Privacy Policy

1.1 Construction Lawyer Melbourne is committed to safeguarding the privacy of every person who visits our website or engages with our services. This Privacy Policy explains how we gather, retain, use and disclose personal information, and how individuals can exercise their rights in relation to that information.

1.2 This policy governs all personal information collected through:

• our website www.constructionlawyermelbourne.com.au;
• our service enquiry forms;
• account registration;
• course enrolments;
• email marketing communications; and
• our social media presence.

1.3 We manage personal information in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs). By providing your personal information to us, you consent to its collection, use and disclosure in the manner described in this policy.

1.4 Where lawful and practicable, you may choose not to identify yourself when interacting with us — for example, when browsing our website or making a general enquiry. However, if you elect not to provide identifying information, we may be unable to deliver legal services, grant course access, or provide other services that require us to know who you are. Our contact details for all privacy matters are set out in section 16 of this policy.

2.1 We collect personal information that is reasonably necessary for the purposes described in this policy. The categories of personal information we collect depend on how you interact with us.

2.2 Website Enquiry Forms

2.2.1 When you submit a general enquiry through our website, we collect your name, email address, and phone number.

2.3 Service Enquiry Forms

2.3.1 When you submit a service enquiry or matter-specific enquiry, we collect your name, email address, phone number, and postal address. You may also upload construction contracts, building agreements, or other documents relevant to your matter. Those uploaded documents may contain personal information about you and third parties — such as builders, contractors, or other parties to a contract.

2.4 Account Registration

2.4.1 When you create an account on our website, we collect your name, email address, and the password credentials you establish. We store your credentials securely and you are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account.

2.5 Course Enrolment

2.5.1 When you enrol in a course, we collect your name and email address.

2.6 Email Marketing

2.6.1 When you subscribe to our email marketing communications, we collect your name and email address.

2.7 Social Media and Lead Generation

2.7.1 When you engage with our social media profiles or interact with our advertising campaigns on platforms such as Meta (Facebook and Instagram), we may collect your name and email address via the platform’s lead generation forms. This collection occurs through third-party platforms on our behalf.

2.8 Website Analytics and Cookies

2.8.1 When you visit our website, we may collect information about your browsing behaviour, including pages visited, time spent on the site, and your general location. This information is gathered through cookies and website analytics tools.

2.8.2 Cookies are small data files stored on your device. We use session cookies (which expire when you close your browser) and persistent cookies (which remain on your device for a defined period). Our website is built on WordPress and may load third-party scripts through plugins that independently process visitor data, including analytics and performance tools. You can disable cookies through your browser settings; however, some parts of our website may not function correctly if you do so.

3.1 We collect personal information in the following ways:

• directly from you when you complete a form, register an account, enrol in a course, submit a document, or contact us;
• through social media platforms when you interact with our advertising or lead generation campaigns;
• passively through website analytics tools and cookies when you visit our website; and
• from third-party platforms that collect personal information on our behalf as part of our email marketing, course delivery, CRM, or lead generation activities.

3.2 We collect personal information only by lawful and fair means. Where practicable, we collect personal information directly from you.

4.1 We collect, hold, use and disclose your personal information for the following purposes:

4.2 Primary Purposes

• Responding to enquiries and providing information about our legal services.
• Delivering legal services to clients who engage us.
• Managing your website account and course enrolment.
• Delivering course content and educational materials you have enrolled in.
• Complying with our professional obligations as solicitors, including our obligations under the Legal Profession Uniform Law (Victoria) and applicable Legal Profession legislation.
• Complying with applicable laws and responding to lawful requests from courts and regulatory authorities.

4.3 Secondary Purposes

• Sending you email newsletters, educational content, and promotional information about our services (see section 5 for your opt-out rights).
• Improving our website, services, and the content we produce.
• Conducting internal analytics, reporting, and business planning.

4.4 We will not use or disclose your personal information for any purpose not described in this policy, or for any secondary purpose you would not reasonably expect, without your consent — except as permitted or required by law.

5.1 We may send you marketing communications where you have provided your contact details and we have a lawful basis for doing so under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Spam Act 2003 (Cth). We rely on express consent — such as an opt-in selection when you register an account, submit an enquiry form, or interact with our social media lead generation campaigns — before sending direct marketing communications. Where we rely on inferred consent, it will be in circumstances where your contact details were provided in connection with an existing or anticipated engagement with our services and the communication is directly related to that engagement.

5.3 If you opt out of marketing communications, we may still contact you for non-marketing purposes related to services you have engaged us for, or a course in which you are enrolled.

6.1 Third-Party Platforms

6.1.1 In the course of operating our website and delivering our services, we disclose personal information to third-party platforms and service providers. The table below describes the categories of providers we use, the purpose for which personal information is disclosed to each, and the types of personal information involved.

6.1.2 Each of these providers handles personal information under their own privacy policies and terms. We take reasonable steps to engage platforms that implement appropriate privacy and security standards, including entering into data processing agreements or equivalent contractual arrangements where available.

6.1.3 We do not authorise our third-party providers to use your personal information for their own purposes beyond what is necessary to provide services to us.

6.2 Professional and Legal Obligations

6.2.1 We may disclose personal information where required by law, by court or tribunal order, or in connection with our professional obligations as solicitors admitted and practising in Victoria. We may also disclose information to other professional advisers — such as barristers or expert witnesses — where necessary to deliver legal services on your behalf.

