inform you of the personal data relating to you that we may collect and use in connection with your practising status and enrolment as a solicitor, and the uses (including disclosures to third parties) we may make of such data.
The Law Society is the controller of this personal data. If you have any questions about our use of your personal data, please contact us at dataprivacy@lawsociety.ie.
Personal Data that we collect and Process
We will collect and process personal data relating to you in connection with your practising status and enrolment as a solicitor. This personal data may include:
- your name and contact details, including your home address, your practising address, phone numbers, email address and post code;
- your date of birth;
- your credit/debit card or bank account details;
- photographic identification, including copies of your passport or driving licence;
- your health records;
- where relevant, information relating to the commission or alleged commission of a criminal offence;
- information relating to your standing as a solicitor, such as e.g. any disciplinary findings and records;
- your indirect personal identifiers such as Law Society of Ireland identification or Solicitor number;
- your educational background and academic qualifications;
- information relating to you arising from the carrying out by the Law Society of its
- regulatory functions under the Solicitors Acts 1954 to 2015; and
- any other personal data which you provide to us directly.
Purposes of Processing and Legal Basis
We, and third party service providers acting on our behalf, may use personal data relating to you for the purposes and based on the legal basis set out below:
| Purpose |
Legal Basis for Processing |
- assessing your suitability and ensuring you meet the requirements to be on the Roll of Solicitors;
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- that this is necessary for the performance of a contract with you or in order to take steps at your request prior to entering into a contract;
- our legitimate interests in regulating the solicitors’ profession in Ireland and ensuring the proper management and functioning of the Law Society. We will not process your personal data for these purposes if to do so would constitute an unwarranted interference with your own interests, rights and freedoms;
- that this is necessary for compliance with a legal or regulatory obligation that applies to us, including under the Solicitors Acts 1954 - 2015;
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- processing your application for and issuing you with a practising certificate to certify that you are entitled to practice as a solicitor;
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- that this is necessary for the performance of a contract with you or in order to take steps at your request prior to entering into a contract;
- our legitimate interests in regulating the solicitors’ profession in Ireland and ensuring the proper management and functioning of the Law Society. We will not process your personal data for these purposes if to do so would constitute an unwarranted interference with your own interests, rights and freedoms;
- that this is necessary for compliance with a legal or regulatory obligation that applies to us, including under the Solicitors Acts 1954 - 2015;
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- assessing your suitability and ensuring you meet the requirements to be on the Roll of Solicitors;
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- that this is necessary for the performance of a contract with you or in order to take steps at your request prior to entering into a contract;
- our legitimate interests in regulating the solicitors’ profession in Ireland and ensuring the proper management and functioning of the Law Society. We will not process your personal data for these purposes if to do so would constitute an unwarranted interference with your own interests, rights and freedoms;
- that this is necessary for compliance with a legal or regulatory obligation that applies to us, including under the Solicitors Acts 1954 - 2015;
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- processing your application for and issuing you with a practising certificate to certify that you are entitled to practice as a solicitor;
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- that this is necessary for the performance of a contract with you or in order to take steps at your request prior to entering into a contract;
- our legitimate interests in regulating the solicitors’ profession in Ireland and ensuring the proper management and functioning of the Law Society. We will not process your personal data for these purposes if to do so would constitute an unwarranted interference with your own interests, rights and freedoms;
- that this is necessary for compliance with a legal or regulatory obligation that applies to us, including under the Solicitors Acts 1954 - 2015;
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- updating and maintaining the Roll of Solicitors and the Register of Practising Solicitors;
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- our legitimate interests in regulating the solicitors’ profession in Ireland and ensuring the proper management and functioning of the Law Society. We will not process your personal data for these purposes if to do so would constitute an unwarranted interference with your own interests, rights and freedoms;
- that this is necessary for compliance with a legal or regulatory obligation that applies to us, including under the Solicitors Acts 1954 - 2015;
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- updating, publishing and maintaining the Law Directory, including the Digital Law Directory (or any online solicitor search facility);
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- our legitimate interests in regulating the solicitors’ profession in Ireland and ensuring the proper management and functioning of the Law Society. We will not process your personal data for these purposes if to do so would constitute an unwarranted interference with your own interests, rights and freedoms;
- that this is necessary for compliance with a legal or regulatory obligation that applies to us, including under the Solicitors Acts 1954 - 2015;
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- updating and maintaining records of professional indemnity insurance cover of solicitors;
