CDEL operates under the following Terms of Service for individuals seeking legal assistance:

CDEL Terms and Conditions of Use

CDEL Terms and Conditions of Use are a set of guidelines and procedures regarding how this Web site may be used, as well as governing any legal services or potential legal services to be delivered by CDEL.  By accessing CDEL’s Web site, you are agreeing to be bound by these Web site Terms and Conditions of Use, all applicable laws and regulations, and agreeing that you are responsible for compliance with any applicable local laws. If you do not agree with any of these terms, you are prohibited from using or accessing this site. The materials contained in this web site are protected by applicable copyright and trademark law.

  1. CDEL does NOT guarantee legal representation in connection with any legal matter.

  2. CDEL will close your file immediately if you provide false information concerning your case, or if you behave in a hostile manner toward any CDEL volunteer or staff member.

  3. CDEL does not discriminate based on an individual’s identity and does not tolerate discriminatory or harassing behavior. CDEL reserves the right to terminate services if you violate this policy.

  4. You are PERSONALLY RESPONSIBLE for ALL filing deadlines, court appearances, court fees, and the like unless instructed otherwise by a CDEL staff or volunteer attorney.

CDEL reserves the right to terminate services, within the bounds of the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct.  Appeals of those determined to violate CDEL’s Terms and Conditions of Use may be made through CDEL’s complaint process. 

No Legal Advice Intended

This Web site includes information about legal issues and legal developments and is for general informational purposes only.  Information may not reflect the most current legal developments.  Laws differ from state to state and may not apply to your particular jurisdiction.  Information presented is not intended, and should not be taken, as legal advice on any particular set of facts or circumstances.

You should contact an attorney for advice on how the law applies to your situation. Statements are subject to change based upon further reflection or on future changes in the law and are not intended as legal advice. Information on this Web site is not a substitute for your own independent legal research.

CDEL Privacy Policy

Your privacy is important to us.  This Online Privacy Policy (the “Privacy Policy”) explains Center for Disability and Elder Law’s online information practices.

This Privacy Policy applies to our website, www.cdelaw.org (hereinafter “Site”).   Additionally, information may be governed by the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct, including information gathered during a prescreen, during the intake process or from sending information to info@cdelaw.org. The Privacy Policy is intended to disclose how Center for Disability and Elder Law (hereinafter “CDEL”) collects, uses, and discloses personal information about users on the Site.  CDEL is an Illinois Not-For-Profit organization that provides legal services to the elderly and disabled community in the Chicago metropolitan area.

  1. What information does CDEL collect?

    Information collected directly

    We may collect personal information about you directly from you.  If you share information with us when you fill out a ‘Contact Us’ form, for example, we collect the following information:

    ·        Name (first and last)

    ·        Email address, phone number, and contact details

    ·        Business/program interests

    ·        Other information related to your request or inquiry

    Making a Donation

    When you make an online donation on www.cdelaw.org, we collect personal data such as your name, billing address, and email address.  We collect information about your donation, including the project or program you are donating to and the amount of your donation.  We also collect (but do not retain) credit card numbers which are processed by a third-party payment vendor subject to the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards.  If you use PayPal, Venmo, Apple Pay, or a similar service, their use of your information is based on their terms and policies, not ours, so we encourage you to review those policies carefully.

    We may also ask you to share comments or a brief description about why you decided to donate to your selected cause(s) along with your name and general location.  If you elect to provide this optional information, we will share your comments with the program(s) you have donated to and may also publicly share this information to inspire other visitors to follow your generous example.

    Contests, Promotions, and Surveys

    Periodically, CDEL may invite you to participate in contests, take advantage of special promotions, and complete online surveys.  If you have created a CDEL account or profile, information we collect from these contests, promotions, and surveys may be associated with you personally.     

    Automatically collected Information

    When you access the Site, our servers automatically collect the following information:

    ·        IP address

    ·        Device identifier

    ·        Browser type

    ·        Operating system

    ·        Access times

    ·        Search terms you entered into search engines to access our site

    ·        Pages you viewed immediately before and after accessing our site

    We use this information primarily to improve our services and functionality.  We may use this information for marketing and analytics purposes, as well.

  2. How does CDEL use your personal information?

    We use the personal information you provide to respond to your request or inquiry and in the ordinary course of conducting our business.  Generally, we use the information, including personal information, that we collect online as follows:

    Legal purposes

    Comply with the law or legal proceedings such as subpoenas, court orders, and/or other lawful requests by regulators and/or law enforcement; to prevent and detect fraud, unauthorized activities and access, and other misuse; and any situations involving potential threats to the safety or legal rights of any person or third party, or violations of our Terms of Use or this Privacy Policy.

    Business purposes

    When necessary, for the administration of our general business, accounting, record keeping and legal functions.

    Support services

    Provide and operate our Site, communicate with you about your use of the Site, provide troubleshooting and technical support, respond to your inquiries, fulfill your work orders and requests, process your payments, communicate with you, and for other service and support purposes.

    Newsletters, mailing lists and direct marketing

    Direct marketing purposes, we may send you newsletters, client alerts, and information we think may interest you.

    Analytics

    Help us understand how our users’ access and use our Site and for research and analytical purposes, such as to evaluate and improve our services and business operations and develop critical services.

