Mark Lomas QC is committed to respecting and protecting your privacy.

Please read the following information carefully. This privacy notice contains information about the information collected, stored and otherwise processed about you and the reasons for the processing. It also tells you who I share this information with, the security mechanisms I have put in place to protect your data and how to contact me in the event you need further information.

My mediation practice is administered by Independent Mediators Ltd. Independent Mediators Ltd operates on the model of a barrister’s chambers. All the mediators, including myself, are self-employed individuals whose practices are centrally managed by Independent Mediators Ltd.

All the mediators are shareholders and directors of Independent Mediators Ltd. Independent Mediators Ltd is responsible for providing the management and administrative support on behalf of all the mediators at Independent Mediators Ltd.

Normally, Independent Mediators Ltd receives data from the legal representatives of parties to mediations and not direct from those parties, except where such parties are acting in person.

Each individual mediator within Independent Mediators has their own Privacy Notice which applies to his / her handling of personal data. Independent Mediators also have their own Privacy Notice. All Privacy Notices are accessible via our Privacy Notice page on the website of Independent Mediators Ltd (“the Website”).

I use and am responsible for personal information about you. I am the ‘controller’ of this information for the purposes of the General Data Protection Regulation and other applicable data protection laws.

When carrying out the following activities:
• The management and administration of my practice – I may obtain your personal data, including special categories of personal data as defined in the General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”), when you make an enquiry about using me as a mediator. This could include contact via telephone, email or other electronic correspondence, for example, if you seek an estimate of costs for a mediation or appoint me as a mediator.
• Otherwise in the normal course of business – you may have provided me with your personal business details in relation to appointing a mediator or for the purposes of communicating regarding potential mediations or marketing/business development opportunities. This could include contact via telephone, email or other electronic correspondence.
• Other marketing – I may have obtained limited personal data at an event or through an introduction by a third party or through mutual networking activity in person or via social media, email or other digital communications.
• In addition, if you visit www.independentmediators.co.uk some limited personal data may also be collected. Web usage information such as IP address, time and duration of visits. Please see Independent Mediators Cookie Policy for more detail.
• otherwise through providing my mediation services or operating my practice.

I collect the following personal information that you provide:
• your name and title
• contact information, including telephone number, postal address and email address
• information relating to your location, preferences and / or interests
• in certain circumstances, your and others’ signature(s), financial details such as bank account details
• in certain circumstances, data relating to health (including disabilities), ethnicity, race, religious beliefs, trade union membership and other ‘special category
personal data’
• the content of any enquiry submitted over the Website
• any other personal data I collect (such as the reference number which may be assigned to you) in the context of my work or in the course of operating my
business.
• other personal information relevant to instructions to provide mediation services, including information specific to the instructions in question.
• any other information relating to you which you may provide to me

Information collected from other sources.
I collect the following information from other sources:
• your name and title
• contact information, including telephone number, postal address and email address
• information relating to your location, preferences and / or interests
• in certain circumstances, your and others’ signature(s), financial details such as bank account details
• in certain circumstances, data relating to health (including disabilities), ethnicity, race, religious beliefs, trade union membership and other ‘special category
personal data’
• any other personal data I collect (such as the reference number which may be assigned to you) in the course of operating my business.
• other personal information relevant to instructions to provide mediation services, including information specific to the instructions in question.

If you give me personal information about another person, you should ensure that:
(a) you are legally entitled to give me that information;
(b) the disclosure is in accordance with any applicable data protection or privacy law; and
(c) such other person has also read this privacy notice

I may use your personal information for the following purposes:
1. to provide the requested service to you
2. to respond to any query that you may submit to me
3. to manage my relationship with you (and/or your business), including by maintaining my database of contacts and other third parties for administration, and
accounting and relationship management purposes
4. to complete my contractual obligations to you, or otherwise taking steps as described in my Mediation Agreement (including any associated administration)
5. to carry out any relevant conflict checks
6. to keep accounting records
7. to promote and market my practice
8. to provide work shadowing opportunities
9. to respond to requests for references
10. to respond to potential complaints or make complaints
11. to comply with any other professional, legal and regulatory obligations which apply to me or policies that I have in place
12. to establish, exercise or defend my legal rights or for the purpose of legal proceedings
13. for my legitimate business interests, such as undertaking conflict searches, business research and analysis, managing the operation of my practice
14. to prevent and respond to actual or potential fraud or illegal activities.
15. for internal operations, including troubleshooting, data analysis, testing, research, statistical and survey responses
16. as I feel is necessary to prevent illegal activity or to protect interests.

I do not use automated decision-making in the processing of your personal data.

Please bear in mind that if you choose not to provide personal data requested by me, or if you object to my processing your personal data, I may not be able to provide you with the information and/or services you have requested or otherwise fulfil the purpose(s) for which I have asked for the personal data.

The GDPR requires all those that process personal data to have a legal basis for doing so.

The lawful bases identified in the GDPR, and which provide my legal bases for processing your personal data, are:
• Performance of a contract with the data subject or to take steps to enter into a contract.
• Compliance with a legal obligation.
• The legitimate interests of myself, or a third party, except where such interests are overridden by the interests, rights or freedoms of the data subject.
• Where I am otherwise required or authorised by law.
• Where processing of ‘special category data’ is necessary in the context of the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims.
• In certain circumstances, where I need to process ‘special category data’ in the context of my legal work but outside the scope of the point above, where I have
obtained your express consent to do so. As I will explain at the time I collect your consent, you may withdraw it at any time in accordance with the information I
provide to you at that time.