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- our legitimate interests in regulating the solicitors’ profession in Ireland and ensuring the proper management and functioning of the Law Society. We will not process your personal data for these purposes if to do so would constitute an unwarranted interference with your own interests, rights and freedoms;
- that this is necessary for compliance with a legal or regulatory obligation that applies to us, including under the Solicitors Acts 1954 - 2015;
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- providing personal data to third parties where we are under a legal or regulatory obligation to do so (see Recipients of data below);
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- that this is necessary for compliance with a legal or regulatory obligation that applies to us, in particular our regulatory functions under the Solicitors Acts 1954 to 2015 and our legal obligations under the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015;
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- providing personal data to third parties (including but not limited to clients, former clients, banks and other members of the profession) in the event that a solicitor ceases to practice as a solicitor;
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- our legitimate interests in regulating the solicitors’ profession in Ireland and ensuring the proper management and functioning of the Law Society. We will not process your personal data for these purposes if to do so would constitute an unwarranted interference with your own interests, rights and freedoms;
- in order for the Law Society to carry out its tasks in the public interest and/or in the exercise of official authority vested in it;
- that this is necessary for compliance with a legal or regulatory obligation that applies to us, including under the Solicitors Act 1954 – 2015;
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- ascertaining your fitness and capacity to teach trainee solicitors; and
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- our legitimate interests in regulating the solicitors’ profession in Ireland and ensuring the proper management and functioning of the Law Society. We will not process your personal data for these purposes if to do so would constitute an unwarranted interference with your own interests, rights and freedoms;
- in certain limited circumstances, where you have provided your explicit consent to such processing;
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- sending you a copy of the Law Society’s Gazette and other similar publications (which may include or be accompanied by commerciallyrelated material);
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- our legitimate interests in regulating the solicitors’ profession in Ireland and ensuring the proper management and functioning of the Law Society. We will not process your personal data for these purposes if to do so would constitute an unwarranted interference with your own interests, rights and freedoms;
- in certain limited circumstances, where you have provided your consent to our processing of your personal data.
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- publishing disciplinary findings;
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- our legitimate interests in regulating the solicitors’ profession in Ireland and ensuring the proper management and functioning of the Law Society. We will not process your personal data for these purposes if to do so would constitute an unwarranted interference with your own interests, rights and freedoms;
- that this is necessary for compliance with a legal or regulatory obligation that applies to us, including under the Solicitors Acts 1954 - 2015;
- for the Law Society to carry out its tasks in the public interest and/or in the exercise of official authority vested in it;
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- providing a solicitor’s practice address and/or email address to:
- a solicitor candidate for the Law Society’s annual elections;
- solicitor candidate for a Dáil or Seanad election;
- third party non-commercial entities (e.g. Bar Associations, the Courts Service etc.) which provide useful information to the profession;
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- our legitimate interests in regulating the solicitors’ profession in Ireland and ensuring the proper management and functioning of the Law Society. We will not process your personal data for these purposes if to do so would constitute an unwarranted interference with your own interests, rights and freedoms;
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- recording details relating to solicitors’ continuing professional development
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- our legitimate interests in regulating the solicitors’ profession in Ireland and ensuring the proper management and functioning of the Law Society. We will not process your personal data for these purposes if to do so would constitute an unwarranted interference with your own interests, rights and freedoms;
- that this is necessary for compliance with a legal or regulatory obligation that applies to us, including under the Solicitors (Continuiing Professional Development) Regulations 2017;
- in certain limited circumstances, where you have given your explicit consent to such processing;
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- providing information to the Solicitors’ Benevolent Association in relation to contributions made to it through the Practising Certificate fee;
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- our legitimate interests in regulating the solicitors’ profession in Ireland and ensuring the proper management and functioning of the Law Society. We will not process your personal data for these purposes if to do so would constitute an unwarranted interference with your own interests, rights and freedoms;
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- providing a solicitor’s practice address and/or e-mail address to a specific commercial entity pursuant to an expressly recorded decision of the Law Society that is beneficial to do so for defined marketing or professional or practice development purposes;
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- our legitimate interests in regulating the solicitors’ profession in Ireland and ensuring the proper management and functioning of the Law Society. We will not process your personal data for these purposes if to do so would constitute an unwarranted interference with your own interests, rights and freedoms;
- in certain limited circumstances, where you have provided your consent to our processing of your personal data.
