Legal Notices.
The Public Law Solicitors’ Association (PULSA) is a professional network for solicitors in England and Wales who practice public and administrative law.
This privacy policy was last updated on 28 August 2026.
This privacy policy sets out how and why we use your personal information and explains your related rights and options. We are committed to ensuring that your rights to privacy and data protection are upheld.
When we collect and use your personal information, PULSA is designated as a “data controller” under UK data protection law. This means we take on legal responsibility for how your personal information is handled and must comply with a series of data protection legal obligations. One of those obligations is to provide you with specific information about how and why we use your personal information – that information is set out in this privacy policy.
If you have any questions regarding this privacy policy, including any requests to exercise your rights under data protection law, please contact contact@pulsa.org.uk.
What types of personal information do we collect and use?
PULSA collects the following types of personal information:
Identity Data, which may include your name, title, date of birth and gender.
Contact Data, which may include your home or work address, email address and telephone number.
Technical Data, which may include internet protocol (IP) address, your login data, browser type and version, time zone setting and location, browser plug-in types and versions, operating system and platform and other technology on the devices you use to access this website.
Professional data, which may include your current role, professional experience and professional or academic qualifications.
PULSA data, which may include your interest in PULSA, your correspondence with us, details of your membership, history of your interactions with us (e.g. events attended) and your feedback about PULSA events and initiatives.
Photographs and videos (where appropriate), for example for promotional or marketing purposes, for premises access requirements or for security purposes (such as CCTV).
Where appropriate and justified we may also collect and use your “special category” personal information. These are types of personal information which are considered innately more sensitive and private by applicable data protection law.
We do not set out to collect and use special category personal information as an ordinary part of PULSA membership and activities but, depending on the circumstances, may need to collect and use information about your medical conditions where relevant to a PULSA event (for example any dietary requirements, access and adjustment requirements or where we need to know in case of any medical issues which may arise).
How do we collect your personal information?
We use different methods to collect data from and about you including through:
Information you give us: you may give us information about you by filling in forms on our website, corresponding with us by e-mail or by booking places at PULSA events.
From your device or operating system: on each of your visits to our site we may automatically collect technical information (including the Internet protocol (IP) address used to connect your computer to the Internet) and information about your visit (for example our website uses cookies to distinguish you from other website users and to provide you the best experience of using our website).
From public sources (for example your professional website page or when you interact with PULSA on social media).
Why do we use your personal information?
Non-exhaustively, we use your personal information to:
Take steps at your request to register you as a member of the PULSA, and otherwise administer your membership.
Facilitate your attendance at PULSA events.
Send you emails about PULSA’s work, events and activities which may be of interest to you and to answer your queries and requests.
Facilitate your use of our website.
For internal record keeping and audit purposes.
To operate and administer premises or event spaces which we use and keep them secure.
To comply with contractual obligations and our legal and regulatory obligations and, where necessary, to bring and defend any legal claims.
To measure the popularity, impact and effectiveness of our events and work.
For marketing, promotional and communications purposes.
Our “lawful bases” for collecting and using your personal information
We can only collect and use your personal information where we have a “lawful basis” to do this. A lawful basis is just a reason or justification for using personal information which is accepted and recognised by applicable data protection law. Depending on the circumstances and nature of our interaction, PULSA relies on the following lawful bases:
Where it is necessary to use your personal information to perform a contract with you (e.g. to administer your membership or to facilitate your attendance at a PULSA event).
Where we need to comply with a legal or regulatory obligation.
Where you have provided your consent to our use of your personal data (for example to send you PULSA marketing or promotional material)
Where necessary to achieve PULSA’s, or another organisation’s or person’s “legitimate interests”. A legitimate interest is just a good, valid and genuinely-held reason for using personal information, for example quality assurance, developing and improving our products and services or conducting market research or research into the types of work we do.
We can only rely on this lawful basis to the extent that the importance of the objectives we seek to achieve is not outweighed by the possibility of adverse impact on you or your rights to privacy.
To the extent we collect and use your special category personal information, we are required to have a secondary lawful basis in place. These secondary lawful bases only apply to the use of special category personal data:
Where you have provided your explicit written consent for us to use your personal information.
