Policies

FOURTEEN seeks to offer a professional and efficient service at all times. We welcome feedback from our clients to assist us in monitoring the quality of the service that we provide.

Standard Contractual Terms

Unless otherwise agreed in writing, FOURTEEN’s barristers conduct work instructed by professional clients under the Bar Council’s Standard Contractual Terms for the Supply of Legal Services by Barristers to Authorised Persons 2020. Please click here to download our full contractual terms.

Complaints

FOURTEEN aims to provide you a good service at all times; however, if you have a complaint, it is best to let us know as soon as possible so that we can try to put things right quickly. If you wish to complain about your barrister or chambers, you do not have to go through your solicitor, but you are free to do so, should you wish.

How to make your Complaint

We might be able to quickly resolve your complaint by discussing it with you over the phone, so this is often the best way to first raise your complaint. Please phone FOURTEEN on 020 7242 0858 and ask to speak to our Chambers Director, Robin Jackson, about a complaint. If he is not immediately available, your contact details will be taken and he will phone you back as soon as possible.

The Chambers Director will discuss with you the details of your complaint and what you would like done about it. We hope that we will be able to resolve your concerns there and then, although it may be necessary to gain some further information and continue the discussion in a later phone call.

If the matter is resolved over the phone and you are satisfied with the outcome, the Chambers Director will follow up with an email or letter (according to your choice) to confirm this.

If you do not think your complaint has been resolved on the telephone, you will be invited to write to us so it can be investigated formally.

(If your complaint is about a barrister who has not been working for you (that is, they have not been instructed by you or your solicitor), we may be able to resolve the issue informally but we cannot formally investigate it. If you wish to make a formal complaint, you will need to contact the Bar Standards Board, the Bar’s regulatory body. Please see the section below titled “Complaints to the Bar Standards Board.)

Complaints made in Writing

If you wish to complain about a barrister from FOURTEEN who has been working for you and you would prefer to make the complaint in writing from the outset or, after talking to us about your complaint on the phone, you have been invited to put it in writing, please either

email the Chambers Director at RJackson@Fourteen.co.uk or
post a letter to The Chambers Director, FOURTEEN, 14 Gray’s Inn Square, London, WC1R 5JP.

We prefer communicating by email, as that is usually quicker and more reliable, but we are very happy to communicate by post if that is better for you.

Please give the following details in your email or letter:

Your name and address;
Which barrister(s) or member of staff you are complaining about;
The detail of the complaint; and
What you would like done about it.

We will, where possible, acknowledge receipt of your complaint within two working days of receiving it and provide you with details of how your complaint will be dealt with.

FOURTEEN has a panel of experienced members of Chambers which considers any written complaint. Within 4 working days of your letter being received, the head of the panel will appoint a member of the panel to investigate it. The person you are complaining about will never be involved in investigating your complaint.

The person appointed to investigate will write to you as soon as possible to let you know they have been appointed and that they will reply to your complaint within 24 days. If they find later that they are not going to be able to reply within 24 days, they will set a new date for their reply and inform you. The reply will set out:

The nature and scope of their investigation;
Their conclusion on each complaint and the basis for their conclusion; and
If they find that you are justified in your complaint, their proposals for resolving the complaint.

Confidentiality

All conversations and documents relating to the complaint will be treated as confidential and will be disclosed only to the extent that is strictly necessary to fully investigate your complaint. If the complaint is later referred to the Legal Ombudsman or the Bar Standards Board, it is likely that we will be required to pass to them information relating to our investigation.

Our Policy

As part of our commitment to client care, we make a written record of any complaint and retain all documents and correspondence about the complaint for a period of six years. Our management committee reviews annually an anonymised summary of any complaints in order to improve Chambers’ services to our clients.

Mediation

If you are unhappy with the outcome of the investigation, other bodies exist which are competent to deal with complaints about legal services should both you and the barrister agree to use such a scheme. One such body is ProMediate. If you wish to use ProMediate, please contact us to discuss this further. Please also note that the time limit for contacting ProMediate is 6 weeks from the date you were informed of FOURTEEN’s final decision about your complaint, and, if mediation is used, neither you nor the barrister is required to accept the proposed resolution. If mediation does not resolve the complaint, you may still make a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman.

Complaints to the Legal Ombudsman

If you are unhappy with the outcome of our investigation and whether or not you have attempted mediation, you may take up your complaint with the Legal Ombudsman, the independent body for resolving complaints about lawyers. The Legal Ombudsman is not able to consider your complaint until it has first been investigated by chambers and you must raise your complaint with the Legal Ombudsman within six months of receiving the final report from our investigation.

Please note that there are time limits for referring a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman, which are:

• not later than one year from the date of the act or omission being complained about; or

• not later than one year from the date when the complainant should have realised that there was cause for complaint.

The Legal Ombudsman may exercise discretion to extend these time limits if, on the evidence, it is fair and reasonable to do so, for example, if the complainant was prevented from meeting the time limit as a result of serious illness.

At FOURTEEN, we will not usually deal with complaints that fall outside the Legal Ombudsman’s time limits, although we will also similarly exercise discretion to extend the time limits if, on the evidence, it is fair and reasonable to do so.