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- facilitating e-voting for members of the Law Society;
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- our legitimate interests in regulating the solicitors’ profession in Ireland and ensuring the proper management and functioning of the Law Society. We will not process your personal data for these purposes if to do so would constitute an unwarranted interference with your own interests, rights and freedoms;
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- inviting members to engage in research of benefit to the profession and conducting research and surveys;
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- our legitimate interests in regulating the solicitors’ profession in Ireland and ensuring the proper management and functioning of the Law Society. We will not process your personal data for these purposes if to do so would constitute an unwarranted interference with your own interests, rights and freedoms;
- in certain limited circumstances, where you have provided your consent to our processing of your personal data.
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Sources of Data
As well as collecting information from you directly, we may also receive information relating to you from clients, members of the public, other solicitors or other representative and regulatory bodies of the legal profession in other jurisdictions.
Recipients of Data
We may disclose your personal data to other organisations in connection with the above purposes, including:
- to third parties who we engage to provide services or benefits to us or to you, such as professional advisers, auditors, insurers and outsourced service providers;
- to other solicitors and members of the public via the Law Directory;
- to the Law Society regulatory committees;
- to the Solicitors’ Benevolent Association;
- to the Criminal Assets Bureau and the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau:
- to clients and former clients of a solicitor who no longer practises as a solicitor;
- to other representative and regulatory bodies of the legal profession in other jurisdictions, including the Law Society of Northern Ireland, the Solicitors Regulation Authority for England and Wales and the Law Society of Scotland;
- to competent regulatory authorities and other bodies as requested or required by law, including the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal, the Independent Adjudicator of the Law Society, the Judicial Appointments Advisory Board (or relevant successor body), the Legal Services Regulatory Authority and the Office of the Information Commissioner; and
- in certain limited circumstances, to commercial entities.
Requirement to Provide Data
You are not under a statutory or contractual obligation to provide us with any personal data. However, there are some pieces of information that you must provide to us so that we can process your application for and issue you with a practising certificate. If you do not provide us with this information, then we will not be in a position to issue with a practising certificate to certify that you are entitled to practice as a solicitor.
Retention
We will not hold your data for longer than is necessary. We may retain your personal data for the duration of your relationship with the Law Society and for such period of time thereafter as is necessary to comply with our legal and regulatory obligations.
Transfers Abroad
In connection with the above we might transfer your personal data outside the European Economic Area, including to a jurisdiction which is not recognised by the European Commission as providing for an equivalent level of protection for personal data as is provided for in the European Union. If and to the extent that we do so, we will ensure that appropriate measures are in place to comply with our obligations under applicable law governing such transfers. These may include entering into a contract governing the transfer that contains the ‘standard contractual clauses’ approved for this purpose by the European Commission. If you would like to receive further details of the measures that we have taken in this regard, please contact us at dataprivacy@lawsociety.ie.
Your rights
You have the following rights, in certain circumstances and subject to certain restrictions, in relation to your personal data:
- Right to access the data – You have the right to request a copy of the personal data that we hold about you, together with other information about our processing of that personal data.
- Right to rectification – You have the right to request that any inaccurate data that is held about you is corrected, or if we have incomplete information you may request that we update the information such that it is complete.
- Right to erasure – You have the right to request us to delete personal data that we hold about you. This is sometimes referred to as the right to be forgotten.
- Right to restriction of processing or to object to processing – You have the right to request that we no longer process your personal data for particular purposes, or to object to our processing of your personal data for particular purposes.
- Right to data portability – Where our processing of your personal data is based on (i) you having provided your consent, or (ii) being necessary for the performance of a contract with you, you have the right to request us to provide you, or a third party, with a copy of your personal data in a structured, commonly used machine readable format.
- Right to withdraw your consent – Where our processing of your personal data is based on you having provided your consent, you have the right to withdraw such consent.
If you wish to exercise any of the rights set out above, please contact us at dataprivacy@lawsociety.ie.
Complaints
If you have any queries or complaints in connection with our processing of your personal data, you can contact us at dataprivacy@lawsociety.ie.
You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Irish Data Protection Commission if you are not happy with the way we have used your information or addressed your rights. Details of how to lodge a complaint can be found at https://www.dataprotection.ie/en/contact/how-contact-us or you can call the Data Protection Commission at 353 (0)761 104 800.
Updates
The Law Society may update its Privacy Statement from time to time. When we change the statement in a material way, a notice will be posted on our website along with the updated Privacy Statement.
Dated: December 2022