Where it becomes necessary to use your personal information in genuine medical emergencies.
Where it is necessary to use your personal information in the context of legal disputes.
Where it is necessary to your personal information for the provision of health care or treatment.
Where necessary for reasons of substantial public interest, for example to ensure quality of opportunity and treatment, prevent or detect unlawful conduct or safeguard vulnerable individuals.
How we keep your personal information secure?
All information your provide to us is stored on secure servers and communications systems. We adopt appropriate technical (i.e. IT and software-based) and organisational (i.e. physical and office-based) information security measures to protect your personal information while in our custody. If we take payment for membership / events: all payment transactions are encrypted and stored securely.
Although we try to ensure that your personal information is protected, we cannot guarantee the security of your personal information transmitted to or through our website. Once we receive your personal information we will use strict procedures and security features to prevent unauthorised access or other information security incidents.
Who do we share your personal information with?
Sometimes it may be necessary to share your personal information with external organisations, such as (non-exhaustively):
The law firms or chambers for whom PULSA committee members work (or with whom PULSA puts on events).
The Young Public Law Lawyers Group, where we put on events or run joint initiatives with them.
The Constitutional and Administrative Law Bar Association (ALBA), with whom we host joint events.
Trusted partner organisations which help us carry out PULSA work, for example ticketing or event access service providers, event managers, security providers, professional advisers or website hosts.
In exceptional circumstances, medical professionals, regulatory or government bodies or law enforcement agencies.
Third-party links
This website may include links to third-party websites, plug-ins and applications. This includes, in particular, the link to our membership and mailing list, which is hosted by a third-party website. Clicking on those links or enabling those connections may allow third parties to collect or share data about you. We do not control these third-party websites and are not responsible for their privacy statements. When you leave our website, we encourage you to read the privacy policy of every website you visit.
International transfers
As PULSA is a UK-based organisation, the majority of our processing of your personal information takes place in the UK. However, some of the service providers and partners we work with, including providers of website hosting, analytics and communication services, may process or store personal information in countries outside the UK and the European Economic Area (EEA).
Where personal information is transferred outside the UK or EEA, we will ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place to protect it, as required by applicable data protection law. These safeguards may include the use of the UK International Data Transfer Agreement (IDTA), the UK Addendum to the EU Standard Contractual Clauses, an adequacy decision, or other lawful transfer mechanisms.
You can contact us if you would like further information about the safeguards we use when transferring personal information internationally.
How long do we keep your personal information
We will only retain your personal data for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes we collected it for, including for the purposes of satisfying any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements. If you no longer wish to be a member of PULSA and its mailing list, you can unsubscribe at any time.
Your legal rights
Data protection law give you a series of rights which you can exercise as against PULSA. Please note that, while some of these rights apply broadly, some of them are only available to exercise in certain specific circumstances.
Your rights include:
The right to access your personal information. You are usually entitled to a copy of the records we hold which include your personal information and details about how we use it. There are some exemptions to the right of access which mean that you may not always be entitled to a copy of all of your personal information.
The right to rectification. We take reasonable steps to ensure that the information we hold about you is accurate and complete. However, if you do not believe this is the case, you can ask us to update or amend it.
The right to erasure (also known as the ‘right to be forgotten’). In some limited circumstances, we must delete your personal information from our records if you ask us to.
The right to restriction of processing. In some circumstances, we must “pause” our use of your personal information pending the resolution of a disagreement or objection..
The right to data portability. In some circumstances, we must transfer personal information that you have provided to us to you or, if this is technically feasible, another individual or organisation of your choice. The information must be transferred in an electronic format.
The right to object to marketing. You can ask us to stop sending you marketing messages at any time and we must comply with your request. You can do this by emailing us or clicking the unsubscribe link in our emails.
The right to object to other uses of your personal data. In some circumstances you have the right to object to our use of your personal data and we must stop using it in that way unless we have compelling reasons to continue (for example we can continue to use your personal information if necessary to defend a legal claim brought against us).
The right not to be subject to automatic decisions (i.e. decisions that are made about you by automated means alone, with no human involvement). You have a right to not be subject to automatic decisions (i.e. decisions that are made about you by computer alone) that have a legal or other significant effect on you. We do not take any such decisions about you in this manner.