If you would like more information about the Legal Ombudsman, please:

Visit www.legalombudsman.org.uk
Call 0300 555 0333 between 10am and 4pm, Mondays to Friday
Email enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk
Write to The Legal Ombudsman, PO Box 68-6, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ

The Legal Ombudsman publishes data about the final decisions it has made about complaints over the last 12 months, which can be found here.

Complaints to the Bar Standards Board

As mentioned above, neither FOURTEEN nor the Legal Ombudsman will formally investigate a complaint unless you are or were a client of the barrister involved. If you wish to complain about a barrister who was not acting for you, please visit the Bar Standards Board webpage on reporting concerns about barristers for further information and an online reporting form, or write to The Bar Standards Board, 289-293 High Holborn, London, WC1V 7HV.

Updated April 2023

Data Privacy Notice for Individual Barristers at FOURTEEN

This is the Privacy Notice for each Barrister practising at FOURTEEN

UK General Data Protection Regulation (“UK GDPR”)

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.

Data controller

Under the UK GDPR, I am a ‘data controller’. I am registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) as a Data Controller for the personal data that I hold and process. My registration number is stated on my profile page on the FOURTEEN website. If you need to contact me about your data or the processing carried out, you can contact me at FOURTEEN, 14 Gray’s Inn Square, London WC1R 5JP.

Information collected from you

In carrying out the provision of legal services for you, I collect some or all of the following personal information that you provide:
a)    personal details
b)    family details
c)     lifestyle and social circumstances
d)    goods and services
e)    financial details
f)      education, training and employment details
g)    physical or mental health details
h)    racial or ethnic origin
i)      political opinions
j)      religious, philosophical or other beliefs
k)     trade union membership
l)      sex life or sexual orientation
m) genetic data
n)    biometric data for the purpose of uniquely identifying a natural person
o)    criminal proceedings, outcomes and sentences, and related security measures
p)    other personal data relevant to instructions to provide legal services, including data specific to the instructions in question.

Information collected from other sources

The same categories of information may also be obtained from third parties, such as other legal professionals or experts, members of the public, your family and friends, witnesses, courts and other tribunals, investigators, government departments, regulators, public records and registers.

How I use your personal information

I may use your personal information for the following purposes:
i.      to provide legal services to you, including the provision of legal advice and representation in courts, tribunals, arbitrations, and mediations
ii.     to keep accounting records and carry out office administration
iii.      to take or defend legal or regulatory proceedings
iv.      to check for potential conflicts of interest in relation to future potential cases
v.     to communicate with you about services, news or updates
vi.      to address any concerns you may have
vii.     to carry out anti-money laundering and terrorist financing checks
viii.     to train other barristers and when providing work-shadowing opportunities
ix.     to publish legal judgments and decisions of courts and tribunals
x.      as required or permitted by law.

The legal basis for processing your personal information

The UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA 2018) require those that process personal data to have a lawful basis for doing so. The lawful basis on which I collect and use your personal information are:

Who will I share your personal information with?

As a client, some of the information you provide will be protected by legal professional privilege unless and until the information becomes public in the course of any proceedings or otherwise. As a barrister I have an obligation to keep your information confidential, except where it otherwise becomes public or is disclosed as part of the case or proceedings.

It may be necessary to share your information with the following:

Chambers’ staff
Third-party contractors, necessary for the operation of Chambers
Other legal professionals
Experts and other witnesses
Law enforcement authorities and officials
Trainee barristers, known as “pupils”
Regulatory authorities

Transfer of your information outside the UK

This privacy notice is of general application and as such it is not possible to state whether it will be necessary to transfer your information out of the UK or the European Economic Area (EEA) in any particular case or for a reference. However, if you reside outside the UK and EEA or your case or the role for which you require a reference involves persons or organisations or courts and tribunals outside the UK and the EEA then it may be necessary to transfer some of your information to that country outside of the UK or EEA for that purpose. If you are in a country outside the UK and EEA or if the instructions you provide come from outside the UK and EEA then it is inevitable that information will be transferred to those countries. If this applies to you and you wish additional precautions to be taken in respect of your information, please indicate this when providing initial instructions.

Some countries and organisations outside the EEA have been assessed by the European Commission, and their information protection laws and procedures have been found to show adequate protection. The number of such countries is few and the list can be found here. If your information has to be transferred outside the UK and EEA, then it may not have the same protections and you may not have the same rights as you would within the UK and EEA.

If I decide to publish a judgment or other decision of a Court or Tribunal containing your information then it may be published to the world.

I will not otherwise transfer personal information outside the UK and EEA except as necessary for the conduct of any legal proceedings.

If you would like any further information, please use the contact details at the end of this document.

How long will I store your personal data?

I will normally store all your information until at least one year after the expiry of any relevant limitation period (which will usually be six years, but may be 12 years, or longer where the case includes information relating to a minor), from the date of the last item of work carried out, the date of the last payment received or the date on which all outstanding payments are written off, whichever is the latest.

This is because it may be needed for potential legal proceedings, regulatory matters or active complaints.

Deletion will be carried out (without further notice to you) as soon as reasonably practicable after the data has reached the time for deletion.