  3. Does CDEL share your personal information?

    We will not rent or sell your personal information, and we will not we share it with third parties, outside of CDEL, for marketing purposes.

    We may share personal information with the following categories of third parties:

    • Third-party service providers providing service to us or to whom we outsource certain services, such as data hosting or software or technology services

    • Our professional advisers, such as lawyers and accountants

    • Government and/or regulatory authorities

    •  Professional indemnity insurers

    •  Regulators and tax authorities  

    We may additionally be required to disclose personal information to other third parties under the following circumstances:

    • Business transfers such as we reorganize or sell all or a portion of our assets, undergo a merger, or are acquired by another entity, we may transfer your information to the successor entity.  If we go out of business or enter bankruptcy, your information would be an asset transferred or acquired by a third party.  You acknowledge that such transfers may occur and that the transferee may decline to honor the commitments we’ve made in this Privacy Policy

    • Where we have a belief that it is necessary to respond to claims asserted against us, comply with legal process (e.g. subpoenas or warrants), enforce or administer our agreements and terms, or for fraud prevention, risk assessment, investigation, and to protect the rights, property or safety of CDEL, our clients and customers, or others

     We may also share aggregate or de-identified information with third parties for research, marketing, analytics and other purposes, provided such information does not identify a particular individual.

  4. Does CDEL have a Cookie Policy?

    We may use cookies or other tracking technologies when you visit our website, or any other platform connected to www.cdelaw.org in order to help customize the Site and improve your experience.

    A “cookie” is a string of information which assigns you a unique identifier that we store on your computer.  Your browser then provides that unique identifier for us to use each time you submit a query to the Site.  We use cookies on the Site to, among other things, keep track of services you have used, record registration information, record your user preferences, keep you logged into the Site, and track the pages you visit. Cookies help us understand how the Site is being used and improve your user experience.

    We reserve the right to make changes to this Cookie Policy at any time and for any reason. When any changes are made, we will update the “Effective Date” at the top of this document, so check back in from time to time to ensure you still agree with these terms.

    Any changes or modifications will be effective immediately upon posting the updated policy on the Site, and you waive the right to receive specific notice of each such change or modification. Your continued use of the Site after the revised policy is posted will be interpreted as your awareness and acceptance of the new terms.

    Control of Cookies

    Most browsers are set to accept cookies by default.  However, you can remove or reject cookies in your browser’s settings. Please be aware that such action could affect the availability and functionality of the Site and our Application.

    Other tracking devices

    In addition to cookies, we may use other tracking technologies to help customize the Site and improve your experience.

  5. Does CDEL participate in direct marketing?

    We may send periodic promotional emails to you, and where required by law, we will obtain your consent to do so.  You may opt out of such communications at any time by following the opt-out instructions contained in the email or email us at info@cdelaw.org.  If you opt out of receiving emails about recommendations or other information, we think may interest you, we may still send you emails about your account or any services you have requested or received from us.

  6. Can users access information collected by the Site?

    If you would like to review the personal information we have collected about you via the Site, or request that we update or delete it, please contact us at info@cdelaw.org.

  7. What is CDEL’s stance on third-party websites and links?

    The Site may contain links to other third-party websites and applications, including advertisements and external services that are not affiliated with us.  Once you have used these links to leave the Site, any information you provide to these third parties is not covered by this Privacy Policy, and we cannot guarantee the safety or privacy of your information.

    Before visiting and providing information to any third-party websites, you should familiarize yourself with the privacy policies and practices (if any) of the third party responsible for that website, and should take steps necessary to, in your discretion, protect the privacy of your information. We are not responsible for the content, privacy and security practices, or policies of any third parties, including other sites, services, or applications that may be linked to or from the Site.

  8. Does CDEL have a commitment to security?

    CDEL employs security measures to prevent unauthorized access to information that we collect online.  While we have taken reasonable steps to secure the information you provide to us, please be aware that despite our efforts, no security measures are perfect or impenetrable, and no method of data transmission can be guaranteed against any interception or other type of misuse. Any information disclosed online is vulnerable to interception and misuse by unauthorized parties. Therefore, we cannot guarantee complete security.

  9. Does CDEL respond to Do-Not-Track features?

    Most web browsers and some mobile operating systems include a Do-Not-Track (“DNT”) feature or setting you can activate to signal your preference not to have data about your online browsing activities monitored and collected. No uniform technology standard for recognizing and implementing DNT signals has been finalized.  As such, we do not currently respond to DNT browser signals or any other mechanism that automatically communicates your choice not to be tracked online.  If a standard for online tracking is adopted that we must follow in the future, we will inform you about that practice in an updated version of this Privacy Policy.

  10. How to contact us:

    If you have any questions or concerns about the Privacy Policy for CDEL or its implementation, you may contact us at info@cdelaw.org.  If at any time you decide that we should no longer hold any of your personal information, or you wish to change the use to which any such information can be put, please let us know by emailing us at info@cdelaw.org.

  11. Revisions to our Privacy Policy

    We reserve the right to revise this Privacy Policy or any part of it from time to time.  Please review the Privacy Policy periodically for changes.  If we make material changes, we will make a reasonable effort to provide notice ahead of such changes, such as by email or through a notice on www.cdelaw.org.