The right to withdraw consent. Where we rely on your consent to process your data, you have the right to withdraw your consent to further use of your personal information.
The right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office. You can complain to the ICO if you are dissatisfied with how we have used your personal information, unhappy with the way that we have dealt with a request from you to exercise any of these rights, or if you think we have not complied with our legal obligations. Making a complaint to the ICO will not affect any other legal rights or remedies that you have. We would encourage you to contact us first before you approach the ICO.
You will not have to pay a fee to access your personal data (or to exercise any of the other rights). However, we may charge a reasonable fee if your request is vexatious or highly unreasonable, repetitive or excessive, or is for any other reason particularly onerous. Alternatively, we may refuse to comply with your request in these circumstances.
What we may need from you. We may need to request specific information from you to help us confirm your identity and ensure your right to access your personal data (or to exercise any of your other rights). This is a security measure to ensure that personal data is not disclosed to any person who has no right to receive it. We may also contact you to ask you for further information in relation to your request to speed up our response.
Time limit to respond. We try to respond to all legitimate and validly made requests within one month. Occasionally it may take us longer than a month if your request is particularly complex or you have made a number of requests. In this case, we will notify you and keep you updated.
If you wish to exercise any of your rights, please contact contact@PULSA.org.uk.
Keeping us updated
It is important that the personal information we hold about you is accurate and current. Please keep us informed if your personal information changes during your relationship with us.
WEBSITE TERMS OF USE
By using our site, you confirm that you accept these terms of use and that you agree to comply with them.
If you do not agree to these terms, you must not use our site.
We recommend that you print a copy of these terms for future reference.
We amend these terms from time to time. Every time you wish to use our site, please check these terms to ensure you understand the terms that apply at that time.
We may update and change our site from time to time to reflect our users’ needs and group priorities.
We do not guarantee that our site, or any content on it, will always be available or be uninterrupted. We may suspend or withdraw or restrict the availability of all or any part of our site for business and operational reasons.
You are also responsible for ensuring that all persons who access our site through your internet connection are aware of these terms of use and other applicable terms and conditions, and that they comply with them.
Our site is directed to people residing in England and Wales. We do not represent that content available on or through our site is appropriate for use or available in other locations.
If you choose, or you are provided with, a user identification code, password or any other piece of information as part of our security procedures, you must treat such information as confidential. You must not disclose it to any third party. We have the right to disable any user identification code or password, whether chosen by you or allocated by us, at any time, if in our reasonable opinion you have failed to comply with any of the provisions of these terms of use.
If you know or suspect that anyone other than you knows your user identification code or password, you must promptly notify us at contact@pulsa.org.uk
How you may use material on our site
We are the owner or the licensee of all intellectual property rights in our site, and in the material published on it. Those works are protected by copyright laws and treaties around the world. All such rights are reserved.
You may print off one copy, and may download extracts, of any page(s) from our site for your personal use and you may draw the attention of others within your organisation to content posted on our site. You must not modify the paper or digital copies of any materials you have printed off or downloaded in any way, and you must not use any illustrations, photographs, video or audio sequences or any graphics separately from any accompanying text. Our status (and that of any identified contributors) as the authors of content on our site must always be acknowledged.
You must not use any part of the content on our site for commercial purposes without obtaining a licence to do so from us or our licensors. If you print off, copy or download any part of our site in breach of these terms of use, your right to use our site will cease immediately and you must, at our option, return or destroy any copies of the materials you have made.
Do not rely on information on this site
The content on our site is provided for general information only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site.
Although we make reasonable efforts to update the information on our site, we make no representations, warranties or guarantees, whether express or implied, that the content on our site is accurate, complete or up to date.
Where our site contains links to other sites and resources provided by third parties, these links are provided for your information only. Such links should not be interpreted as approval by us of those linked websites or information you may obtain from them. We have no control over the contents of those sites or resources.
User-generated content is not approved by us. This website may include information and materials uploaded by other users of the site, including to bulletin boards and chat rooms. This information and these materials have not been verified or approved by us. The views expressed by other users on our site do not represent our views or values.
