Privacy Policy

Introduction

At RaufSmith Legal Insights, we take your right to privacy and the transparency of our practices related to the collection, storage, use, and protection of personal data very seriously. This Privacy Policy describes in detail all our practices in dealing with users’ personal information, our commitment to maintaining the security of that data, and users’ rights and choices regarding their personal information. As a regular reader of our website, newsletter subscriber, or casual browser using this site to research legal information, your trust is our priority. We urge you to read this Privacy Policy in full to understand how we protect your personal information and respect your privacy as we continue our mission to ensure greater access and safety of legal knowledge for everyone.

RaufSmith Legal Insights Background

RaufSmith Legal is an online resource for authoritative news commentary and practical guides on legal matters. Our goal is to connect complex legal issues with everyday understanding for laypersons and professionals alike. All content is available free of charge and our methods honor the highest standards of transparency and accuracy. Our principals, Sarah Rauf and Michael Smith, are experienced legal practitioners who believe in enabling the user by sharing practical knowledge that matters. The privacy practice reflects our adherence to high standards of ethical responsibility.

Coverage of this Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy applies to all readers of RaufSmith Legal Insights, including but not limited to visitors, registered users, subscribers to our newsletters and publications, and anyone who accesses our content over the Internet at https://raufsmith.com/. This policy covers all information received through our website, including registrations for newsletters or other communications from our firm. Readers who interact with us via social media or other third-party services may have a separate relationship with those third parties, whose privacy policies may apply to that information. This policy applies to all devices and means of accessing our content (for example, mobile phones and applications).

What Information We Collect

We may collect information that you provide to us directly to use in connection with or otherwise assist us in providing, maintaining, and improving our services and to help ensure that our website is secure and functional. The types of information we collect include but are not limited to:

  • Personal Information: This includes name, email address, and other contact information we receive when you subscribe for our newsletter, contact us, fill out forms, etc.
  • Usage Information: We collect certain information automatically from your device each time you visit our website (e.g., IP address, browser type, page location/URL, and the pages that you view, when you visit our site).
  • Device Information: We may collect certain information about the device you use to access our site (e.g., IP address, operating system, web browser, and identifying information).
  • Cookies and Tracking Technologies: We use cookies, web beacons, and other similar tracking technologies to help us serve users better and more efficiently, optimize the performance of our site(s), improve the security of your user sessions, and to learn more about how people use the site. You may choose to opt out of cookies through your web browser settings.
  • Voluntary Information: We may ask for additional information as needed to fulfill a requested action (e.g., downloading a resource or taking a survey). We may also collect personal information when you interact with us on social media.

How We Utilize Your Information

We utilize the information that we collect in various ways as a means to improve your experience and offer you valuable content:

  • To provide and personalize our legal articles, guides, and newsletters.
  • To reach out to you with updates, responses to inquiries, and notices.
  • To analyze your usage and online habits, so we can enhance our site, functionality, and produce new content.
  • To protect and maintain the integrity of our services, identify and prevent fraud, and to meet our legal obligations.
  • To administer subscriptions and convey legal updates and information relevant to you.
  • To respond to your requests for information, feedback, or support.

Legal Basis for Personal Data Processing

RaufSmith Legal Insights processes your personal data on the following legal bases:

  • Your consent (which you give us when you subscribe for our newsletter or contact us directly).
  • The legitimate need to process personal data to perform our contractual obligations to you (for example, to deliver information or content you have requested from us or respond to any requests you may make).
  • Our legitimate interests in ensuring the proper operation, security, and future improvement of our website, and providing our users or potential customers with information relevant and of interest to them.
  • Compliance with legal obligations (for example, responding to valid regulatory requests from enforcement authorities, and maintaining records for administrative purposes).

Cookies and Tracking Technologies

Cookies are small text files that are stored on your device when you visit our website. We use cookies for the following purposes:

  • Remember your preferences set on our site, so that your experience will be more personalized
  • Keep track of traffic to and from our site and usage within our site so that we can improve our offerings
  • Allow you to perform basic website functions, such as logging in to areas of the site or delivering content
  • Deliver relevant content to you and track the success of our communications

Your browser should allow you to refuse all cookies or alert you when cookies are being sent. Individual choices do apply; however, various portions of our website will not function properly if cookies are refused. For more information about cookies, visit your browser’s help documentation. For further details, you may also review our Cookie Policy.

