Privacy Protection

1. General information

Thank you for your interest in our law firm Kaufmann Rüedi Attorneys at Law (hereinafter "firm"). Data protection is a matter of great importance to our law firm and we take the protection of personal data very seriously. Personal data is any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person. This includes, for example, name, address, telephone number and e-mail address. When processing personal data, we comply with the data protection legislation applicable in Switzerland.

In this privacy policy, we inform you about how we collect and process personal data. We also inform you about the terms of use of our website. By visiting our website, you agree to the terms of use.

2. Controller and contact details

Kaufmann Rüedi Rechtsanwälte AG

Alpenquai 28a

6005 Luzern

Schweiz

Tel.: +41 41 417 10 70

Website: www.krlaw.ch

If you have any questions about data protection or if you would like to exercise your rights as a data subject, please contact us at datenschutz@krlaw.ch.

3. Place of data processing

We process personal data in our area of responsibility in Switzerland and in the EU/EEA. However, we may transfer personal data to recipients (namely clients, counterparties or authorities) who in turn process personal data in other countries, including those that do not guarantee a level of data protection comparable to Swiss law. We will do the latter based on consent or standard contractual clauses, or if it is necessary to fulfill a contract or to enforce legal claims.

4. Collection of general data and information

Every time a data subject or an automated system accesses the firm’s website, the website may collect a range of general data and information. These general data and information are stored in the server’s log files. We may collect (1) the browser types and versions used, (2) the operating system used by the accessing system, (3) the website from which an accessing system reaches our website (“referrer”), (4) the subpages which are accessed on our website via an accessing system, (5) the date and time of access to the website, (6) an Internet Protocol address (IP address), (7) the Internet service provider of the accessing system, and (8) other similar data and information used for security purposes in the event of attacks on our information technology systems.

When using these general data and information, the firm does not draw any conclusions about the data subject. Rather, this information is required to (1) correctly deliver the content of our website, (2) optimise the content of our website and advertising for this, (3) ensure the permanent proper functioning of our information technology systems and the technology of our website, and (4) provide law enforcement authorities with the information necessary for criminal prosecution in the event of a cyberattack. These data and information collected anonymously are therefore analysed by the firm statistically and also with the aim of increasing data protection and data security in our company in order ultimately to ensure an optimum level of protection for the personal data we process. The anonymous data in the server log files are stored separately from all personal data provided by a data subject.

5. Cookies / tracking and other technologies relating to the use of our website

We may use cookies and similar technologies on our website. Cookies are text files which are placed on a computer system via an Internet browser and stored.

Many websites and servers use cookies. Many cookies contain a “cookie ID”. A cookie ID is a unique identifier of the cookie. It consists of a character string through which websites and servers can be assigned to the specific Internet browser in which the cookie was stored. This enables the visited websites and servers to distinguish the individual browser of the data subject from other Internet browsers that contain other cookies. A particular Internet browser can be recognised and identified by its unique cookie ID.

By using cookies, users of a website can be provided with more user-friendly services that would not be possible without cookies.

By means of a cookie, the information and offers on a website can be optimised in the user’s interest. Cookies make it possible, as already mentioned, to recognise the users of a website.

The purpose of this recognition is to make it easier for users to use the website. For example, the user of a website that uses cookies does not have to re-enter his access data each time he visits the website because this is transferred by the website and the cookie stored on the user’s computer system.

The data subject may prevent the setting of cookies by our website – where we use them – at any time by changing the settings of the Internet browser used, thus permanently objecting to the setting of cookies. Furthermore, cookies that have already been set can be deleted at any time via an Internet browser or other software programs. This is possible in all common Internet browsers. If the data subject deactivates the setting of cookies in the Internet browser used, he/she may not be able to use all features of our website in full.

We use the open-source software tool Matomo on our website to analyze the surfing behavior of our users. With Matomo no data is transmitted to servers that are beyond our control.

Matomo uses cookies. These text files are stored on your computer and make it possible for us to analyze the use of the website. For this purpose, the information about the use gained by the cookie is transferred to our servers and stored.

By evaluating the data obtained, we are able to compile information on the use of the individual components of our website. This helps us to constantly improve our website and its user-friendliness. Your IP address is an anonymous identifier for us; we have no technical means of identifying you as a registered user. You remain anonymous as a user.

More information about the privacy settings of the Matomo software can be found under the following link: https://matomo.org/docs/privacy/

If you agree to the web analysis by Matomo, the following data is collected when you call up individual pages of our website:

• 2 bytes of the IP address of the calling system of the user

• The accessed website

• The website from which the user has accessed the accessed website (referrer)

• The subpages that are called from the called web page

• The time spent on the website

• The frequency of the website visit

The software runs exclusively on the servers of our website. A storage of the personal data of the users takes place only there. The data will not be passed on to third parties. Anonymized data is provided to DIRO AG for evaluation purposes; this is not personal data.

6. Subscribing to our newsletter

On the firm’s website, users are given the opportunity to subscribe to our company’s newsletter. Which personal data are transmitted to the controller when ordering the newsletter is determined by the input mask used for this purpose.

The firm uses its newsletter to inform clients and business partners at regular intervals about company offers and legal news. The newsletter can only be received by the data subject if the data subject has a valid e-mail address which he/she has provided to us for contact purposes.

When registering the e-mail address, we also store the IP address assigned by the Internet service provider (ISP) of the computer system used by the data subject at the time of registration as well as the date and time of registration. The collection of these data is necessary to be able to trace (potential) misuse of the e-mail address of a data subject at a later point in time and is therefore for the legal protection of the controller.

