These legal notices set out information we must give you and important information about how McDonnell Ellis LLP provides services to our clients and comprises: Terms of Website Use; Regulatory Information About Us; and our Privacy Policy Notice. We, McDonnell Ellis LLP, are a firm of solicitors trading under the name McDonnell Ellis. McDonnell Ellis LLP is a limited liability partnership registered in England and Wales with registration number OC430852. Our registered office is 86 – 90 Paul Street, London, EC2A 4NE.
These Terms of Website Use apply to McDonnell Ellis LLP. Your access to this website is subject to these terms and conditions. By using this website you agree to be bound by these terms. We may change these terms and conditions at any time, and by continuing to use the website, you agree to these changes.
Accuracy and Completeness of Information
The material contained in this site is provided for general information only and does not constitute legal or other professional advice. Although McDonnell Ellis tries to ensure the accuracy and completeness of all of the content and material published on this website, such content is for general information only, and McDonnell Ellis assumes no liability or responsibility for errors and omissions. Further, some of the material on this site may become out-of-date – please contact us if you need a comprehensive and up-to-date statement of the relevant law.
We shall not be liable for any damage (including, without limitation, damage for loss of business or loss of profits) arising in contract, tort or otherwise from the use of, or inability to use, this site or any material contained in it (including links), or from any action or decision taken as a result of using this site or any such material.
No relationship and no confidentiality
Your use of this website (including the sending or receipt of its content) does not create a principal -client relationship between us. Unless such a relationship has otherwise been established, any communications with us through this website will not be confidential;
Indemnification
You agree to indemnify and keep indemnified McDonnell Ellis against any and all actions, costs, claims, damages and expenses, including legal and professional fees, arising from and related to your use of this website.
Copyright notice
Unless otherwise stated, the graphic images, buttons and text contained in this website are the exclusive property of McDonnell Ellis. Except for personal use, these items may not be copied, distributed, displayed, reproduced, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without prior written permission of McDonnell Ellis.
Trademarks
This Site features logos, brand identities and other trademarks and service marks (collectively, the “Marks”) that may be the property of McDonnell Ellis. Nothing contained on this website should be construed as granting, by implication or otherwise, any licence or right to use any Mark displayed on this website without written permission of McDonnell Ellis or any such third party that may own a Mark displayed on the website.
Links to third-party sites and downloads
As a convenience to users, this website may link to other sites owned and operated by third parties and not maintained by McDonnell Ellis. McDonnell Ellis has no control over these linked sites, all of which have separate privacy and data collection practices and legal policies independent of McDonnell Ellis. McDonnell Ellis is not responsible for the contents of any linked sites and does not make any representations regarding the content or accuracy of material on such sites. Viewing such third-party sites is entirely at your own risk.
Further, although we take steps to protect our website content, we cannot guarantee that the downloads are free from viruses and advise you to take your own virus precautions.
Governing Law
Except in respect of regulatory matters falling within the rules and jurisdiction of a specific professional regulator or where otherwise provided in these legal notices, your use of this website will be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of England and Wales and any disputes will be decided only by the courts of England and Wales.
Anti-money laundering & financial crime
We are committed to conducting business according to high standards of business integrity. We have a zero-tolerance policy in respect of financial crime. We require those with whom we have business relationships to have and maintain a like policy and appropriate procedures for combating financial crime.
In order to comply with the law and regulation, McDonnell Ellis is obliged to undertake detailed client due diligence and ongoing monitoring for both new and existing clients. Before accepting instructions we must verify the identity of all prospective clients and re-verify all checks periodically thereafter. Due diligence will also be carried out on all connected parties, such as the beneficial owners of a client as part of the verification process.
We may terminate the provision of any services to a client, or be instructed to do so by the relevant authorities, if such client fails to provide evidence of identity or if we suspect that the client or any other party connected with such client or with the matter is involved in any activities proscribed by relevant law and regulation.