I will store some of your information which I need to carry out conflict checks for the rest of my career. However, this is likely to be limited to your name and contact details/ the name of the case. This will not include any information within categories (g) to (o) above.

Consent

As explained above, I am relying on your explicit consent to process your information in categories (g) to (o) above. You provided this consent when you agreed that I would provide legal services.

You have the right to withdraw this consent at any time, but this will not affect the lawfulness of any processing activity I have carried out prior to you withdrawing your consent. However, where I also rely on other basis for processing your information, you may not be able to prevent processing of your data. For example, if you have asked me to work for you and I have spent time on your case, you may owe me money which I will be entitled to claim.

If there is an issue with the processing of your information, please contact my clerks using the contact details below.

Your Rights

Under the UK GDPR, you have a number of rights that you can exercise in certain circumstances. These are free of charge. In summary, you may have the right to:

Ask for access to your personal information and other supplementary information;
Ask for correction of mistakes in your data or to complete missing information I hold on you;
Ask for your personal information to be erased, in certain circumstances;
Receive a copy of the personal information you have provided to me or have this information sent to a third party. This will be provided to you or the third party in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format, e.g. a Word file;
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 the subject to automated decision-making which produces legal effects that concern you or affects you in a significant way.

If you want more information about your rights under the GDPR please see the guidance from the Information Commissioners Office A guide to individual rights | ICO .

If you want to exercise any of these rights, please:

Use the contact details at the end of this document;
Provide a contact address so that you can be contacted to request further information to verify your identity;
Provide proof of your identity and address;
State the right or rights that you wish to exercise.

I may need to ask you to provide other information so that you can be identified. I will respond to you within one month from when I receive your request.

Marketing Emails

You may opt out of receiving general emails and other marketing communications from FOURTEEN at any time. Please contact the clerks to make such a request.

How to make a complaint?

The GDPR also gives you the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office if you are in the UK, or with the supervisory authority of the Member State where you work, normally live or where the alleged infringement of data protection laws occurred. The Information Commissioner’s Office can be contacted at http://ico.org.uk/concerns/.

Changes to this privacy notice

This privacy notice was published on 20 July 2023.

I continually review my privacy practices and may change this policy from time to time.

Contact Details

If you have any questions about this privacy notice or the information I hold about you, please contact me or my clerks by email clerks@fourteen.co.uk or by post to FOURTEEN, 14 Gray’s Inn Square, London WC1R 5JP.

Data Protection Policy (Chambers)

Introduction

FOURTEEN and the service company, 14 GIS Ltd (“Chambers”), through which administrative services are provided to Chambers, are required to comply with the law governing the management and storage of personal data, which is governed by the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

For this reason, protection of personal data and respect for individual privacy is fundamental to the day-to-day operations of Chambers.

Compliance with the UK GDPR is overseen by the UK data protection regulator which is the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). Chambers is accountable to the ICO for its data protection compliance.

Purpose

This policy aims to protect and promote the data protection rights of individuals and of Chambers, by informing members and everyone working for and with Chambers, of their data protection obligations and of Chambers procedures that must be followed in order to ensure compliance with the UK GDPR.

Scope

This policy applies to all members, staff (including managers), consultants and any third party to whom this policy has been communicated.

This policy covers all personal data and special categories of personal data, processed on computers or stored in manual (paper based) files.

Responsibility

The Chambers Manager is responsible for monitoring Chambers’ compliance with this policy.

Everyone in Chambers (and any third party to whom this policy applies to) is responsible for ensuring that they comply with this policy. Failure to do so may result in disciplinary action.

Data Protection Manager

Chambers has appointed Julie Clarke as its Data Protection Manager (DPM). This is not a statutory role.

The responsibilities within this role include:

Developing and implementing data protection policies and procedures
Arranging periodic data protection training for all staff and members which is appropriate to them
Acting as a point of contact for all colleagues, staff and members on data protection matters
Monitoring Chambers’ compliance with its data protection policy and procedures
Promoting a culture of data protection awareness
Assisting with investigations into data protection breaches and helping Chambers learn from them
Advising on Data Protection Impact Assessments and
Liaising with the relevant supervisory authorities as necessary (i.e. the Information Commissioner’s Office in the UK)

GDPR

The UK GDPR is designed to protect individuals and personal data which is held and processed about them by Chambers or other individuals.

The UK GDPR uses some key terms to refer to individuals, those processing personal data about individuals and types of data covered by the Regulation. These key terms are:

Personal data

Means any information relating to an identified and identifiable natural person (‘data subject’)

This includes for example information from which a person can be identified, directly or indirectly, by reference to an identifier i.e. name; ID number; location data; online identifiers etc.

It also includes information that identified the physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural or social identity of a person.

For Chambers’ purposes, Barristers’ clients and Chambers’ staff are data subjects (other individual third parties concerning whom we hold personal data about are also likely to be data subjects).

Controller

Means the natural or legal person, public authority, agency or other body who alone or jointly with others, determines the purposes and means of processing the personal data. In effect, this means the controller is the individual, organisation or other body that decides how personal data will be collected and used.

For Chambers’ purposes, Chambers is a data controller for certain categories of data.

