Privacy Policy.

Wightons Lawyers Pty. Ltd. (ABN 35 007 191 086) ("Wightons", "we", "our", "us") is committed to protecting the privacy of personal information we collect, hold, use, and disclose. This Privacy Policy explains how we manage personal information in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs).

1. The personal information we collect

We collect personal information that is reasonably necessary for our functions and activities as a legal practice, including:

• Identifying information — name, date of birth, address, contact details, and identification documents required for client verification.
• Financial information — relevant to the legal services we provide (for example, in conveyancing, family law, or estate matters).
• Sensitive information — only where reasonably necessary for the matter, and only with your consent (for example, health information relevant to a Will or capacity matter).
• Website use information — including IP address, browser type, pages visited, and aggregated analytics data collected automatically when you interact with our website.

2. How we collect personal information

We collect personal information directly from you wherever practicable — in person, by telephone, by email, through this website (including via our contact and registration forms), or through your authorised representative. In some cases, we may collect personal information from third parties such as government agencies, other legal practitioners, financial institutions, or publicly available sources.

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

We use personal information to:

• Provide legal services and advice to our clients;
• Verify identity and comply with our regulatory obligations, including anti-money-laundering and counter-terrorism financing laws;
• Communicate with you and respond to your enquiries;
• Manage our engagement, billing, and trust account obligations;
• Provide you with information about our services, news, and events — where you have consented to receive marketing communications;
• Improve our website and the services we provide.

4. Marketing communications & SMS consent

Where you have opted in (for example, by ticking the marketing consent box on our contact or registration forms), we may send you marketing communications by email and/or SMS — including newsletters, updates on legal developments, event invitations, and information about our services. You may unsubscribe at any time by following the instructions in any communication, replying STOP to an SMS, or contacting our office directly.

5. Disclosure to third parties

We may disclose personal information to third parties where reasonably necessary to provide our services or as required by law, including:

• Other legal practitioners (including counsel) instructed on your matter;
• Courts, tribunals, government agencies and regulators where required;
• Conveyancing platforms (such as PEXA), title offices, and financial institutions in relation to property transactions;
• Service providers that support our practice (such as IT, document management, and trust accounting providers).

We do not sell personal information.

6. Security of personal information

We take reasonable steps to protect personal information from misuse, interference, loss, unauthorised access, modification, or disclosure. This includes physical security at our offices, access controls, encryption of data in transit, and staff training. However, no system is entirely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

7. Accessing & correcting your personal information

You may request access to, or correction of, personal information we hold about you at any time by contacting our Privacy Officer (details below). We will respond to your request within a reasonable period and in accordance with the APPs.

8. Cookies & website analytics

Our website uses cookies and similar technologies to remember your preferences, understand how visitors use the site, and improve user experience. You can adjust your browser settings to refuse cookies, although some parts of the site may not function correctly as a result.

9. Complaints

If you believe we have breached the APPs or otherwise mishandled your personal information, please contact our Privacy Officer. We will investigate your complaint and respond within 30 days. If you are not satisfied with our response, you may lodge a complaint with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) — www.oaic.gov.au.

10. Contact us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or how we handle your personal information, please contact our Privacy Officer:

The Privacy Officer
Wightons Lawyers Pty. Ltd.
89 Myers Street, Geelong VIC 3220
Email: legal@wightons.org
Phone: (03) 5221 8777

This Privacy Policy may be updated from time to time. The latest version will always be available on this page.