We are authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA)(SRA Number: 668704), whose rules can be found at www.sra.org.uk/solicitors/standards-regulations.
McDonnell Ellis maintains professional indemnity insurance which covers our practice; extends to acts and omissions of McDonnell Ellis Individuals; and meets the minimum insurance requirements of our professional regulations to which our practice is subject.
We are not authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority. Hence, while we may provide legal advice to clients in relation to a matter which involves or relates to an investment, we are not able to provide “investment advice” – unless, broadly, such advice is an incidental part of our legal service; and where the advice can reasonably be regarded as a necessary part of our legal services (pursuant to an exemption under the Financial Services and Markets Act (FSMA)). This part of our business, including arrangements for complaints or redress, is regulated by the SRA.
The Solicitors’ Compensation Fund Rules 2011 provide for the Law Society of England and Wales to establish and maintain a fund for compensation claims. Grants are made from the fund at the discretion of the SRA.
Third Party Rights: Where under any circumstance a third party derives any benefit from the contract between us and you, the provisions of the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 are excluded save where expressly stated otherwise.
Any reference to a ‘partner’ is to a member of McDonnell Ellis LLP or an employee or consultant who is a lawyer with equivalent standing and qualifications and is not a reference to a partner in a partnership.
Complaints
We want to give you the best possible service. However, if at any point you become unhappy or concerned about the service we have provided then you should inform us immediately, so that we can do our best to resolve the problem.
In the first instance it may be helpful to contact the person who is working on your matter to discuss your concerns and we will do our best to resolve any issues at this stage. We are happy to deal with your complaint by informal discussion or in writing, at your choosing.
If you would prefer deal with someone else, you are welcome to do so. You can contact another Partner who will acknowledge your complaint as soon as possible and set out a suggested timetable for our response. Your complaint will be looked at afresh and we will work with you to understand any remaining concerns. We normally aim to respond to you fully, within one calendar month of receiving your complaint.
Making a complaint will not affect how we handle your matter and we will not charge you for investigating or responding to your complaint.
If your complaint relates to fees you may be entitled to have them reviewed by the court by applying for an assessment of the bill under Part III of the Solicitors Act 1974. If you take advantage of this procedure within a month from the date of our invoice, your right to a detailed assessment is unconditional. If you delay beyond a month the court may impose conditions. Once a year has elapsed since the date of the bill you will lose the right to a detailed assessment unless there are special circumstances.
Alternatively, if you consider that we have breached a regulatory obligation, you may refer the matter directly to the SRA here: https://www.sra.org.uk/consumers/problems/report-solicitor/. The postal address is Solicitors Regulation Authority The Cube 199 Wharfside Street Birmingham B1 1RN. You may also telephone them on 0370 606 2555 or email them at report@sra.org.uk.
What to do if we cannot resolve your complaint
If you are not satisfied with the way we have handled your complaint the Legal Ombudsman can help you if we are unable to resolve your complaint ourselves. They will look at your complaint independently and it will not affect how we handle your case.
Before accepting a complaint for investigation, the Legal Ombudsman will check that you have tried to resolve your complaint with us first. If you have, then you must take your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman:
- Within six months of receiving a final response to your complaint
and
- No more than six years from the date of act/omission; or
- No more than three years from when you should reasonably have known there was cause for complaint.
If you would like more information about the Legal Ombudsman, please contact them.
Contact details
0300 555 0333 between 9am to 5pm.
enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk
Legal Ombudsman PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ
This Privacy Notice (“Notice”) explains how we use (“Process”) your personal information (including personal information that you provide to us about other persons) (together, “Personal Information”). It also explains your privacy rights and how you can exercise them.
McDonnell Ellis is registered as a Data Controller as defined in the EU General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679.2018 with the UK Information Commissioner’s Office under number ZA752153.