6.3 No Sale of Personal Information

7.1 Some of the third-party platforms we use are based outside Australia, and your personal information may be stored or processed on servers located overseas. Based on our current technology stack, the primary overseas jurisdiction involved is the United States of America. This applies to the categories of providers described in section 6, including our email marketing and CRM platforms, cloud storage and document management services, scheduling tools, analytics providers, and social media advertising platforms.

7.2 This means that personal information you provide to us — including through our service enquiry forms and any documents you upload — may be transferred to and processed on servers located in the United States.

7.3 Before disclosing personal information to overseas recipients, we take reasonable steps to ensure that those recipients handle your information in a manner consistent with the Australian Privacy Principles, as required by APP 8.1. Our primary mechanism for satisfying this obligation is contractual: we rely on data processing agreements, standard contractual clauses, or equivalent terms offered by our third-party providers that bind them to handle personal information in accordance with applicable privacy laws. Where a provider does not offer such arrangements, we assess their privacy practices before engaging them.

7.5 By using our website and submitting your personal information to us, you acknowledge that it may be transferred to and processed in countries outside Australia in the circumstances described in this policy.

8.1 We do not intentionally collect sensitive information as defined under s 6(1) of the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) — including information relating to health, financial circumstances beyond what is needed for service delivery, racial or ethnic origin, or similar categories.

8.2 If you voluntarily include sensitive information within documents you upload or correspondence you send us — for example, within a construction contract that references a personal injury or a financial dispute — we will treat that information with the same care as all other personal information and will use it only for the purpose for which it was provided.

9.1 Our service enquiry forms allow you to upload construction contracts, building agreements, and other documents relevant to your matter. These documents may contain personal information about you and third parties.

9.2 Documents you upload are:

• handled in strict confidence, consistent with our professional obligations as solicitors;
• used only for the purpose of assessing or providing legal services in connection with your matter;
• stored securely in encrypted cloud storage operated by a third-party provider whose servers are located overseas (see section 7); and
• retained only for as long as is necessary or required by law, after which they are securely destroyed or de-identified.

9.3 We take reasonable steps to ensure that any third-party provider used to store your uploaded documents maintains appropriate security and privacy standards, including through the contractual arrangements described in section 7.

10.1 We take reasonable steps to ensure that the personal information we collect is accurate, up to date, and complete at the time of collection. We also take reasonable steps to ensure that the personal information we use or disclose is accurate, up to date, complete, and relevant, having regard to the purpose of the use or disclosure.

10.2 If you believe that personal information we hold about you is inaccurate, incomplete, or out of date, please contact us to request a correction. See section 13 for details on how to make an access or correction request.

11.1 We take reasonable steps to protect the personal information we hold from misuse, interference, loss, unauthorised access, modification, and disclosure. Our security measures include:

• SSL encryption for all data transmitted through our website;
• encrypted storage for files and documents you submit to us;
• access controls to limit who within the firm can access personal information; and
• confidentiality obligations imposed on all personnel who handle personal information.

11.2 We also select third-party platforms on the basis that they maintain appropriate security standards for the data they process on our behalf.

11.3 Notifiable Data Breaches

11.3.1 We are subject to the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme under Part IIIC of the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth). If we become aware of a data breach that is likely to result in serious harm to any affected individual, we will notify those individuals and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) as required by law.

12.1 We retain personal information only for as long as it is reasonably necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, or for as long as required by law.

12.2 As a law firm, we are subject to professional file retention obligations and generally retain client files and associated personal information for a minimum of seven years following the conclusion of a matter, consistent with our obligations under the Legal Profession Uniform Law (Victoria).

12.3 Personal information collected for marketing purposes — such as email subscriber records — is retained for as long as you remain subscribed or, where you have not engaged with our services, for a reasonable period after your last interaction with us.

12.4 When personal information is no longer required for any permitted purpose, we will take reasonable steps to securely destroy or de-identify it.

13.1 You have the right to request access to personal information we hold about you, and to request correction of any information that is inaccurate, out of date, incomplete, irrelevant, or misleading.

13.2 How to Make a Request

13.2.1 To request access to or correction of your personal information, please contact us in writing:

13.2.2 We will respond to your request within a reasonable time, generally within 30 days of receipt. We may ask you to verify your identity before we process your request.

13.3 Access Refused

13.3.1 In limited circumstances, we may refuse access to personal information where required or permitted by law — for example, where access would prejudice an investigation. Where we refuse access, we will provide you with written reasons and information about how to make a complaint.

13.4 Correction

13.4.1 If we agree that personal information we hold about you requires correction, we will take reasonable steps to correct it promptly and at no charge. If we decline to make a correction, we will provide written reasons and advise you of your right to complain.

14.1 If you believe we have breached the Australian Privacy Principles in our handling of your personal information, you may lodge a complaint with us. We take all complaints seriously and will investigate and respond promptly.

15.1 We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, legal obligations, or the services we offer. When we make material changes, we will publish the updated policy on our website and update the version number and date at the top of the document.

15.2 Where a material change affects how we handle personal information we have already collected, we will notify affected individuals directly by email where practicable.

15.3 Your continued use of our website or services following publication of an updated policy constitutes your acknowledgement of the changes.

16.1 For any questions, concerns, or requests relating to this Privacy Policy or the handling of your personal information, please contact us:

Construction Lawyer Melbourne | Privacy Policy | February 2026