Privacy policy

Your Privacy

Legal Aid Queensland (LAQ) is committed to protecting the privacy of personal information of people who interact with us. This policy sets out our obligations and how LAQ meet these obligations.

Purpose

The Information Privacy Act 2009 (Qld) (IP Act) and its Queensland Privacy Principles (QPPs) set the rules for how Queensland government agencies – including LAQ – handle personal information. These rules include a requirement, under QPP 1, that every agency has a QPP privacy policy.

This QPP privacy policy explains how LAQ manages personal information, including:

  1. the kinds of personal information LAQ collects and holds, how LAQ collects and holds that personal information, and the purposes for which LAQ collects, holds, uses and discloses personal information.
  2. how a person may complain about LAQ’s handling of their personal information, and how LAQ will deal with the complaint.

LAQ also has privacy obligations under Commonwealth Privacy Act 1988 in relation to tax file number information.

Some information held by LAQ will also be protected by other legal obligations, including legal professional privilege and the secrecy and confidentiality requirements in sections 75 and 82 of the Legal Aid Queensland Act 1997 (Qld) (LAQ Act).

LAQ will review this privacy policy at regular intervals and will update this policy when its information handling practices change. This policy is available on the LAQ website and to staff through internal communications.

Scope

This policy applies to all LAQ staff including contractors, consultants, volunteers and casual staff, and to the personal information LAQ collects, stores, manages, uses and discloses in discharging its functions.

Collection of personal information

LAQ collects personal information required to carry out our functions and meet our legal obligations. LAQ may collect personal information in writing, electronically, or by recording information provided verbally.

LAQ may also collect sensitive information. LAQ will generally collect sensitive information directly from the individual it is about or with their consent, or otherwise consistently with our obligations under the IP Act.

LAQ may ask a person for sensitive information if it is relevant to one of our services or our business functions. A person is not required to provide us with sensitive information. If a person chooses not to provide LAQ with sensitive information about themselves, LAQ may not be able to provide assistance, services, or employment. 

LAQ collects personal information (including sensitive information) directly from

  • employees/consultants/volunteers and prospective employees/consultants/volunteers
  • external service providers and contractors
  • individuals who access our services and indirectly from third parties as part of carrying out our functions.

These functions include:

  1. Dealing with applications for grants of legal aid;
  2. Providing legal services to legally assisted persons;
  3. Dealing with and investigating complaints;
  4. Conducting audits and surveys;
  5. Providing legal education and training;
  6. Responding to enquiries from the public and agencies;
  7. Making payments as required by the business of the organisation; and
  8. Other business functions such as human resource management and recruitment processes.

The kind of personal information LAQ collects from individuals directly includes names, contact details, details of individuals’ legal matters and personal and financial circumstances, details about their concerns or complaints about Legal Aid staff, policies and processes, their lawyer or a decision of LAQ.

This information may be collected by LAQ when someone:

  1. applies for a grant of legal aid.
  2. is provided with a legal service.
  3. contacts LAQ to request information or assistance.
  4. provides feedback to LAQ.
  5. enrolls to attend a legal education session.

Due to the nature of LAQ’s functions, we may indirectly collect any kind of personal information, for example, when receiving information from a client who is applying for a grant of legal aid, receiving information from an external service provider, receiving a referral from a Court or Tribunal, taking instructions from a client about their legal issue, organising an alternative dispute resolution conference, undertaking an investigation when a complaint is made to an external agency.

More detail about the kinds of personal information (including sensitive information) LAQ collects

LAQ Function Kind of personal information, how and why we collect that personal information

Providing legal services including assessments of applications for legal aid

LAQ collects and holds personal information, including sensitive personal information, about people who seek legal services including applying for a grant of legal aid. LAQ may also collect and hold information about reasonable accommodations required by clients.

As part of providing legal services or assessing an application for legal aid, LAQ may acquire copies of documents that are relevant to the client’s circumstances and eligibility for assistance. These documents can contain personal information of the applicant and/or about other persons, such as obtaining information about a person with whom a client has a legal issue/dispute with and/or their children.

LAQ may also obtain information from a third party, such as an external service provider or referral from another government entity.

Client personal information is collected and used to:

  • provide legal assistance;
  • determine eligibility for a grant of legal aid and to administer grants of legal aid;
  • check for conflicts of interest;
  • administer primary dispute resolution processes;
  • investigate and respond to complaints and legal claims;
  • respond to investigations of complaints by external agencies;
  • prepare court reports;
  • determine applications made under the Right to Information Act 2009 (RTI Act) and our administrative access scheme;
  • assess client satisfaction; and
  • to prepare deidentified reports and statisics on services provided and demographics of clients.