Processing

Means any operation which is performed on personal data such as: collection, recording, organisation, structuring, storage, adaptation or alteration, retrieval, consultation, use, disclosure by transmission, dissemination or otherwise making available, alignment or combination, restriction, erasure or destruction.

For Chambers’ purposes, everything that we do with client information (and personal information of third parties) is ‘processing’ as defined by the GDPR. This processing will often be in the capacity as a Data Processor on behalf of a Barrister as a Data Controller.

Special categories of personal data

Means personal data revealing:
a) racial or ethnic origin
b) political opinions
c) religious or philosophical beliefs
d) trade-union membership
e) the processing of genetic data or biometric data for the purpose of uniquely identifying a natural person
f) data concerning health or data concerning a natural person’s sex life or sexual orientation

N.B. data relating to criminal convictions and offences is not included within the special categories. However, there are additional provisions for processing this type of data (see Regulation 10 of GDPR)

Data Protection Principles

The GDPR is based around 8 principles which are the starting point to ensure compliance with the Regulation. Everybody working in for and with Chambers must adhere to these principles in performing their day-to-day duties. The principles require Chambers to ensure that all personal data and sensitive personal data are:

a) Processed lawfully, fairly and in a transparent manner in relation to the subject (‘lawfulness, fairness and transparency’)
b)   Collected for specified, explicit and legitimate purposes and not further processed in a manner that is incompatible with those purposes (‘purpose limitation’)
c)    Adequate, relevant and limited to what is necessary in relation to the purposes for which they are processed (‘data minimisation’)
d)   Accurate and, where necessary, kept up to date; every reasonable step must be taken to ensure that personal data that are inaccurate, having regard to the purposes for which they are processed, are erased or rectified without delay (‘accuracy’)
e)   Kept in a form which permits identification of data subjects for no longer than is necessary for the purposes for which personal data are processed (‘storage limitation’)
f)     Processed in a manner that ensures appropriate security of personal data, including protection against unauthorised or unlawful processing and against accidental loss, destruction or damage using appropriate technical or organisational measures (‘integrity and confidentiality’)

Chambers must be able to demonstrate its compliance with (a) – (f) above (‘accountability’).

Processing personal data and sensitive personal data

You must process all personal data in a manner that is compliant with the GDPR, in short, this means you must:

have legitimate grounds for collecting and using the personal data
not use the data in ways that have unjustified adverse effects on the individuals concerned
be transparent about how you intend to use the data, and give individuals appropriate privacy notices when collecting their personal data
handle people’s personal data only in ways they would reasonably expect and
make sure you do not do anything unlawful with the data.

You must ensure that you are aware of the difference between personal data and special categories of personal data and ensure that both types of data are processed in accordance with the GDPR.

The conditions for processing special categories of personal data that are most relevant to our Chambers are:

Explicit consent from the data subject
The processing is at the instruction of a Barrister who is the Data Controller of that personal data
The processing is necessary for the purposes of carrying out Chambers’ obligations in respect of employment and social security and social protection law
The processing is necessary to protect the vital interests of the data subject or another person
The processing relates to personal data that has already been made public by the data subject or
The processing is necessary for the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims or whenever courts are acting in their judicial capacity

Rights of the data subject

The GDPR gives rights to individuals in respect of the personal data that any organisations hold about them. Everybody working for Chambers must be familiar with these rights and adhere to Chambers’ procedures to uphold these rights.

These rights include:

Right of information and access to confirm details about the personal data that is being processed about them and to obtain a copy
Right to rectification of any inaccurate personal data
Right to erasure of personal data held about them (in certain circumstances)
Right to restriction on the use of personal data held about them (in certain circumstances)
Right to portability – right to receive data processed by automated means and have it transferred to another data controller
Right to object to the processing of their personal data

If anybody receives a request from a data subject (a client or other third party concerning whom we hold personal data) to exercise any of these rights, the request must be referred to the Data Protection Manager immediately or to the Practice Director in her absence.

Note: we only have one month to respond to a request to access a copy of personal data.

Confidentiality and data sharing

The barristers and Chambers must ensure that they only shares personal information with other individuals or organisations only where they are permitted to do so in accordance with data protection law.

Wherever, possible you should ensure that you have the client’s (or other data subject’s) consent before sharing their personal data, although, it is accepted that this will not be possible in all circumstances, for example if the disclosure is required by law.

Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIAs)

DPIAs are required to identify data protection risks; assess the impact of these risks; and determine appropriate action to prevent or mitigate the impact of these risks, when introducing, or making significant changes to, systems or projects involving the processing of personal data.

In simpler terms, this means thinking about whether Chambers is likely to breach the GDPR and what the consequences might be, if Chambers uses personal data in a particular way. It is also about deciding whether there is anything that Chambers can do to stop or, at least to minimise the chances of any of the potential problems identified, from happening.

Breaches

A data protection breach is defined as “a breach of security leading to the accidental or unlawful destruction, loss, alteration, unauthorised disclosure of, or access to, personal data transmitted, stored or otherwise processed”.

Everybody working in, for and with Chambers has a duty to report any actual or suspected data protection breach without delay to their line manager and the Data Protection Manager. Full details of the Chambers’ breach reporting policy can be found in the shared drive with the GDPR Policies and Forms folder.