We respect your privacy and we are committed to protecting your personal data. We are responsible for any Personal Information we collect about you (including any through the McDonnell Ellis website). The type of Personal Information we collect and how we Process it will vary depending on the relationship we have with you (e.g. whether you are a client, a supplier or someone else). Please note in particular that although we do not currently collect information or use cookies on the McDonnell Ellis website:
- We may in future use cookies on our website and in marketing emails to help us manage and improve our websites, your browsing experience, and the material/information that we send; and
- As a collaborative business, we may share certain Personal Information with our related entities or other persons engaged to provide the agreed services to you and also select third parties, subject to appropriate safeguards.
We will publish updates to this Privacy Notice on this website, with relevant changes highlighted as appropriate. Where we hold or Process your Personal Data, we will also take appropriate measures to inform you of any amendments which have a material impact on you and your ability to exercise your privacy rights.
If you have any questions regarding our processing of your Personal Information or would like to exercise your privacy rights, please email info@mcdonnellellis.com.
How We Collect Your Personal Information
We collect Personal Information to provide our services, for legal and regulatory purposes and to manage our business and relationships. For further details, please see the ‘Use of your Personal Information’ section of this Notice below.
How we collect information | |
Public information | Personal Information about you or your business which is publicly available, for example on your employers’ website, public professional social networking sites, the press; and relevant electronic data sources. |
Information from third parties | Personal Information provided to us by third parties (for example by our clients; agents; suppliers; advisers; consultants, lawyers and other professional experts; counterparties; previous, current and future employers; correspondents and enquirers; regulators and public authorities; relatives; and other persons) where such Information is provided to us in connection with the relevant purposes set out in this Notice. |
Information collected through our websites | We may in future use cookies on our website and certain marketing emails which collect your IP address and certain other information from you when you visit our website. For further details please see the ‘Marketing and Cookies’ section. |
You will voluntarily provide most of your Personal Information directly to us. We will also obtain Personal Information from other sources or persons. Sometimes the provision of your Personal Information to us by third parties will be unsolicited and/or provided in confidence (for example, reports made to us by regulators and other persons) and we will be unable to notify you of this. In all cases we shall take such necessary steps to ensure that Personal Information is obtained and used in a fair and lawful way.
The Types of Personal Information That We Collect
The categories of Personal Information we collect will vary, depending on our specific relationship with you and the context. We will not be able to further our relationship with you without certain Personal Information.
Type of Data | Examples | Context |
Identification details | Your passport/ID and proof of residential/registered address. | We will typically ask for this as part of our due diligence. Please see the relevant relationship-specific section below for further details. |
Personal contact details | Your home address, mobile number and personal email address. | We will usually ask for this if you do not currently have office/work contact details and also for customer due diligence purposes. |
Use of Your Personal Information
Our Processing of your Personal Information will include obtaining, recording or holding the data, or carrying out any operation or set of operations on the data including organising, copying, analysing, amending, retrieving, using, systemising, storing, disclosing, transferring, retaining, archiving, anonymising, erasing or destroying it by automated or non-automated means.
The GDPR requires us to communicate to you the purposes for which we Process your Personal Information (the “Permitted Purposes”), together with the corresponding ‘Legal Basis’. These are summarised in the tables below.
Further details on: (a) security and business continuity arrangements; (b) client due diligence, supplier vetting; and (c) equal opportunities monitoring and reporting, can be found in ‘The types of Personal Information that we collect’ section above.
General Permitted Purposes
We Process Your Personal Information for one or more of the following general Permitted Purposes.
