LitigateIQ (“we”, “our”, or “us”) is committed to protecting the privacy and confidentiality of all individuals who interact with our services. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you visit our website or engage our patent and intellectual property services. Please read this policy carefully. If you disagree with its terms, please discontinue use of our site.
Plain-language summary: We only collect what we need to deliver our services. We never sell your data. Client matter information is treated with the same confidentiality as attorney-client privileged material.
Information We Collect
We collect information in the following ways:
Information you provide directly:
- Full name, email address, phone number, and company name when you book a consultation or contact us
- Country of residence or business registration for compliance and service scoping purposes
- Patent numbers, invention disclosures, claim charts, and other IP-related materials you share with us as part of an engagement
- Communication records, including emails, meeting notes, and messages submitted through our website
Information collected automatically:
- IP address, browser type, operating system, and referring URLs
- Pages visited, time spent on each page, and navigation paths (via analytics)
- Device identifiers and session data
Information from third parties:
- Publicly available information from patent databases (USPTO, EPO, WIPO) relevant to your matter
- Business contact information from professional directories used for outreach
How We Use Your Data
We use the information we collect to:
- Provide, operate, and improve our patent analysis, claim charting, SEP analysis, and related IP services
- Schedule and conduct consultations, deliver work product, and manage client engagements
- Respond to inquiries, provide customer support, and communicate service updates
- Send invoices, process payments, and maintain financial records as required by law
- Analyze usage patterns to improve our website's performance and user experience
- Comply with applicable legal obligations, regulatory requirements, and professional standards
- Protect against fraudulent, unauthorized, or illegal activity
- Send periodic updates, newsletters, or information about our services, only with your consent and with an easy opt-out
Legal Basis for Processing (GDPR)
For users in the European Economic Area (EEA) and United Kingdom, we process your personal data under the following legal bases:
- Contract performance: Processing necessary to deliver our services under our engagement agreement
- Legitimate interests: Improving our services, preventing fraud, and business communications
- Legal obligation: Compliance with applicable laws, tax obligations, and professional regulations
- Consent: Marketing communications and non-essential cookies, where consent has been obtained
Data Sharing and Disclosure
We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information. We may share information only in the following limited circumstances:
- Service providers: Vetted third-party vendors who assist in our operations (e.g., cloud hosting, scheduling software, secure email), bound by confidentiality agreements
- Legal requirements: When required by applicable law, court order, or governmental authority
- Business transfers: In the event of a merger, acquisition, or asset sale, with advance notice to affected parties
- With your explicit consent: Any other disclosures made only with your prior written authorization
Client matter materials and confidential IP information are never shared with any third party except where strictly necessary to fulfill your engagement and where authorized under your engagement letter or NDA.
Data Retention
We retain your personal information only for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected:
- Client engagement records: 7 years from the close of the matter (for legal and professional compliance)
- Consultation inquiries (non-clients): 24 months from last contact
- Marketing communications: Until you unsubscribe or withdraw consent
- Website analytics data: 26 months in aggregated, anonymized form
- Financial records: As required by applicable tax and accounting law (typically 7 years)
Upon expiry of the relevant retention period, data is securely deleted or anonymized in accordance with our data destruction policy.
Cookies and Tracking Technologies
Our website uses cookies and similar technologies to enhance your experience:
- Essential cookies: Required for the website to function (session management, security). Cannot be disabled.
- Analytics cookies: Help us understand how visitors interact with our site (e.g., Google Analytics). Anonymized. You may opt out.
- Preference cookies: Remember your settings and preferences for future visits.
You can manage cookie preferences through your browser settings. Disabling non-essential cookies will not affect your ability to use our services. For detailed information, please refer to your browser's help documentation.
We use Google Analytics, which sets cookies to measure how visitors use our site. You can opt out of Google Analytics tracking at any time by installing Google's Analytics opt-out browser add-on.
Security
We implement industry-standard security measures to protect your information, including:
- TLS/SSL encryption for all data in transit
- Encrypted storage for sensitive client materials at rest (AES-256)
- Role-based access controls ensure only authorized personnel access client matter data
- Regular security reviews and vulnerability assessments
- Secure deletion protocols for expired data
While we take every reasonable precaution, no method of transmission over the internet is 100% secure. In the event of a data breach that affects your rights, we will notify you in accordance with applicable law.
Your Rights
Depending on your jurisdiction, you may have the following rights regarding your personal data:
- Access: Request a copy of the personal information we hold about you
- Rectification: Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data
- Erasure (“right to be forgotten”): Request deletion of your data, subject to legal retention obligations
- Restriction: Request that we limit processing of your data in certain circumstances
- Portability: Receive your data in a structured, machine-readable format
- Objection: Object to processing based on legitimate interests or for direct marketing purposes
- Withdraw consent: Where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw at any time without affecting the lawfulness of prior processing
To exercise any of these rights, contact us at contact@litigateiq.org. We will respond within 30 days. Requests will be verified before processing.
International Data Transfers
LitigateIQ serves clients globally. If you are located outside the country where our servers are hosted, your information may be transferred internationally. We ensure such transfers comply with applicable data protection laws through:
- Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) approved by the European Commission for transfers from the EEA
- Data Processing Agreements with all sub-processors handling personal data
- Adequacy decisions or equivalent safeguards where applicable
Children's Privacy
Our services are intended exclusively for business professionals and are not directed at individuals under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe we have inadvertently collected information from a minor, please contact us immediately and we will promptly delete such information.
Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, legal requirements, or service offerings. Material changes will be communicated by:
- Updating the “Last Updated” date at the top of this page
- Sending an email notification to active clients or subscribers
- Displaying a prominent notice on our website for 30 days following the change
Your continued use of our services after changes become effective constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.