Breaches will be reported to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) by the Data Protection Manager without undue delay and, where feasible, not later than 72 hours after having become aware of the breach, unless, Chambers is able to demonstrate that the personal data breach is unlikely to result in a risk to the rights and freedoms of data subjects.

The Data Protection Manager will maintain a central register of the details of any data protection breaches.

Complaints

Complaints relating to breaches of the GDPR and/ or complaints that an individual’s personal data is not being processed in line with the data protection principles should be referred to the Data Protection Manager without delay.

Penalties

It is important that everybody working for Chambers understands the implications for Chambers if we fail to meet our data protection obligations. Failure to comply could result in:

Criminal and civil action
Fines and damages
Personal accountability and liability
Suspension/ withdrawal of the right to process personal data by the ICO
Loss of confidence in the integrity of the business’s systems and procedures
Irreparable damage to the business’s reputation

Note: Chambers could be fined up to £17.5m or up to 4% of the total worldwide annual turnover of the preceding financial year, whichever is higher.

Click Data Protection Policy for a PDF version of this policy.

Privacy Notice (Chambers)

Privacy Notice – General Information Protection Regulation (“GDPR”)

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 Chambers shares this information with, the security mechanisms Chambers has put in place to protect your information and how to contact Chambers in the event you need further information.

Who Are We?

FOURTEEN, and its service company, 14 GIS Ltd (“Chambers”) collects, uses and is responsible for personal information about you. When Chambers does this it is the ‘controller’ of this information for the purposes of the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.

If you need to contact Chambers about your information or the processing carried out you can use the contact details at the end of this document.

What does Chambers do with your information?

Information collected

Chambers may collect some or all of the following personal information that you provide – information in some of these groups may be collected only on rare occasions:

a.      personal details
b.      family details
c. lifestyle and social circumstances
d. goods and services
e. financial details
f.      education, training and employment details
g.      physical or mental health details
h. racial or ethnic origin
i. political opinions
j. religious, philosophical or other beliefs
k. trade union membership
l. sex life or sexual orientation
m. genetic information
n. biometric information for the purpose of uniquely identifying a natural person
o. criminal proceedings, outcomes and sentences, or related security measures
p. other personal information relevant to instructions to provide legal services, including information specific to the instructions in question.

Information collected from other sources

The same categories of information may also be obtained from third parties, such as the self-employed barrister members of Chambers, other legal professionals, experts, members of the public, your family and friends, witnesses, courts and other tribunals, suppliers of goods and services, investigators, government departments, regulators, public records and registers.

How Chambers uses your personal information

Chambers may use your personal information for the following purposes:

i. to promote and market the services of the Barristers

ii. to train barristers

iii. to recruit staff and pupils

iv. to assess applications for tenancy, pupillage, mini-pupillage and work-shadowing opportunities

v. to fulfil equality and diversity and other regulatory requirements

vi. to procure goods and services

vii. to manage matters relating to employment, including payroll [and pensions]

viii. to respond to requests for references

ix. to publish legal judgments and decisions of courts and tribunals

x. to respond to potential complaints or make complaints

xi. to carry out anti-money laundering and terrorist financing checks

xii. to process information on behalf a member of Chambers

xiii. as otherwise required or permitted by law

Marketing and promotion

In relation to personal information collected for marketing purposes, the personal information consists of

names, contact details, and name of organisation
the nature of your interest in Chambers’ marketing
your attendance at Chambers events

This will be processed so that you can be provided with information about Chambers and the Barristers and to invite you to events.

You may contact Chambers using the contact details at the end of this document if you no longer wish to receive such invitations or information.

Whether information has to be provided by you, and why

If you apply to Chambers for a position or are seeking a reference or are a member of staff, your personal information has to be provided to Chambers, so that your application/reference can be properly assessed, your employment records, pay and pensions can be administered and to enable Chambers to comply with its regulatory obligations, and to keep accounting records.

If you are offering or providing Chambers with goods or services your information may be processed in relation to such offers or contracts.

The legal basis for processing your personal information

Chambers relies on the following as the lawful bases to collect and use your personal information:

Who will Chambers share your personal information with?

It may be necessary to share your information with the following:

information processors, such as IT support staff, email providers, information storage providers
in the event of complaints, the Head of Chambers and members of Chambers who deal with complaints, the Bar Standards Board and the Legal Ombudsman
other regulatory authorities
current, past or prospective employers or employees
in the case of recruitment of barristers to or from other chambers, your current, past and prospective chambers
education and examining bodies
legal professionals
experts and other witnesses
prosecution authorities
courts and tribunals
Chambers’ staff
pupil barristers
lay and professional clients of Members of Chambers
family and associates of the person whose personal information Chambers is processing
current, past or prospective employers
business associates, professional advisers and trade bodies, eg the Bar Council
the intended recipient, where you have asked Chambers to provide a reference
the general public in relation to the publication of legal judgments and decisions of courts and tribunals.

Chambers may be required to provide your information to regulators, such as the Bar Standards Board, the Financial Conduct Authority 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 Chambers’ consent or your consent, which includes privileged information.