Legal Basis | Permitted Purpose |
Where it is necessary to perform our contract with you or to take steps at your request to enter into the contract; or provide you with regular legal updates that you have expressly requested | For example: |
Where it is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation | For example: (c) for equal opportunities monitoring and reporting purposes; |
Where it is necessary for the purposes of our or another party’s legitimate interests, except where these are overridden by your interests, rights or freedoms | For example: We consider that our legitimate interests and these uses are proportionate, and compatible with your interests, legal rights or freedoms. |
Where it is necessary to protect your vital interests or that of another person | For example, the disclosure of your Personal Information to medical staff in the event of medical emergencies. |
Marketing and Cookies
We generally rely on our legitimate interests to Process your Personal Information for marketing purposes. We will inform you in advance of sending you marketing or if a related entity will send you marketing material (unless this is reasonably obvious in the circumstances – for example, when you provide us with your business card during a formal meeting). You will be able to opt-out of any marketing email sent by us, by clicking the opt-out link that we include in each email.
Cookies
We may use cookies (small text files placed on your device) and similar technologies on our website and marketing emails to:
- make sure our website function as it should;
- recognise you when you return to the website (for example, to remember your login details so that you do not need to re-enter it on subsequent visits once you have accepted our terms of use and Privacy Notice on accessing our website);
- analyse how our website and online services are performing (for example through the use of Google Analytics to understand how people arrive at and use our website so that we can make it more intuitive); and
- to present you with customised options relating to your interests, based on your previous use of the websites (for example, where you are known to us, we will keep a record of the articles on our website that you have clicked on/downloaded, and use that information to send you material which we have identified as relevant to your interests).
Please note that some of the cookies on our website may be third party cookies (e.g. Google advertising cookies) which we do not control. Please view the relevant website for details of their privacy policy.
If you are concerned about cookies, most web browsers (Safari, Internet Explorer, Chrome etc) now recognise when a cookie is offered and allow you to opt-out of receiving it. You can also delete all cookies that are already on your browser. If you choose to do this, you may have to manually adjust some preferences every time you visit our websites and some services and functionalities may not work.
For more information about cookies and how to disable and/or delete them, please visit www.allaboutcookies.org
Where Is Your Personal Information Stored and How Will It Be Shared?
We have put in place appropriate security measures to prevent your personal data from being accidentally lost, used or accessed in an unauthorised way, altered or disclosed. In addition, we limit access to your personal data to those employees, agents, contractors and other third parties who have a business need to know. They will only process your personal data on our instructions, and they are subject to a duty of confidentiality.
We have put in place procedures to deal with any suspected personal data breach and will notify you and any applicable regulator of a breach where we are legally required to do so.
We will also at times need to share some of your Personal Information with select third parties, such as:
Persons related to you | Your agents, consultants, other advisers, counterparties, beneficiaries, trustees, banks and related persons who operate or are based around the world, where you ask us to, or as otherwise necessary for the Permitted Purposes. |
Persons related to us | Our agents, consultants and other professionals, suppliers and external agencies/administrators who assist us with legal, administrative, financial, operational and other services, and may have access to certain of your Personal Information as part of their role. These will include, for example: Entities under common ownership, and potential affiliates and successors in title to our business, who may be based around the world. |
Courts/tribunals; and law enforcement, regulatory and public authorities | Where disclosure is required by applicable rules and law, or by any court, tribunal, law enforcement, regulatory, public or quasi-governmental authority or department around the world. |
Other involved persons | If you attend an event organised or hosted by us, we may disclose your details to others who attend or participate in the organisation of that event (as notified to you). Any other persons with whom we may interact on your behalf or at your request and/or where this is otherwise necessary in connection with the Permitted Purposes. |
(collectively, “Select Third Parties”)
We do not disclose (or sell) your Personal Information to any other third parties.
This Processing may involve the transfer (sometimes via cloud computing) of some of your Personal Information to other countries whose privacy laws may not be as comprehensive to those where you are based. Where third party and/or cross-border transfers take place, we will put enhanced confidentiality and information security safeguards in place to ensure the lawfulness of the transfer and protection of your Personal Information. For further details, please see the Security of your Personal Information and data breaches section of this Notice below.
