Privacy policy

1. General information and principles of data processing

We are pleased that you are visiting the website of Zöllner & Zöllner GmbH Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft Steuerberatungsgesellschaft, Zöllner & Zöllner Wirtschaftsberatungsgesellschaft mbH, Zöllner & Zöllner GbR and ZZH GmbH Rechtsanwaltsgesellschaft. The protection of your privacy and the protection of your personal data when using our website is an important concern for us.

According to Art. 4 No. 1 DS-GVO, personal data is any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person. This includes, for example, information such as your first and last name, your address, your telephone number, your e-mail address, but also your IP address.

Data for which no reference to your person can be established, such as through anonymisation, is not personal data. Processing (e.g. collecting, storing, reading, querying, using, transmitting, deleting or destroying) according to Art. 4 No. 2 DS-GVO always requires a legal basis or your consent. Processed personal data must be deleted as soon as the purpose of the processing has been achieved and there are no longer any legally prescribed retention obligations to uphold.

Here you will find information on how we handle your personal data when you visit our website. In order to provide the functions and services of our website, it is necessary for us to collect personal data about you.

We also explain the type and scope of the respective data processing, the purpose and the corresponding legal basis as well as the respective storage period.

This privacy policy only applies to this website. It does not apply to other websites to which we merely refer by means of a hyperlink. We cannot accept any responsibility for the confidential handling of your personal data on these third-party websites, as we have no influence on whether these companies comply with data protection regulations. Please inform yourself about the handling of your personal data by these companies directly on these websites.

2. Responsible party / data protection officer

Responsible for the processing of personal data on this website is (see imprint):

Zöllner & Zöllner GmbH Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft Steuerberatungsgesellschaft
Freiheitsstraße 15
59759 Arnsberg

Tel.: 0049 – 2932 – 961 80
Fax: 0049 – 2932 – 961 818

The data protection officer of the offices can be contacted at the above office address and at info(at)zoellner-zoellner.de.

3. Scope and purpose of the processing of personal data

3.1 Calling up the website

If you visit this website without otherwise transmitting data to us (e.g. by registering or using the contact form), we collect via so-called server log files technically necessary data that are automatically transmitted to our server, including:

  • IP address
  • Date and time of the request
  • Name and URL of the retrieved file
  • Website from which the access is made (referrer URL)
  • Access status/HTTP status code

This processing is technically necessary in order to be able to display our website to you. We also use the data to ensure the security and stability of our website (such as to prevent runtime errors).

We process the collected data exclusively in anonymised form, so that it has no personal reference. We make the above data available to the web agency that carries out the web analysis for us as an order processor.

The legal basis for this processing is Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f) DS-GVO. The processing of the aforementioned data is necessary for the provision of a website and thus serves to protect a legitimate interest of our companies.

As soon as the aforementioned personal data is no longer required to display the website, it will be deleted. The collection of data for the provision of the website and the storage of the data in log files is absolutely necessary for the operation of the website. Consequently, there is no possibility for the user to object to this aspect. Further storage may take place in individual cases if this is required by law.

3.2 Contact form / data processing to answer your enquiries

You can send us messages via an online contact form on the website. In order to receive a reply, you must at least provide a valid e-mail address. You may provide us with other information voluntarily. By sending the message via the contact form, you consent to the processing of the personal data transmitted. The data is processed exclusively for the purpose of handling and answering enquiries via the contact form or for contacting you.

This is done on the basis of the consent voluntarily given in accordance with Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. a) DS-GVO.

The personal data collected for the use of the contact form will be blocked for further use after your enquiry has been fully dealt with and deleted after expiry of any retention periods that may exist, unless you have expressly consented to further use of your data or we otherwise have a right to store it.

3.3 Applicant data

If you apply to us via our website, we collect the following data in this context:

  • Salutation, surname and first name
  • e-mail address
  • Other information and documents, e.g. cover letter, curriculum vitae, certificates, which you provide to us in connection with your application.

Your data will only be used for the purpose of deciding whether to establish an employment relationship with you and will only be forwarded internally to the relevant contact persons at our company who will decide about filling the position you have applied for. If you do not apply for a specific job advertisement (unsolicited application), we will use your data for all vacancies that match your requirements at the time of application.