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

Sources of information

The personal information Chambers obtains may include information obtained from:

legal professionals
experts and other witnesses
prosecution authorities
courts and tribunals
pupil barristers
lay and professional clients of members of Chambers
family and associates of the person whose personal information Chambers is processing
in the event of complaints, the Head of Chambers, other members of Chambers who deal with complaints, the Bar Standards Board, and the Legal Ombudsman
other regulatory authorities
current, past or prospective employers
education and examining bodies
business associates, professional advisers and trade bodies, e.g. the Bar Council
the intended recipient, where you have asked Chambers to provide a reference
data processors, such as IT support staff, email providers, data storage providers
public sources, such as the press, public registers and law reports.

Transfer of your information outside the UK

If Chambers decides to publish a judgment or other decision of a Court or Tribunal containing your information then it may be published to the world.

Chambers will not otherwise transfer personal information outside the UK and EEA except as necessary for the conduct of any legal proceedings.

If you would like any further information please use the contact details at the end of this document.

How long will Chambers store your personal information?

Chambers will normally store all your information:

for a maximum of 6 years after the expiry of any relevant limitation period, for example the date on which your employment terminates, the date of the last provision of service or goods, the date of the end of the case, the date of the last payment made or received or the date on which all outstanding payments are written off. This is because it may be needed for potential legal proceedings/retention in line with HMRC regulations/retention in line with the Bar Council regulations. At this point any further retention will be reviewed and the information will be marked for deletion or marked for retention for a further period. The latter retention period is likely to occur only where the information is needed for legal proceedings, regulatory matters or active complaints. Deletion will be carried out as soon as reasonably practicable after the information is marked for deletion
Equality and diversity data may be retained as required in pseudonymised form for the purpose of research and statistics and complying with regulatory obligations in relation to the reporting of equality and diversity data
Names and contact details held for marketing purposes will be stored indefinitely or until Chambers becomes aware or is informed that the individual has ceased to be a potential client
Personal information held for recruitment purposes or in relation to pupillage or mini-pupillage will be stored for a maximum of 6 years

Consent

As explained above, Chambers is relying on your explicit consent to process your information in categories (e) to (l) above. You provided this consent when you applied to become a client (lay or professional), member of staff, tenant, pupil or mini-pupil /you asked Chambers to provide a reference.

You have the right to withdraw this consent at any time, but this will not affect the lawfulness of any processing activity carried out prior to you withdrawing your consent. However, where Chambers also relies on other bases for processing your information, you may not be able to prevent processing of your information.

If there is an issue with the processing of your information, please contact Chambers using the contact details below.

Your Rights

Under the GDPR, you have a number of rights that you can exercise in certain circumstances. These are free of charge. In summary, you may have the right to:

Ask for access to your personal information and other supplementary information
Ask for correction of mistakes in your information or to complete missing information Chambers holds on you
Ask for your personal information to be erased, in certain circumstances
Receive a copy of the personal information you have provided to me or have this information sent to a third party. This will be provided to you or the third party in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format, e.g. a Word file
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 the processing of your personal information in certain circumstances

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:

Use the contact details at the end of this document
Chambers may need to ask you to provide other information so that you can be identified
Please provide a contact address so that you can be contacted to request further information to verify your identity
Provide proof of your identity and address
State the right or rights that you wish to exercise

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

Marketing Emails

Please note if you wish to unsubscribe from any marketing emails that you have signed up for or have received, you can do so by following the unsubscribe link on the bottom of any of our marketing emails or event invitations. It may take up to 30 days for this to become effective.

How to make a complaint?

The GDPR also gives you the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioners’ Office if you are in the UK, or with the supervisory authority of the Member State where you work, normally live or where the alleged infringement of information protection laws occurred. The Information Commissioner’s Office can be contacted at http://ico.org.uk/concerns/.

Future Processing

Chambers does not intend to process your personal information except for the reasons stated within this privacy notice. If this changes, this privacy notice will be amended and placed on Chambers’ website at https://fourteen.co.uk/about-us/policies/

Changes to this privacy notice

This privacy notice was published on 25 May 2018 and last updated on 16 Jun 2023.

Chambers continually reviews its privacy practices and may change this policy from time to time. When it does an amended privacy notice will be published on Chambers’ website at https://fourteen.co.uk/about-us/policies/

Contact Details

If you have any questions about this privacy notice or the information Chambers holds about you, please contact Chambers using the contact details below.

The best way to contact Chambers is to email Julie Clarke, Chambers Manager, at jclarke@fourteen.co.uk or phone 020 7242 0858.

Data Retention & Disposal Policy

Introduction

In the course of carrying out various functions, FOURTEEN and the service company, 14 GIS Ltd (“Chambers”), through which administrative services are provided to Chambers, create and hold a wide range of recorded information. Records will be properly retained to enable Chambers to meet its business needs, legal requirements, to evidence events or agreements in the event of allegations or disputes and to ensure that any records of historic value are preserved.

The untimely destruction of records could affect:

the conduct of Chambers’ business
the ability of Chambers to defend or instigate legal actions
Chambers’ ability to comply with statutory obligations
Chambers’ reputation

Conversely, the permanent retention of records is undesirable and disposal is necessary to free up storage space, reduce administrative burden and to ensure that Chambers does not unlawfully retain records for longer than necessary (particularly those containing personal data).