How We Safely Store and Secure Your Data

Keeping your information secure is very important to us at RaufSmith Legal Insights. We employ a variety of technical, administrative, and physical security measures to protect your data from unauthorized access, use, modification, or disclosure. These include:

  • Secure servers protected by firewalls and/or connections encrypted with Secure Socket Layer/Transport Layer Security (SSL/TLS).
  • Regular audits of security and network vulnerability.
  • Restriction of access to personal data only to persons with a need to know.
  • Regular backups and careful storage of information.

Unfortunately, despite our efforts, no transmission over the Internet or electronic storage can be promised to be entirely secure. Additionally, although we advise you to take appropriate security precautions as well (such as selecting strong passwords and being vigilant in protecting your devices), these security measures do not guarantee information security.

Third-Party Services and Sharing of Information

We don’t sell, rent, or exchange your information with third parties. We may share your information with trusted third-party service providers who help us operate our website, manage subscriptions, analyze site activity, or deliver our newsletters. These service providers are only permitted to use your information in performing services for RaufSmith Legal Insights and have agreed to take reasonable steps to maintain the security and confidentiality of the information.

When we use third parties, we require them not to disclose this information to any other parties under any circumstances.

  • As required by law or order of a governmental agency
  • To protect the safety of RaufSmith Legal Insights brand, users of the site, and the public
  • To permit us to pursue available remedies or limit damages after a reverse merger, sale, or acquisition involving us. In connection with any such business transaction, user information may be transferred as part of the assets involved. In these situations, we will alert users to any changes concerning their personal information.

Newsletter Signup and Client Communications

If you subscribe to the newsletter, we use your email address to contact you with updates, legal articles, and other relevant information. You may unsubscribe from our newsletter at any point by either clicking the unsubscribe link in every email or contacting us at [email protected] via email.

We may use your information to contact you in response to an inquiry, send notices to you, or request feedback to improve our services. We do not send other types of marketing communications. You are in control of all communications preferences.

Your Rights and Options

As a RaufSmith Legal Insights user, you have the following rights with respect to our collection and use of your personal information:

  • Access: Request access to personal data we hold on you.
  • Rectification: Request correction of any inaccurate or incomplete data.
  • Erasure: Request removal of your personal data, subject to legal claims.
  • Restriction: Request restriction on the processing of your personal data in some limited circumstances.
  • Objection: Object to the processing of your personal data based upon legitimate interests.
  • Data Portability: Request a copy of your personal data in a generally used format.

To exercise any of these rights, or for additional clarification regarding your data, please send us an email at [email protected]. We will endeavor to respond to your request as required by all applicable legal requirements.

Data Retention Period

We only retain your information as long as needed to fulfill the purposes set out in this Privacy Policy, comply with legal or regulatory requirements, resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements. The length of retention varies depending on the type of data and the purposes for which it is processed. For example:

  • Newsletter Service information is retained until you unsubscribe from the Service or you instruct us to delete it.
  • Use & Analytics data may be retained for a limited period to help us improve the Service.
  • Communications information is retained for a limited period to provide customer support (to the extent you have requested such support) or to comply with legal requirements.

We take reasonable steps to securely delete or anonymize personal data when we no longer need it in accordance with industry standards.

International Data Transfers

RaufSmith Legal Insights is available to users in a variety of locations, but is especially directed to English-speaking communities in the United States. If you visit our site from a location outside the United States, please be aware that information you provide to us may be transferred to, stored, and processed within the United States, where our servers operate. In such cases, we take precautions to ensure that the transfer is under appropriate safeguards as required by applicable data protection laws, and your information will remain protected by these safeguards regardless of what territory you are accessing our site from.

Children’s Privacy Concerns

RaufSmith Legal Insights does not knowingly collect information from children under the age of 16. Our programs are designed for adults and others who seek legal insights. If you think that we may have collected information from a child without verified parental consent, please email us at [email protected] to alert us to such an event, and we will take reasonable steps to remove such information from our system.