The personal data collected during registration will only be used for sending our newsletter and for professional contact. Apart from this, the personal data collected during registration will not be passed on to third parties. The data subject can cancel their subscription to our newsletter at any time. The consent to the storage of personal data that the data subject gave us for registration can be withdrawn at any time via our website.

The firm uses Swiss Newsletter, a service provided by mailXpert GmbH in Zurich, Switzerland, as a marketing automation platform. By clicking “subscribe” to submit the form, the data subject acknowledges that the information he or she provides will be passed on to Swiss Newsletter for processing in accordance with its data protection guidelines and conditions.

7. Contact via the website

Where a data subject contacts the firm via e-mail or a contact form, the personal data transferred by the data subject will be stored automatically. Such personal data provided voluntarily by a data subject to the controller will be stored for the purpose of further processing or contacting the data subject. These personal data are not passed on to third parties.

8. Use of our social media pages

On our social media pages, you will find posts on legal topics, our range of services and our social and cultural commitment. The social media providers collect and analyze usage data such as the number of visits and demographic information about visitors to our company pages.

We receive evaluations from the social media providers based on this data. These only contain aggregated or otherwise sufficiently anonymized data. Only the respective provider can identify you based on the usage data collected. Therefore, please note the data protection information of the respective provider.

9. Information to customers (clients)

We process personal data that we receive from you or third parties involved as part of the client relationship or that we collect ourselves.

You or the persons concerned provide us with some of the personal data yourself when you or they contact us by e-mail or telephone and request our services. This includes, for example, name and contact details as well as information about the role of the data subject at the company or organization for which you or the respective contact persons work or on whose behalf you or they contact us. We also process personal data that we receive in our correspondence with third parties (namely clients, counterparties, authorities and courts and their employees or other contact persons) as part of the client relationship (e.g. name, contact details, date of birth, details of employment, income situation, family circumstances or state of health). We also collect some personal data ourselves, e.g. from public registers or websites.

We primarily process the types of personal data mentioned above in order to provide, document and invoice our legal services.

If you provide us with personal data via a third party (e.g. via your employees, family members or other contact persons), it is up to you to inform them in a general manner about the processing by legal service providers (such as us) or other external service providers (e.g. in a data protection declaration for employees).

10. Information for applicants

When you apply to us, we process the data you provide, such as your contact details, your qualifications and other information in your CV. We process your data until the application process is completed. As part of the application process, we may forward your data to external third parties (e.g. for assessments) or contact third parties (e.g. to obtain references).

11. Information to suppliers

If you contact us as an employee of a supplier, the law firm processes general data of the supplier or the responsible contact person, e.g. name and e-mail address, as well as any information about your position or role at the organization on whose behalf you are contacting us. We also process data that is required for the processing of any contracts between the supplier and the law firm.

Personal data of third parties/client data: Our suppliers generally do not have access to the personal data of third parties, in particular client data. Should a supplier exceptionally need access to personal data in the course of contract processing, we will make appropriate contractual agreements to ensure data protection.

12. Disclosure to third parties

In order to achieve the purposes described in this Privacy Policy, it may be necessary for us to disclose personal data to the following categories of recipients: External service providers, clients, counterparties and their legal representatives, business partners with whom we may need to coordinate the provision of legal services, as well as authorities and courts.

13. Marketing

We process contact details of clients or their employees or other contact persons for marketing purposes (using any means of communication such as email, social media, post or telephone) to inform about publications, events, news, services or products that may be of interest.

14. Data security

We use proportionate and reasonable technical and organizational security measures to adequately protect your personal data against accidental or intentional manipulation, loss, destruction or access by unauthorized persons. We are constantly improving our security measures in line with technological developments. Nevertheless, Internet-based data transmissions can always have security gaps, so that absolute protection cannot be guaranteed.

We would like to point out that we use external IT service providers and cloud providers with servers in Switzerland and the EU as part of our mandate management. We then use certain IT services and means of communication that may be associated with data security risks (e.g. email, video conferencing). It is your responsibility to inform us if you require special security measures.

15. Your rights

You can request confirmation or information about the processing of your personal data at any time. You also have the right to request the rectification, completion, erasure or restriction of the processing of your personal data and the transfer of your personal data in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format. You also have the right to object to the processing. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the competent data protection supervisory authority.

Please note that legal requirements and exceptions apply to these rights. Consequently, we may refuse your request to exercise these rights if, for example, this would violate legal obligations such as retention requirements. Your request may also be rejected due to the assertion, exercise or defense of legal claims.

16. Storage of personal data

The firm processes and stores personal data for as long as this is necessary for the fulfilment of contractual and legal obligations or for purposes pursued with the processing, as well as in accordance with the legal storage and documentation obligations. It is possible that personal data may be stored for the period during which claims can be asserted against the firm (i.e. in particular during the statutory period of limitation) and insofar as the firm is otherwise legally obliged to do so or legitimate business interests require this (e.g. for evidence and documentation purposes).

17. Existence of automated decision-making

As a responsible company, we do not carry out automatic decision-making or profiling.

18. Disclaimer

We are not liable for any damage caused by the use or non-use of the information provided on our website or by the use of incorrect or incomplete information on our website.

Our website contains links to third-party websites. We have neither knowledge of their exact content nor can we influence it. We accept no liability for the content of external links.

19. Copyrights

Texts and graphics on our website are protected by copyright. Use by third parties is only permitted with the express consent of the law firm.

20. Validity of the privacy policy and terms of use

The data protection declaration serves to provide information about the type, scope and purpose of the use of personal data by the law firm. We may therefore unilaterally amend the Privacy Policy and the Terms of Use at any time and without notice. The currently valid version published on the firm's website shall apply.