This policy supports Chambers in demonstrating accountability through the proper retention of records and by demonstrating that disposal decisions are taken with proper authority and in accordance with due process.

Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to provide guidance as to set out the length of time that Chambers’ records should be retained and the processes to review the records as to any further retention or for disposing of records at the end of the retention period. The policy helps to ensure that Chambers operates in compliance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation, the Data Protection Act 2018 and any other legislative or regulatory retention obligations.

Scope

The policy covers the records listed in the Information Asset Register irrespective of the media on which they are created or held including:

paper
electronic files (including database, Word documents, power point presentations, spreadsheets, webpages and e-mails)
photographs, scanned images, CD-ROMs and video tapes

And includes all types of records which Fourteen Chambers creates or holds on behalf of the members. The records may include, but are not limited to, the following:

Application

The policy applies equally to full time and part time employees on a substantive or fixed term contract and to associated persons who work for Chambers.

Minimum Retention Period

Unless a record has been marked for ‘permanent preservation’ it will only be retained for a limited period of time. The minimum retention period of six years applies to all records within the client (licensed work) details category and seven years for all records within the client (public work) details category. Records of members and staff of Chambers will be retained throughout employment/tenancy and for a minimum of six years after either end.

The recommended minimum retention period derives from either:

business need i.e. running of Chambers
legislation
responding to complaints
taking or defending legal action

Disposal

What is Disposal

The Data Protection Manager is responsible for ensuring that the Information Asset Register is periodically reviewed (annually) to determine whether any retention periods have expired. This will be assisted with the Diary Management System software and Sprout IT. Once the retention period has expired, the record must be reviewed and a ‘disposal action’ agreed upon.

A ‘disposal action’ is:

the destruction of the record or
the retention of the record for a further period under the instruction from the Data Controller of the data or
alternative disposal of the record e.g. returned to the instructing solicitor/public access client

Making and Recording the Disposal Decision

A review of the record will take place as soon as possible after the expiry of the retention period or, if that is not feasible, the record will be retained and a later review date set.

The disposal decision will be reached having regard to:

on-going business and accountability needs (including audit)
current applicable legislation
whether the record has any long-term historical or research value
best practice in the legal industry
the legal, political and reputational risks associated with keeping, destroying or losing control over the record

Decisions will not be made with the intent of denying access or destroying evidence.

Destruction

No destruction of a record will take place without assurance that:

the record is no longer required by any member of Chambers
no litigation or investigation is current or pending which affects the record
there are no current or pending FOIA or GDPR subject access requests which affect the record

Destruction of Paper Records

Destruction will be carried out in a way that preserves the confidentiality of the record. Non-confidential records will be placed in ordinary rubbish bins or recycling bins. Confidential records will be placed in confidential waste bins and collected by the Chambers approved disposal firm for secure destruction. A certificate of destruction will be provided upon each completed process. All copies including security copies, preservation copies and backup copies will also be destroyed at the same time in the same manner.

Destruction of Electronic Records

All electronic records will be either physically destroyed or wiped. Confirmation of the date of this will be recorded by the Clerks on the internal diary system once notified by the barrister.

A record of all other types of data deletion (barrister and staff records) will be held by the Chambers Manager.

Further Retention

The record may be retained for a further period if it has on-going business value or if there is specific legislation which requires it to be held for a further period.

Further Information

This policy should be read in conjunction with the Chambers’ Data Protection Policy and Privacy Notice.

Click Data Retention and Disposal Policy for a PDF version of this policy.

Delivery Policy

Payment on our website is invariably for the provision of legal seminars and training events. The delivery of those services occurs on the date advertised in relation to the particular seminar or event to which the payment relates. Payment is taken in full for the event or seminar unless where otherwise stated.

Cancellation Policy

In the event that you wish to cancel your registration for a particular event or seminar, please notify the clerks by email as soon as possible. Payment will be refunded within 14 days of your contacting FOURTEEN to cancel the registration. In the event that a training event or seminar is cancelled by FOURTEEN, payment will either be refunded or the event will be re-scheduled and you will be kept fully informed in those circumstances. In the event that you have any queries or would like further information, please do not hesitate to contact the clerks by email or telephone.

Conditional Fees

FOURTEEN’s conditional fee policy exists in accordance with the guidance from the Bar Standards Board.

Equality & Diversity

FOURTEEN is firmly committed to equal opportunities for all. FOURTEEN is also committed to providing a working environment in which all individuals, including members of Chambers, pupils, mini-pupils and employees, are treated with dignity and respect.

Mandatory Requirements

FOURTEEN recognises and adopts the following regulatory and legislative provisions:

Paragraph 305.1:
“A barrister must not, in his professional practice, discriminate unlawfully against, victimise or harass any other person on the grounds of race, colour, ethnic or national origin, nationality, citizenship, sex, gender re-assignment, sexual orientation, marital or civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, disability, age or religion or belief”.

The fundamental equality principle is drafted to accord with the provisions of the Equality Act 2010, which apply to barristers (s.47).