Outside Links and Websites

From time to time, our blog, RaufSmith Legal Insights, may have links to third-party websites, information, and/or services. These links are meant for your convenience and reference only. With respect to information collected on third-party websites, please be aware RaufSmith Legal Insights is not responsible for the privacy practices or information collection policies of third-party websites. Please refer to the privacy policies for third-party websites that you visit, as practices and information collection on those sites may differ from RaufSmith Legal Insights.

Security Practices and Data Breach Procedures

We use various security measures to maintain the safety of your personal information, including encryption of data, access controls to data, and periodic assessments of our security. In the unlikely event that we have a data security breach involving your personal information, we will provide notice to affected users and to regulators or other third parties as required by applicable laws. Our data security incident response plan includes containment, assessment, notification, and remediation procedures to mitigate potential damages and restore system functionality.

User Responsibilities and Requirements

Here at RaufSmith Legal Insights, we are committed to protecting your information. You are ultimately also responsible for the privacy and security of your information. We recommend that you:

  • Create strong, unique passwords when signing up to receive or access our content
  • Log out of social media accounts and delete browser data when using shared computers
  • Be selective when judging the need to share personal information with others
  • Notify us promptly if you suspect that someone has gained unauthorized access to your data or accounts

We appreciate your assistance in helping us make the Internet a safer place for all.

California Consumer Privacy Rights (CCPA Privacy Notice)

If you are a California resident, you may also have these rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA):

  • Right to Know: The right to know whether we collect, use, or disclose personal information and/or categories of personal information requested in a verifiable consumer request.
  • Right to Delete: The right to delete personal information concerning you that we have collected or retained, subject to several exceptions.
  • Right to Opt Out: The right to opt-out of our sale of your personal information (Please Note: we do not sell your personal information).
  • Right to Non-Discrimination: The right not to be subject to discriminatory treatment for the exercise of your privacy rights.

To exercise your California privacy rights, please email us at [email protected]. We will verify your identity prior to processing requests, as may be required by law.

European Union (GDPR) Policy

If you access RaufSmith Legal Insights from the European Union or European Economic Area, we comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) by:

  • Ensuring provision of clear information about data collection and processing
  • Facilitating your rights to access, rectification, erasure, or restriction of processing
  • Safeguarding data through security measures to protect your data confidentiality
  • Designating a data protection contact for questions related to our compliance with the GDPR: [email protected]

We invite our EU users to reach out about any questions they may have regarding their data rights or privacy policies.

Privacy Policy Modifications

RaufSmith Legal Insights may periodically update this Privacy Policy to reflect modifications in our practices, legal considerations, or alterations in the products and/or services we provide. In the event of significant changes, we will inform users by publishing a revised Privacy Policy on our website and updating the date at the top of the document. We recommend that you review this policy regularly to stay informed about how we safeguard your information. For more details, please see our Privacy Policy page.

Contacting Us

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests in relation to this Privacy Policy, or your privacy generally, please contact us at:

RaufSmith Legal Insights
Address: 6789 Hollywood Blvd Ste 39, Los Angeles CA 90028
Phone: (818) 677-1177
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: https://raufsmith.com/

We will respond as quickly and as openly as possible. We are here to serve you and address any issues you may have, including privacy concerns. For more information, you can also visit our Contact RaufSmith Legal Insights page.

Disclaimer and Liability Information

The RaufSmith Legal Insights content is made available for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. Users are encouraged to seek the counsel of a qualified attorney with respect to any particular situation. Although every effort has been made to provide accurate and reliable content and privacy practices, no guarantees are provided that security, error-free performance, or operation of the website will be provided. Use of the website binds the user to the terms and conditions identified in this Privacy Policy and our Terms of Use.

Keep Updated and Connected

We encourage you to stay ahead of the curve with the latest legal articles, commentary, and insight by subscribing to our free legal newsletter. Join our community to receive tip sheets, question guides, and commentary on significant developments. Your privacy and trust are our top priorities, and we are committed to helping you learn about important developments while maintaining your trust.

Subscribe or learn more about our privacy policy at https://raufsmith.com/ or email us at [email protected].