Security of Your Personal Information and Data Breaches
We operate technical, non-technical and procedural controls to safeguard your Personal Information (including protection against unauthorised or unlawful Processing and against accidental loss, destruction or damage). In particular:
The use of: |
We only engage reputable suppliers and undertake appropriate information security and regulatory compliance due diligence on them. Where suppliers will have access to our and/or our clients’ information, they are also made subject to strict contractual provisions requiring them to ensure any Personal Information is kept secure and is only used in accordance with our instructions (or as otherwise and to the extent strictly required by law, if applicable). |
Where your Personal Information is transferred to other countries, we will put appropriate safeguards in place to ensure the lawfulness and security of the transfer. All transfers of Personal Information outside of the EEA will be based on the EU Commission’s standard contractual clauses. We will also put such arrangements in place with third parties as appropriate. Where required under applicable local law, we will seek your consent to the transfer. |
We will keep these arrangements under regular review, taking into account security and compliance best practices, current risks, threats, vulnerabilities, mitigating controls, technology, and changes in applicable legal requirements.
However, the transmission of information via the internet is not completely secure. Although we do our best to protect your Personal Information, we cannot guarantee the security of your Information transmitted to our websites – and any such transmission is at your own risk. Our website may also, from time to time, contain links to third party websites – which are outside of our control and are not covered by this Notice. If you access other websites using the links provided, please check their privacy policy before submitting any Personal Information to them.
Data Breaches
If a data breach (leading to the destruction, loss, alteration, unauthorised disclosure of, or access to, your Personal Information) occurs which is likely to result in a high risk of adversely affecting your rights and freedoms, we will inform you of this without undue delay. Where legally permitted, any such notifications will be made either via email, post or telephone.
How long we keep Your Information
We will only keep your Personal Information in an accessible form which can identify you for as long as we need to for the Permitted Purposes. As retention periods can vary significantly depending on the Permitted Purpose and the relevant jurisdictions concerned, it is not possible for us to commit to an overall retention period for all of your Personal Information held by us. For example, we are under legal obligations to keep certain records for specific periods which will usually extend after the end of a contractual relationship (including minimum statutory retention periods in respect of client due diligence documents – which vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction).
As a result, we use certain categories and criteria to determine how long we keep certain of your Personal Information, and these are set out below. Where your Personal Information is used for more than one Permitted Purpose, there will be overlapping retention periods in respect of that Information. In such cases, we will retain your Information for the longer of those overlapping retention periods. We will also transfer paper files into, and store them in, electronic format where appropriate.
Type of Personal Information | Retention Period |
Personal Information Processed in connection with lending matters | Up to 5 years after the date of our final bill for the relevant matter, unless: |
Personal Information relating to suppliers and the services they provide to us | Up to 5 years following the end of our business relationship, unless: |
Where we no longer require your Personal Information, we will take steps to delete or anonymise it. There will be circumstances where certain Information cannot be permanently deleted or anonymised, for example because it is stored in our back-ups for business continuity purposes.
In such cases, we will take appropriate steps to minimise (and pseduonymise where technically practicable) the Personal Information that we hold, and to ensure that it is: (a) not used in connection with any decision involving you; (b) not shared with anyone, except where we are legally required to do so (e.g. following a court order); (c) kept secure and virtually inaccessible; and (d) permanently deleted if, or when, this becomes technically possible.
Your Rights
The following privacy rights apply under the EU GDPR. Although applicable data protection legislation in relevant jurisdictions afford similar rights, there may be circumstances where some of these rights do not apply under or are modified by, local law. Further information can be sought from our privacy contacts. In the event of any inconsistency, the applicable local legislation will prevail.