The requirement not to discriminate applies to a barrister in all aspects of his or her professional life. The requirement not to discriminate improperly applies to a barrister’s relationship with “any other person” in the course of his/her professional dealings. Therefore the requirement may be interpreted as covering a barrister’s relationship with (the below list is not exhaustive):

Clerks and other chambers’ staff;
Clients;
Court staff;
Instructing solicitors and their staff;
Judges;
Other barristers; and
Pupils
Obligations
Equal opportunities must be provided without unlawful discrimination:

In the recruitment of members of Chambers, pupils and employees. This includes the procedures adopted for selecting members of Chambers, pupils and employees, and any terms of pupillage or employment provided, and in offering or refusing a person tenancy, pupillage, or employment;
In all dealings with or on behalf of Chambers, pupils and employees;
In offering access to opportunities for promotion, transfer and training;
In the career development of members of Chambers, pupils and employees and ensuring fair allocation and distribution of work;

In ensuring that members of Chambers, pupils and employees are not treated unfavourably in any other way.

FOURTEEN is committed to supporting disabled clients, barristers, pupils, employees and visitors to Chambers. Reasonable adjustments will be made in respect of support and access to facilities.
FOURTEEN is committed to a written anti-harassment policy and will not tolerate or condone harassment.
FOURTEEN is committed to allowing members of Chambers to take parental, sickness and sabbatical leave. Full details are set out in the Parental and Leave Policies.

Enforcement

All members of Chambers, pupils and employees are required to comply with this policy. Failure to do so will result in the implementation of disciplinary procedures.

Obligation of Members of Chambers

If at any time during membership of Chambers, or pupillage, or employment at Chambers any person(s) believe that this policy is being or has been violated by any person, in any manner, then the following action should be taken:

Raise it with Chambers Equality and Diversity Officer, currently James Mulholland, who will discuss and implement action as agreed with the complainant;
Otherwise contact the Head of Chambers, who will take appropriate action to address and resolve the matter; and
In the case of formal complaints, Chambers’ policy and procedures on complaints and grievances will be referred to.
Confidentiality will be maintained at all times, save if waived by the persons concerned. This includes confidentiality in relation to record-keeping.

Monitoring

FOURTEEN’s Equality and Diversity Officer is responsible for monitoring the effectiveness of this policy. It is intended that this policy and its operation will be subject to regular review.

This policy is regularly updated.

Please click here to see our Equality & Diversity data at FOURTEEN.

Anti-Harassment

Definition of Harassment

Harassment is any form of unwanted conduct relating to age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation which has the aim or effect of violating a person’s dignity, or which creates an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for that person (or, in some cases, a witness to the conduct).

A second form of harassment is where a person engages in unwanted conduct of a sexual nature towards another person and the conduct has one or other of the above aims or effects.

A third form of harassment occurs when a person engages in unwanted conduct of a sexual nature (or related to gender reassignment or sex) which has one or other of the above aims or effects and because the recipient rejected (or submitted) to that conduct treats the recipient less favourably than if they had not rejected or submitted to it.

Policy

FOURTEEN is committed to providing a work environment in which all individuals, clients and the public are treated with dignity and respect. FOURTEEN is determined to promote a work environment in which everyone is treated equally and with dignity and can flourish.

Harassment in any form will not be tolerated at FOURTEEN. Harassment includes any unwanted conduct related to sex, race, disability, gender re-assignment, religion or belief, sexual orientation or age. Such behaviour may take many forms including:Conduct which is unwanted by the recipient and perceived as hostile or threatening;

Conduct which gives rise to a hostile or threatening work environment;
Conduct which creates an atmosphere in which it is feared that rejection or submission will be used as a basis for decisions which have an impact on the recipient at work such as an allocation of work or tenancy decision.

The following are examples of types of behaviour which may amount to harassment:

Physical or sexual assault;
Requests for sexual favours in return for career advancement;
Unnecessary physical contact;
Exclusion from social networks and activities or other forms of isolation;
Bullying;
Compromising suggestions or invitations;
Suggestive remarks or looks;
Display of offensive materials, including on a computer screen;
Tasteless jokes or verbal abuse, including any sent by email;
Offensive remarks or ridicule;
Dealing inappropriately or inadequately with complaints of harassment.
Harassment is unlawful under the Equality Act 2010 (s.26). In addition to the above unwanted conduct, it can arise where a person engages in any kind of unwanted sexual behaviour (or gender reassignment or sex-related behaviour).

Complaints of harassment may be raised informally in the first instance with Mandy Tanner, Chambers’ Equality and Diversity Officer, who will agree an appropriate response. Formal complaints should be made under the FOURTEEN complaints/grievance procedure.

Harassment is misconduct for employees or a breach of the Bar Code of Conduct for barristers. Allegations of harassment will be dealt with under the FOURTEEN disciplinary procedure.

FOURTEEN is committed to ensuring that no-one who makes an allegation of harassment in good faith should be subjected to any detriment as a result. Any victimisation of a complainant, witness or anyone else involved in the investigation of a complaint will be viewed as a disciplinary matter.

A copy of this policy is provided to all those for whom FOURTEEN constitutes a working environment, including members of chambers, pupils, squatters, clerks and other employees, temporary workers, those who provide services to chambers such as contract cleaners, accountants and IT consultants, and mini-pupils and work experience students.

This policy is regularly updated.