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Privacy Notice

PRIVACY NOTICE ON THE PROCESSING OF PERSONAL DATA

This Privacy Notice on the Processing of Personal Data (the "Privacy Notice") has been prepared to inform the data subjects (as defined below) whose personal data (as defined below) are processed, pursuant to Law No. 6698 on the Protection of Personal Data (the "KVKK").

In this Privacy Notice, the term "Personal Data" means any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person that is processed by the data controller, and the term "Data Subject" means the natural person whose Personal Data are processed.

Data Controller

Yavuz Akçakaya and Zehra Akkirman, attorneys registered with the Istanbul Bar Association who practise together under the name Akkirman Akçakaya Law Firm (Akkirman Akçakaya Hukuk Bürosu), act jointly as data controller (together, the "Firm"). The Firm's address is: Esentepe Mahallesi, Büyükdere Caddesi No: 175, Ferko Signature, Floor 21, A-132, 34394 Şişli, Istanbul, Türkiye.

Personal Data Processed

The following Personal Data are processed by the Firm:

  • Identity data: First name, surname, Turkish identity number, date of birth and other identity information.
  • Contact data: Telephone number, postal address, email address and other contact information.
  • Client service data: Personal Data obtained from our clients about their employees and the persons with whom they have legal relationships, invoicing and payment information, and client feedback.
  • Job applicant data: Information on the education and professional experience of job applicants.
  • Employee data: Personnel information necessary for establishing and maintaining the employment relationship with our employees.
  • Special categories of personal data: In limited cases, and to the extent necessary for a specific service we provide or mandatory for the fulfilment of our legal obligations, information that may qualify as special categories of Personal Data under the applicable legislation.

Purposes of Processing and Legal Grounds

Personal Data are processed for the purposes set out below, on the basis of the relevant legal grounds:

  • To provide legal advisory services, we process identity data, contact data and client service data. Such Personal Data are processed on the following legal grounds: (i) the processing of Personal Data of the parties to a contract is necessary, provided that it is directly related to the establishment or performance of the contract, (ii) the processing is mandatory for the establishment, exercise or protection of a right, and (iii) the processing is mandatory for our legitimate interests, provided that it does not harm the fundamental rights and freedoms of the Data Subject.
  • To conduct our business activities and manage our client relationships, we process identity data, contact data and client service data. Such Personal Data are processed on the following legal grounds: (i) the processing of Personal Data of the parties to a contract is necessary, provided that it is directly related to the establishment or performance of the contract, (ii) the processing is mandatory for us to fulfil the legal obligations to which we are subject, and (iii) the processing is mandatory for our legitimate interests, provided that it does not harm the fundamental rights and freedoms of the Data Subject.
  • To ensure legal compliance and fulfil our legal obligations (for purposes such as verifying the identity of our clients and preventing money laundering, terrorist financing and fraud), we process identity data, contact data and client service data. Such Personal Data are processed on the following legal grounds: (i) the processing is expressly provided for by law, (ii) the processing is mandatory for us to fulfil the legal obligations to which we are subject, and (iii) the processing is mandatory for our legitimate interests, provided that it does not harm the fundamental rights and freedoms of the Data Subject.
  • To manage recruitment and employment processes, we process identity data, contact data, job applicant data and employee data. Such Personal Data are processed on the following legal grounds: (i) the processing of Personal Data of the parties to a contract is necessary, provided that it is directly related to the establishment or performance of the contract, (ii) the processing is mandatory for us to fulfil the legal obligations to which we are subject, and (iii) the processing is mandatory for our legitimate interests, provided that it does not harm the fundamental rights and freedoms of the Data Subject.
  • In limited cases, and to the extent necessary for a specific service we provide or mandatory for the fulfilment of our legal obligations, we may process special categories of your Personal Data. Such Personal Data are processed on the following legal grounds: (i) the Data Subject has given explicit consent, (ii) the processing is expressly provided for by law, (iii) the processing relates to Personal Data made public by the Data Subject and is in line with the Data Subject's intention in making them public, (iv) the processing is mandatory for the establishment, exercise or protection of a right, and (v) the processing is mandatory for the fulfilment of legal obligations in the fields of employment, occupational health and safety, and social security.

Method of Collecting Personal Data

Personal Data are collected from you, our clients, our employees, our suppliers, public institutions and publicly available sources, by wholly or partly automated means or by non-automated means as part of a data recording system (by email, telephone, in meetings, through correspondence, contracts and other documents).

Transfer of Personal Data

Personal Data may be shared with the following groups of recipients, subject to the conditions set out in Articles 8 and 9 of the KVKK:

  • Business partners: Depending on the requirements of each matter, the Firm may work in cooperation with other law firms and business partners in order to serve our clients in the best possible way. In this context, our clients' Personal Data may be shared with our business partners.
  • Suppliers and service providers: Personal Data may be shared with our suppliers so that the suppliers from which we receive services can act on our behalf and in accordance with our instructions for the processing purposes set out above.
  • Financial institutions: Personal Data may be shared with financial institutions for invoicing and payment purposes.
  • Judicial authorities, opposing parties and their counsel: In litigation, arbitration, mediation and other dispute resolution proceedings conducted for the establishment, exercise or protection of our clients' rights, Personal Data may be shared with courts and other judicial authorities, arbitrators, mediators, opposing parties and their counsel.
  • Mandatory disclosures and legal claims: We may share Personal Data in order to comply with the decisions and requests of competent public authorities and judicial authorities. We may also share Personal Data in order to ensure, protect or defend our legal rights, interests or security, or the legal rights, interests or security of others.

Rights of the Data Subject under the KVKK

As a Data Subject, you have the following rights under Article 11 of the KVKK, which you may exercise by applying to the data controller:

  1. (a) to learn whether your Personal Data are processed;
  2. (b) to request information if your Personal Data have been processed;
  3. (c) to learn the purpose of the processing of your Personal Data and whether they are used in accordance with that purpose;
  4. (d) to know the third parties in Türkiye or abroad to whom your Personal Data are transferred;
  5. (e) to request the rectification of your Personal Data if they are incomplete or inaccurately processed;
  6. (f) to request the erasure or destruction of your Personal Data under the conditions set out in Article 7 of the KVKK;
  7. (g) to request that the operations carried out pursuant to paragraphs (e) and (f) above be notified to the third parties to whom your Personal Data have been transferred;
  8. (h) to object to any outcome to your detriment arising from the analysis of your Personal Data exclusively by automated systems; and
  9. (i) to claim compensation for damage if you suffer loss as a result of the unlawful processing of your Personal Data.

To exercise the rights listed above, your requests must be submitted in writing to "Esentepe Mahallesi, Büyükdere Caddesi No: 175, Ferko Signature, Floor 21, A-132, 34394 Şişli, Istanbul, Türkiye" or by other methods deemed appropriate by the Personal Data Protection Authority (Kişisel Verileri Koruma Kurumu). Applications made in this context will be concluded within the periods set out in the KVKK.

This Privacy Notice may be amended or renewed where deemed necessary, in accordance with the KVKK and other applicable legislation.