Legitimate interests as follows:
The legitimate interests and purposes for which I process personal data are as follows:
• To administer and perform my mediation services.
• To make, investigate, respond to or address complaints or concerns, including any legal or regulatory action.
• To ensure network and information security, including preventing unauthorised access to personal data.
• To assess and improve my services.
• For marketing purposes.
• My interests in managing my relationship with my contacts and ascertaining achievement of proper standards/ compliance with policies, practices or procedures.
• Running conflict checks
• Statistical information
• To report possible criminal acts or threats to public security.

As a mediator I have an obligation to keep your information confidential, save as may be required by law, whether under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 and/or any Regulations relating thereto or otherwise.

My obligations in relation to mediation matters are governed by the terms of the Mediation Agreement executed in relation to each matter.

Information collected from or otherwise arising from the provision of my mediation services may be shared internally with the administration team of Independent Mediators Ltd. In addition limited information collected from or otherwise arising from the provision of my mediation services may also be shared on occasion internally within Independent Mediators Ltd with (a) the Executive Committee of Independent Mediators Ltd, for example for the investigation of a complaint, and (b) marketing.

Third-party IT staff may have access to the data if it is necessary in the performance of their supporting role for the Controller.

I also share limited information with third parties who process data on my behalf, including IT service and business administration service providers, insurers and in connection with bank transfers and accountancy requirements.

I will not rent or sell contacts details to any other organisation or individual.

I may be required to provide your information to regulators or the Information Commissioner’s Office. In the case of the Information Commissioner’s Office, there is a risk that your information may lawfully be disclosed by them for the purpose of any other civil or criminal proceedings, without my consent or yours, which includes privileged information.

I may also be required to disclose your information to the police or intelligence services, where required or permitted by law.

Personal data will be retained for as short a period as possible and the retention period may vary from one piece of information to another. It will also take into account my need to meet any legal, statutory and regulatory obligations, good practice and business purposes. In all cases the need to use your personal information will be reassessed on a regular basis and information which can be destroyed because it is no longer required will be disposed of effectively and securely.

I am committed to ensuring that your information is secure. To help protect your personal information from unauthorised access or disclosure, I have put in place reasonable physical, electronic and managerial procedures to safeguard and secure the information I hold. Once I have received your information, I will use standard procedures and security features to try to prevent unauthorised access. Unfortunately, the transmission of information via the internet is not completely secure and although I do my best to protect your personal data, I cannot absolutely guarantee the security of your data.

It may be necessary to transfer your personal information outside the EEA or to an international organisation in order to operate email systems and email marketing. A list of third countries that your personal data may be transferred to can be found below:

• cloud data storage services based in the USA who have agreed to comply with the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield, in order to enable me to store your data and/or backup copies of your data so that I may access your data when they need to. The USA does not have the same data protection laws as the EU but the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield has been recognised by the European Commission as providing adequate protection. To obtain further details of that protection see https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/law-topic/data-protection/data-transfers-outside-eu/eu-us-privacy-shield_en.
• cloud data storage services based in Switzerland, in order to enable me to store your data and/or backup copies of your data so that I may access your data when I need to. Switzerland does not have the same data protection laws as the EU but has been recognised by the European Commission as providing adequate protection; see https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/law-topic/data-protection/data-transfers-outside-eu/adequacy-protection-personal-data-non-eu-countries_en.

If you would like any further information please contact:
Nicky Doble – CEO, Independent Mediators Ltd
Email: dataprotection@independentmediators.co.uk
or
Call: 020 7127 9223

Under the General Data Protection Regulation, you have a number of important rights that you can exercise free of charge. In summary, these rights are to:

• transparency over how we use your personal data and fair processing of your information;
• access to your personal information and other supplementary information;
• require me to correct any mistakes or complete missing information I hold on you;
• require me to erase your personal information in certain circumstances;
• receive a copy of the personal information you have provided to me or have this information be sent to a third party, this will be provided to you or the third party in a structured, commonly used and machine readable format;
• object at any time to processing of your personal information for direct marketing;
• object in certain other situations to the continued processing of your personal information;
• restrict my processing of your personal information in certain circumstances;
• Request not to be subject to automated decision making which produce legal effects that concern you or affect you in a significantly similar way;

If you want more information about your rights under the GDPR please see the Guidance from the Information Commissioners Office on Individual’s rights under the GDPR.

If you want to exercise any of these rights, please:
• Email me direct on mark@mlomasqc.co.uk or via the CEO, Independent Mediators Ltd on dataprotection@independentmediators.co.uk

• provide information so that I can identify you such as a copy of your passport. I may need to contact you to request further information to verify your identity;
• let me have proof of your identity and address;
• state the right or rights that you wish to exercise;

I will respond to you within one month from when I receive your request.

If a data subject believes that the Controller has not complied with their data protection rights, they can complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).

This website uses cookies. Please see our Cookie Policy for details.

This website includes links to third-party websites, if you follow a link to any such website, we do not accept any liability or responsibility, because these websites have their own terms & conditions and privacy policies. You should read these other sites’ privacy policies.

I do not intend to process your personal information for any reason other than stated within this privacy notice. If this changes, the privacy notice will be amended and placed on Independent Mediators’ website/the Website (see section 1 above).

This privacy notice was published on 31 May 2018. Any changes to it will be shown on the revised version of it on Independent Mediators’ website/the Website (see section 1 above).

If you have any questions about this privacy notice or the information I hold about you, please contact me or the CEO at Independent Mediators Ltd.

The best way to contact me is to email me – mark@mlomasqc.co.uk
Or via
CEO, Independent Mediators Ltd at dataprotection@independentmediators.co.uk