Our responsibility for loss or damage suffered by you
We will not be liable to you for any loss or damage, whether in contract, tort (including negligence), breach of statutory duty, or otherwise, even if foreseeable, arising under or in connection with: use of, or inability to use, our site; or use of or reliance on any content displayed on our site.
In particular, we will not be liable for: loss of profits, sales, business, or revenue; business interruption; loss of anticipated savings; loss of business opportunity, goodwill or reputation; or any indirect or consequential loss or damage.
We exclude liability for all implied conditions, warranties, representations or other terms that may apply to our site or any content on it.
How we may use your personal information
We will only use your personal information as set out in our Privacy Policy below.
We are not responsible for viruses and you must not introduce them. We do not guarantee that our site will be secure or free from bugs or viruses.
You are responsible for configuring your information technology, computer programmes and platform to access our site. You should use your own virus protection software.
You must not misuse our site by knowingly introducing viruses, trojans, worms, logic bombs or other material that is malicious or technologically harmful. You must not attempt to gain unauthorised access to our site, the server on which our site is stored or any server, computer or database connected to our site. You must not attack our site via a denial-of-service attack or a distributed denial-of service attack. By breaching this provision, you would commit a criminal offence under the Computer Misuse Act 1990. We will report any such breach to the relevant law enforcement authorities and we will co-operate with those authorities by disclosing your identity to them. In the event of such a breach, your right to use our site will cease immediately.
Rules about linking to our site
You may link to our site, provided you do so in a way that is fair and legal and does not damage our reputation or take advantage of it. You must not establish a link in such a way as to suggest any form of association, approval or endorsement on our part where none exists. You must not establish a link to our site in any website that is not owned by you. Our site must not be framed on any other site.
We reserve the right to withdraw linking permission without notice.
The website in which you are linking must comply in all respects with the content standards set out in our Acceptable Use Policy.
Which country’s laws apply to any disputes?
The terms of this policy, its subject matter and its formation are governed by English law. You and we both agree that the courts of England and Wales will have exclusive jurisdiction.
WEBSITE ACCEPTABLE USE POLICY
This acceptable use policy sets out the content standards that apply when you upload content to our site, make contact with other users on our site, link to our site, or interact with our site in any other way.
We amend these terms from time to time. Every time you wish to use our site, please check these terms to ensure you understand the terms that apply at that time.
You may use our site only for lawful purposes. You may not use our site:
In any way that breaches any applicable local, national or international law or regulation.
In any way that is unlawful or fraudulent, or has any unlawful or fraudulent purpose or effect.
For the purpose of harming or attempting to harm minors in any way.
To send, knowingly receive, upload, download, use or re-use any material which does not comply with our content standards.
To transmit, or procure the sending of, any unsolicited or unauthorised advertising or promotional material or any other form of similar solicitation (spam).
To knowingly transmit any data, send or upload any material that contains viruses, Trojan horses, worms, time-bombs, keystroke loggers, spyware, adware or any other harmful programs or similar computer code designed to adversely affect the operation of any computer software or hardware.
You also agree:
Not to reproduce, duplicate, copy or re-sell any part of our site in contravention of the provisions of our terms of website use.
Not to access without authority, interfere with, damage or disrupt:
(a) any part of our site;
(b) any equipment or network on which our site is stored;
(c) any software used in the provision of our site; or
(d) any equipment or network or software owned or used by any third party.
When we consider that a breach of this acceptable use policy has occurred, we may take such action as we deem appropriate.
Failure to comply with this acceptable use policy constitutes a material breach of the terms of use upon which you are permitted to use our site, and may result in our taking all or any of the following actions:
Immediate, temporary or permanent withdrawal of your right to use our site.
Immediate, temporary or permanent removal of any contribution uploaded by you to our site.
Issue of a warning to you.
Legal proceedings against you for reimbursement of all costs on an indemnity basis (including, but not limited to, reasonable administrative and legal costs) resulting from the breach.
Further legal action against you.
Disclosure of such information to law enforcement authorities as we reasonably feel is necessary or as required by law.
We exclude our liability for all action we may take in response to breaches of this acceptable use policy. The actions we may take are not limited to those described above, and we may take any other action we reasonably deem appropriate.