The types of personal information collected may include:

  • personal details, including, name, voice recording, date of birth, location of birth, gender, cultural identity, current and former partner details (maritial and family status), health and disability details, language and literacy status, religious affiliation, postal and permanent address, contact details, names and date of birth of children, identification of social security benefit and social security number, business and employment details, asset details;
  • financial information including bank statements, Centrelink statements, Australian Tax Office assessments (tax returns and business documents), and details of other individuals who provide 'financial help’;
  • complaints about a person’s eligibility for legal aid and any investigation of eligibility;
  • complaints by clients about service delivery issues and any investigation of complaint;
  • details of legal issue, including court documents, statements, QP9’s, criminal histories and expert reports, instructions, attendances, advices, witness statements, medical reports, images, video and expert reports;
  • family dispute resolution reports;
  • DNA reports;
  • forensic reports;
  • court outcomes;
  • records of reviews with an External Review Officer;
  • co-accused details or (for family law cases) the respondent’s details e.g. name and address, DOB, lawyer’s name and address;
  • personal and financial information collected for debt recovery action against clients and against other parties, including mortgage details, and agreements to pay outstanding debts; and
  • incident reports on acts of violence or threats by clients to staff.

Information and referral service

LAQ collects and holds personal information about people who contact LAQ’s Contact call centre and Grants division by telephone, post, or email. This information may include names, voice recording, contact details, and the enquirer’s circumstances which led to or are relevant to their enquiry; this can include sensitive personal information, details of their legal issue, opinions about other people, and expressions of dissatisfaction.

LAQ may also collect and hold information about reasonable adjustments required by an enquirer.

Complaints and Feedback

LAQ may collect and hold personal information about people who provide feedback to LAQ or third parties about our services, including their names, contact details, interactions with LAQ, expressions of dissatisfaction, investigation into a complaint and the outcome of a complaint.

LAQ collects and holds information about individuals who make privacy complaints to LAQ, including names, contact details, the personal information the subject of the complaint and what resolution the complainant is seeking. A failure to provide this information may mean LAQ is unable to investigate the privacy complaint.

Human Resources / Employees, consultants and volunteersinformation (including prospective employees, consultants and volunteers, contractor or recruitment agency staff)

LAQ collects and holds personal information about LAQ employees, consultants and volunteers, and contractor or recruitment agency staff relevant to their employment with or work at LAQ, including.

This may include confirmation of identity information (i.e. birth certificate/passport), drivers licence, postal and permanent address, contact details, cultural identity, tax file number, bank and superannuation details, salary packaging arrangements, payroll deductions, qualifications, work history, complaint information, grievances, disciplinary matters, work performance information, criminal history, fleet vehicle use, reward and recognition information, attendance records, reasonable adjustments and relevant medical information, entitlements, photos of staff for identity cards and next of kin and/or emergency contacts.

For recruitment purposes, LAQ collects and holds personal information about people who apply to work at LAQ. This includes names, contact details, application documentation, identification information, assessments for suitability, referees and references.

Payroll functions are managed for LAQ by Queensland Shared Services as part of a service level agreement.

External service providers

LAQ enters into contractual arrangements with external entities for the supply of legal services to legally aided clients for the supply of goods and services to LAQ.

Much of the information held relates to business entities but some personal information may be collected including:

  • applications and contracts to be appointed as a LAQ preferred supplier, barrister, child representative, conference chairperson, duty lawyer services, which may include personal details of the applicant;
  • details of legal practitioners appointed as external review officers, which may include personal information;
  • details of complaints to LAQ about external service providers and responsses to complaints received from external service providers; and
  • information such as name, address for payment, and bank account details, may be collected to allow payment of accounts as part of normal business processes.

work history and qualifications and referee details.

LAQ may hold or obtain documents from an external service provider providing services to legally aided clients where that external service provider is the subject of a file audit or complaint investigation. These documents may include personal information of the client and the staff of the external service provider.

Information collected through LAQ’s website

LAQ’s public website www.legalaid.qld.gov.au is hosted in Australia and LAQ does not generally collect personal information about site visitors. LAQ’s web measurement tools and Internet Service Providers record only anonymous information about site visitors for statistical purposes including:

  • server and IP address
  • the name of the top level domain (for example, .gov, .com, .edu, .au)
  • type of browser used
  • date and time the site was accessed
  • pages accessed and documents downloaded
  • the previous site visited.

LAQ collects personal information through our website where it is provided by individuals who subscribe to our electronic mailing lists or use an online form (e.g. to register to participate in training or events, to request legal services or to provide feedback regarding LAQ services).

Mailing list subscription

LAQ maintains mailing distribution lists to provide information, training and forms to third parties. This includes name, email address, location, and organisation.

Analytics, business improvement and reporting

LAQ may collect information using our various analytics tools and survey platforms, namely:

  • Google Analytics
  • Campaign Monitor

LAQ collects this information to communicate with subscribers regarding LAQ events, services, or content and to improve our services and content. It will not ordinarily be personal information, because it does not generally identify anyone or relate to a specific individual.