We are authorised to process this data in accordance with Art. 88 DS-GVO in conjunction with. § 26 para. 1 sentence 1 BDSG.

We delete your data after completion of the application process following a retention period of 6 months.

4. Transfer of data

We will only transfer your personal data to third parties if:

a) You have given your explicit consent to this in accordance with Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. a) DS-GVO.

b) This is legally permissible and necessary according to Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. b) DS-GVO for the fulfilment of a contractual relationship with you or the implementation of pre-contractual measures.

c) According to Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. c) DS-GVO, there is a legal obligation for the disclosure, e.g. in the case of a legal obligation to transmit data to state authorities, such as tax authorities, social insurance carriers, health insurance companies, supervisory authorities and law enforcement agencies.

d) The disclosure according to Art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f) DS-GVO is necessary for the protection of legitimate business interests, as well as for the assertion, exercise or defence of legal claims and there is no reason to assume that you have an overriding interest worthy of protection in the non-disclosure of your data.

e) In accordance with Art. 28 DS-GVO, we use external service providers, so-called order processors, who are obliged to handle your data with care.

f) We use such service providers in the areas of IT and telecommunications.

When transferring data to external parties in third countries, i.e. outside the EU or the EEA, we ensure that these bodies treat your personal data with the same care as within the EU or the EEA. We only transfer personal data to third countries where the EU Commission has confirmed an adequate level of protection or where we ensure the careful handling of personal data through contractual agreements or other suitable guarantees.

5. Use of cookies

So-called cookies are used on the website. These are data packets which are exchanged between the server of the law firm’s website and the visitor’s browser. These are stored by the respective devices used (PC, notebook, tablet, smartphone etc.) when visiting the website. In this respect, cookies cannot cause any damage to the devices used. Information is stored in the cookies that arises in each case in connection with the specific end device used.

Cookies are mostly accepted according to the basic settings of the browsers. Usually, you can set your browser so that you are informed about the setting of cookies, the setting of cookies is excluded for certain cases or generally or you only allow the setting of cookies in individual cases. You can also delete stored cookies in the settings of your browser. You will find the corresponding setting options in your browser settings.

Some functions of our website cannot be offered without the use of technically necessary cookies. Other cookies make it possible to carry out various analyses. For example, some cookies can recognise the browser you are using when you visit our website again and transmit various information to us. We use cookies to facilitate and improve our website. Among other things, cookies enable us to make our website more user-friendly and effective for you by, for example, tracking your use of our website and determining your preferred settings (e.g. country and language settings). If third parties process information via cookies, they collect the information directly from your browser.

Different types of cookies are used on our website, the type and function of each are explained below:

5.1 Temporary cookies / session cookies

Our website uses so-called temporary cookies or session cookies, which are automatically deleted as soon as you close your browser. This type of cookie makes it possible to record your session ID. This leads to assign various requests from your browser to a common session and to recognise your terminal device on subsequent visits to the website.

5.2 Permanent cookies

So-called permanent cookies are used on our website. Permanent cookies are cookies that are stored in your browser for a longer period of time and can transmit information. The respective storage period differs depending on the cookie. You can delete permanent cookies independently via your browser settings.

Based on the purposes described, the legal basis for the processing of personal data using cookies is Art. 6 (1) sentence 1 lit. f) DS-GVO. If you have given us your consent to the use of cookies on the basis of a notice (“cookie banner”) issued by us on the website, the legal basis is additionally Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a) DS-GVO.

5.3 Storage period

As soon as the data transmitted to us via the cookies is no longer required for the purposes described above, this information is deleted. Further storage may take place in individual cases if this is required by law.

6. Your rights as a data subject

As far as your personal data is processed on the occasion of your visit to our website, you are entitled to the following rights as a “data subject” within the meaning of the DS-GVO:

6.1 Revocation of consent given

You may revoke any consent given to us at any time with effect for the future.

6.2 Access

You may request information from us as to whether personal data relating to you is being processed by us. There is no right to information if the provision of the requested information would violate the applicable professional duty of confidentiality or if the information must be kept secret for other reasons, in particular because of an overriding legitimate interest of a third party. Notwithstanding the above, there may be an obligation to provide the information if your interests outweigh the interest in secrecy, in particular taking into account imminent damage. The right to access is also excluded if the data is only stored because it may not be deleted due to legal or statutory retention periods or exclusively serves the purposes of data security or data protection control, provided that the provision of information would require a disproportionately high effort and the processing for other purposes is excluded by appropriate technical and organisational measures. Provided that the right to access is not excluded in your case and your personal data is processed by us, you can request information from us on the information specified in Art. 15 DS-GVO.

