Privacy Policy
Effective date: July 28, 2026
This policy explains what information the Law Offices of Luis M. Montes collects through this website, why it is collected, who it reaches, and what you can do about it. It covers this website only. It does not cover information you provide after we have signed an engagement agreement, which is governed by that agreement, by the California Rules of Professional Conduct, and by the attorney-client privilege.
Before you send anything
Please keep your first message general. Do not send confidential or sensitive details until we have agreed to work together in writing. Submitting the contact form or sending an email does not make me your attorney, and information you send before an engagement agreement is signed may not be protected by the attorney-client privilege. This is the same caution that appears on the contact form itself, and it is the most important sentence on this page.
What this site collects
Information you choose to send through the contact form. The form asks for your name, your email address, an optional phone number, the type of matter you are asking about, and a short description of what you are looking to do. It also asks you to confirm that you understand no attorney-client relationship is created by submitting it.
Information you send by email or phone. If you write to the address listed on the contact page or call the office, I receive whatever you choose to include in that message.
Limited technical information. The web host records standard server logs, which include IP addresses, browser type, pages requested, and timestamps. These are generated automatically by the hosting infrastructure and are used for security and troubleshooting.
This site runs no analytics service, no advertising pixels, and no cross-site tracking. There is no Google Analytics, no Meta pixel, and no session-recording tool on any page. Cookies are limited to those WordPress sets for basic site function.
Who else touches your information
The contact form is processed by Formspree. When you submit the form, your entries are transmitted to Formspree, a third-party form service based in the United States, which relays them to me by email and retains a copy in its system. Formspree is a service provider under California law, meaning it processes the information on my behalf and is not permitted to use it for its own purposes. If you would rather not use a third-party service, call the office or email directly instead.
The site is hosted on servers in the United States. Server logs sit with the hosting provider.
Fonts are loaded from Google. This site currently pulls typefaces from Google Fonts, which means your browser requests those files from Google and Google receives your IP address in the process. No other information is sent, and the request is not tied to your form submission.
Links to other sites. The footer links to social profiles on LinkedIn, Instagram, X, and YouTube. Those platforms have their own privacy practices, and this policy does not extend to them.
I do not sell your personal information, and I do not share it for cross-context behavioural advertising. I have never done either, and there is nothing on this site built to enable it.
How the information is used
Inquiries are read personally and used to respond to you, to run a conflicts check, and to decide whether I am the right lawyer for what you are dealing with. Contact details are used to follow up and arrange a conversation. Server logs are used to keep the site available and secure. That is the full list. Your information is not added to a marketing list, and this site does not send a newsletter.
Conflicts checks, and why declined inquiries are kept
When someone asks about a matter, I have a professional obligation to check whether representing them would conflict with an existing or former client. Doing that check requires keeping a record of who asked and about what, including for people I ultimately do not represent. If I deleted every declined inquiry, I would lose the ability to run future conflicts checks accurately, which would put both you and other clients at risk. So a limited record of inquiries is retained even when no engagement follows.
How long information is kept
Inquiries that do not lead to an engagement are retained for 24 months, after which the message content is deleted and only the minimum record needed for conflicts checking is kept. Copies held in the Formspree system are deleted on the same schedule. Server logs are kept for the period set by the hosting provider, typically a matter of weeks. Once you become a client, your file is retained under the firm’s file retention practices and under the California Rules of Professional Conduct rather than under this policy.
Your rights in California
If you are a California resident, the California Consumer Privacy Act as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act gives you the right to know what personal information has been collected about you and where it came from, the right to request deletion, the right to request correction of inaccurate information, the right to opt out of the sale or sharing of personal information, and the right not to be treated differently for exercising any of these rights.
Because this site sells nothing and shares nothing for advertising, the opt-out right has nothing to act on here. The others are live, and you can use them.
To make a request, email or call using the details below and say what you are asking for. I will need to confirm you are the person the information relates to before acting, which usually means matching the email address or phone number in the record. Requests are answered within 45 days. If a request would require destroying something I am professionally or legally obligated to keep, such as a conflicts record or a client file under a retention obligation, I will tell you which part I cannot delete and why.
Children
This site is aimed at business owners and is not directed to children. I do not knowingly collect information from anyone under 16.
Security, honestly stated
Information sent through this site travels over an encrypted connection, and the services involved apply their own protections. No method of transmission over the internet is completely secure, and I will not claim otherwise. This is the practical reason for the caution at the top of this page: the safest confidential conversation is the one that happens after an engagement is signed, through a channel we have agreed on.
Changes to this policy
If this policy changes, the revised version will be posted here with a new effective date. Material changes to how information is collected or shared will be described rather than quietly substituted.
Contact
Law Offices of Luis M. Montes 1501 N Broadway, Suite 340 Walnut Creek, CA 94596 (925) 433-2818
Questions about this policy, or requests under it, can be sent to the email address listed on the contact page.