To the extent that information collected by these tools is personal information, it will be de-identified and used for analytics, business improvement and reporting purposes.

Use and disclosure of personal information

LAQ uses and discloses personal information for the purpose for which the personal information was collected, including:

  1. performing LAQ’s functions and duties, such as to provide for giving legal assistance to financially disadvantage people throughout Queensland
  2. managing associated business processes, such as recruitment, human resources administration and engaging external service providers.

LAQ may also use or disclose personal information for secondary or alternative purposes as permitted under the IP Act. This may include where LAQ is authorised or required under Australian law (including to meet our procedural fairness obligations), with a person’s consent, or where a person would reasonably expect LAQ to use or disclose for a related – or in the case of sensitive information, directly related – secondary purpose. This may include disclosure of de-identified statistical information to our funding bodies and the Australian Bureau of Statistics.  

Access and correction of personal information

Access and correction rights are contained in the RTI Act. Except where access is restricted by law, an individual may request access to their personal information or to amend their own personal information. Personal information may be amended if it is inaccurate, incomplete, out of date or misleading.

Information held by LAQ can be accessed in different ways. The Queensland Government’s intention is that applications for documents should be processed under the RTI Act as a last resort. In response to this requirement, LAQ has an administrative access policy where clients who have been represented by an in-house LAQ lawyer, may request certain documents from their legal file. LAQ also has an administrative access procedure where an applicant for a grant of legal aid may request documents from their Grants file under Section 82 of the LAQ Act.This avoids the need for clients to request documents through the formal RTI process.

Disclosure out of Australia

LAQ would generally disclose personal information overseas only when necessary to make contact with a client or another person involved in legal proceedings who is located overseas.

However, when a person communicates with us via through a social media platform such as LinkedIn or YouTube, their social media provider and its partners may collect and hold personal information overseas. We also use Survey Monkey to conduct voluntary surveys from time to time, which may involve the collection and disclosure of participants’ personal information overseas.

Where LAQ discloses personal information overseas, this will usually occur with agreement, where LAQ is authorised or required by law, or otherwise consistently with our obligations under the IP Act.

Dealing with LAQ anonymously or using a pseudonym

People have the option to interact with LAQ anonymously or using a pseudonym in some situations and where reasonably possible. For example, if a person contacts LAQ’s Contact Centre with a general question, they will not need to provide their name unless it is required to adequately handle their enquiry.

Complaints about LAQ can be made anonymously or by using a pseudonym but, depending on nature of the complaint, LAQ may not be able to action a complaint and/or provide a response without a person’s identity (e.g. where a complaint relates to a particular individual’s file).

Most interactions with LAQ will require a person to provide their name, contact information and enough information about their particular matter to enable LAQ to provide legal services or assess an application. If a person chooses not to provide this information LAQ may be unable to provide the person with the requested service or assistance.

Security of personal information

LAQ holds personal information securely and takes reasonable steps to protect it from misuse, interference, loss, unauthorised access, modification or disclosure.

Where permitted by the Public Records Act 2023 (Qld), LAQ will destroy or de-identify unsolicited personal information or personal information no longer required for any of its functions in accordance with our obligations under the QPPs if it is lawful and reasonable to do so.

Privacy complaints about LAQ

If a person believes that LAQ has not handled their personal information in accordance with the IP Act, they or their delegate can make a privacy complaint. A delegate can only make a privacy complaint on behalf of another person if:

  • the person has provided the delegate with an authority to do so,
  • the person is a minor/child and the delegate is their parent or guardian,
  • the person lacks capacity and the delegate is their guardian or has other legal authority to act for them.

To make a privacy complaint about LAQ, a person must send their complaint to LAQ in writing and include:

  • an address for LAQ to respond to (e.g. an email address).
  • details about the matter or issue/s the person is complaining about (e.g. what LAQ did or did not do with the person’s personal information the person believes breached the QPPs and the IP Act).

Privacy complaints to LAQ must be raised within 12 months of the complainant becoming aware of the act or practice they think constitutes a breach by LAQ of the IP Act. Where a privacy complaint is made on behalf of another person, an authority from the complainant or other evidence (e.g. a birth certificate showing that they are a minor/child and you are their parent), must accompany the complaint.

Contact address for privacy complaints

Email: complaints@laq.qld.gov.au

Post: Complaints
Legal Aid Queensland
GPO Box 2449
BRISBANE  QLD  4001

Timeframe for handling a privacy complaint

LAQ has 45 business days to resolve the privacy complaint to your satisfaction.

If this does not occur, the complaint can be escalated to the Office of the Information Commissioner (OIC) following this procedure on the OIC website.

Last updated 6 August 2025

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