Right to be informed | You can ask us to provide you with privacy information about how we Process your Personal Information. That information is set out in this Privacy Notice, together with any other specific notices which are provided to you at the time of collection of your Information. |
Right of access | You can request us to confirm whether we Process your Personal Information. You can also ask us to access your Personal Information. |
Right to rectification and erasure | In the event that we hold inaccurate or incomplete Personal Information, you can ask us to rectify or complete that Information. You can also ask us to erase your Personal Information. This right is not absolute and only applies in certain circumstances. |
Right to restrict processing | You can ask us to restrict the Processing of your Personal Information (or to suppress it) for a certain period of time. This right is not absolute and only applies in certain circumstances. |
Right of data portability | You can ask us to move, copy or transfer your Personal Information back to you or to another person under certain circumstances. This right only applies: (a) to Personal Information you have provided to us as a Data Controller; (b) where the Processing is based on your consent or for the performance of a contract; and (c) when processing is carried out by automated means. |
Right to object | You can ask us at any time to stop Processing your Personal Information for marketing purposes. Where there are legitimate grounds to do so, you can also object to us Processing your Personal Information on the basis of our legitimate interests and in certain other situations. |
Right to withdraw consent | Where we are Processing your Personal Information on the basis of your consent, you can withdraw that consent at any time. |
Rights in relation to automated decision-making and profiling | You have the right to: (a) ensure that any significant decisions affecting you are not made purely by automated means based on an online profile or other information (i.e. a person is involved in the decision-making), and (b) that you can express your views and to challenge the decision. We are also under obligations to ensure that any profiling is undertaken in a fair and transparent way. |
For further details about these privacy rights under GDPR (including their limitations), please see the European Commission’s website.
To exercise your rights, please send a written and dated request (a “Request”) to 86 – 90 Paul Street, London, EC2A 4NE (please mark your envelope ‘Data protection’). Please note that:
- We will need to verify your identity in order to be able to comply with certain of your Requests.
- When you Request access to your Personal Information, there will be some Personal Information which we are not able to disclose to you, such as documents which include confidential or personal information about another entity or person; documentation relating to management forecasting or planning; legally privileged documents; and copies of references.
- We will not be able to comply with your Request in certain circumstances, for example where your Request is manifestly unfounded or excessive.
Communication and information security
- We will communicate with you and, as appropriate, third parties using any normal means such as letters, fax, e-mail, text, instant messaging, telephone, voicemail and video conferencing or using CD-ROMs, DVDs or USB devices. If there is any mode of communication which you do not wish us to use, please notify the partner responsible for the matter in writing.
- Please notify the partner responsible for the matter in writing If you regard any communications from or to us as particularly confidential or require particular security arrangements with regard to a matter or have alternative communication requirements.
- Our anti-virus and anti-spam filters and other security arrangements may reject or filter legitimate emails. Please ensure that any important email you send is followed up by a telephone call if it has not otherwise been acknowledged.
- McDonnell Ellis Group cannot guarantee the availability or security of its electronic information, storage and communications systems. The services we provide Our services are provided to and for the benefit of our client only. No other person may use or rely upon the services undertaken for you nor derive any rights or benefits from such services unless expressly agreed otherwise.
- If there is any change in the Law after the date on which any services are provided, we have no responsibility to notify you of the change or the consequences of such change, unless expressly agreed otherwise.
- We alone are responsible for the provision of the services. No McDonnell Ellis Individual assumes any personal responsibility to you and accordingly, no McDonnell Ellis Individual shall owe you any personal duty of care. Accordingly, when instructing us, you agree that (a) you will not bring any claim whether in contract, tort, under statute or otherwise against any McDonnell Ellis Individual or any other member of McDonnell Ellis, and (b) McDonnell Ellis Individuals and other members of McDonnell Ellis shall be entitled to rely upon this provision.
- Any amount agreed with you in writing as a limit on our liability, shall be applied (a) to each matter upon which we act for you; (b) to Losses arising in any circumstances whatsoever, whether in contract, tort, under statute or otherwise, and howsoever caused (including our negligence or non-performance); and (c) as an aggregate cap on the liability of McDonnell Ellis Group.
- Where we have agreed a monetary cap on our liability, the amount of such cap shall be the greater of (a) such amount agreed with you in writing; and (b) the minimum amount permitted under applicable Law.