6.3 Rectification and completion

If you discover that we have inaccurate personal data relating to you, you may request that we correct this inaccurate data without delay. If your personal data is incomplete, you may request that it be completed.

6.4 Erasure

You have a right to erasure (“right to be forgotten”), unless the processing is necessary for the exercise of the right to freedom of expression, the right to information or for compliance with a legal obligation or for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest and one of the following reasons applies:

  • The personal data are no longer necessary for the purposes for which they were processed.
  • The justification for the processing was solely your consent, which you have withdrawn.
  • You have objected to the processing of your personal data which we have made public.
  • You have objected to the processing of personal data that we have not made public and there are no overriding legitimate grounds for the processing.
  • Your personal data has been processed unlawfully.
  • The erasure of the personal data is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation to which we are subject.

There is no entitlement to erasure if, in the case of lawful non-automated data processing, erasure is not possible or only possible with disproportionate effort due to the special nature of the storage and your interest in erasure is low. In this case, the restriction of processing takes the place of deletion.

6.5 Restriction of processing

You may request us to restrict processing if one of the following reasons applies:

  • You dispute the accuracy of the personal data. In this case, the restriction may be requested for the period of time that enables us to verify the accuracy of the data.
  • The processing is unlawful and you request the restriction of the use of your personal data instead of erasure.
  • Your personal data is no longer required by us for the purposes of processing but you need it for the assertion, exercise or defence of legal claims.
  • You have lodged an objection pursuant to art. 21 para. 1 DS-GVO. The restriction of processing can be requested as long as it is not yet clear whether our legitimate reasons outweigh your reasons.

Restriction of processing means that the personal data will only be processed with your consent or for the assertion, exercise or defense of legal claims or for the protection of the rights of another natural or legal person or for reasons of important public interest. Before we lift the restriction, we have a duty to inform you.

6.6 Data portability

You have a right to data portability if the processing is based on your consent (art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 a) or art. 9 para. 2 a) DS-GVO) or on a contract to which you are a party and the processing is carried out with the help of automated procedures. In this case, the right to data portability includes the following rights, provided that the rights and freedoms of other persons (e.g. personal data of third parties, our business and trade secrets or copyrights) are not affected thereby: You may request us to provide you with the personal data you have provided to us in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format. You have the right to transfer this data to another controller without hindrance on our part. Where technically feasible, you may request that we transfer your personal data directly to another controller. If we have a right of retention, this remains unaffected.

6.7 Right to object

If the processing is based on art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. e) DS-GVO (performance of a task in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority) or on art. 6 para. 1 sentence 1 lit. f) DS-GVO (legitimate interest of the controller or a third party), you have the right to object to the processing of personal data relating to you at any time on reasons relating to your particular situation. After exercising the right to object, we will no longer process your personal data unless we can demonstrate compelling legitimate reasons for the processing which override your interests, rights and freedoms, or the processing serves to assert, exercise or defend legal claims.

The assertion of all the above-mentioned rights is in principle free of charge for you. However, in the case of manifestly unfounded or – especially in the case of frequent repetition – excessive requests relating to the rights, we may, in accordance with art. 12 para. 5 of the DS-GVO, either demand an appropriate fee or refuse to act on the basis of the request.

Please contact our Data Protection Officer to exercise your rights.

6.8 Complaint

If you believe that the processing of personal data concerning you is unlawful, you may lodge a complaint with a data protection supervisory authority.

You can reach the state data protection commissioner responsible for us as follows:

Landesbeauftragter für Datenschutz undInformationsfreiheit Nordrhein-Westfalen
Kavalleriestr. 2-4
40213 Düsseldorf

7. Status and update of this privacy policy

This privacy policy dates from August 2022. We reserve the right to update the privacy policy in due course in order to improve data protection and/or to adapt it to changes in official practice or case law.

You can print out and save this privacy policy directly, for example by using the print or save function in your browser.

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