DISCLAIMER

The information provided by this website does not constitute legal advice. The choice of a lawyer is an important decision and should not be based solely upon advertisements. The use of this site does not create an attorney-client relationship. Please contact any of our attorneys individually if you wish to discuss the contents of this website in further detail. The verdict or settlement of your own case will depend upon its particular facts. Past results afford no guarantee of future results. Every case is different and must be judged on its own merits. The cases reported on the website are not meant to cause any unjustified expectations regarding the merits of your own claim. Pursuant to Rule 4-7.2(b), Dowd & Dowd, P.C. hereby designates its St. Louis, Missouri office as its principal office and designates Douglas P. Dowd as the attorney responsible for this website.

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND PROTECTED INFORMATION PRIVACY NOTICE

Dowd & Dowd, P.C.
Effective Date: 9/24/2026
Last Updated: 9/24/2026

1. Purpose of This Notice

Dowd & Dowd, P.C. (“Dowd & Dowd,” “the Firm,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) uses technology, including certain artificial intelligence and generative artificial intelligence tools, to assist our attorneys and staff in providing legal services, communicating with clients and prospective clients, reviewing and organizing information, conducting legal research, and operating our Firm.

This Notice explains how information about you may be collected, accessed, analyzed, transmitted, stored, or otherwise processed through artificial intelligence systems and related technology.

Our use of artificial intelligence does not replace the professional judgment of our attorneys. Attorneys and authorized Firm personnel remain responsible for legal advice, legal strategy, material decisions, and substantive work performed on behalf of clients.

2. What We Mean by Artificial Intelligence

For purposes of this Notice, “AI Systems” include Clio Manage and Clio Work generative artificial intelligence, machine-learning systems, automated document-analysis tools, legal research systems, transcription systems, summarization tools, and other technologies that analyze information or generate text, recommendations, summaries, classifications, or other output.

The Firm permits the use of Clio Manage and Clio Work AI Systems only when they have been approved for the intended Firm purpose. Our firm utilizes AI-enabled tools within established confidentiality, privacy, and information security protocols designed to protect client information. See Clio Manage and Clio Work system security details here https://trust.clio.com/.

3. How We May Use AI Systems

Subject to our internal policies and appropriate human supervision, we may use approved Clio Manage and Clio Work AI Systems to assist with activities such as:

reviewing documents;
summarizing records;
preparing chronologies;
organizing case information;
identifying relevant facts;
comparing documents or testimony;
identifying potential inconsistencies;
searching Firm records;
conducting legal research;
locating potentially relevant legal authorities;
reviewing court filings;
preparing preliminary drafts;
revising documents;
developing deposition or witness outlines;
organizing medical records;
analyzing damages information;
transcribing or summarizing recordings;
preparing internal reports;
assisting with client intake;
improving administrative efficiency; and
supporting attorneys and staff in providing legal services.

AI-generated information is subject to human review appropriate to the nature and importance of the task.

4. Information That May Be Processed

Depending upon your relationship with the Firm and the services being provided, an approved AI System may process information including:

Contact and Identification Information

This may include:

your name;
telephone number;
email address;
mailing address;
date of birth; and
other identifying or contact information.

Matter and Legal Information

This may include:

facts concerning your legal matter;
communications with the Firm;
intake information;
consultation notes;
claims and allegations;
pleadings;
discovery;
deposition testimony;
correspondence;
contracts;
court filings;
evidence;
photographs;
recordings;
expert materials; and
other information relevant to actual or potential legal representation.

Health and Medical Information

When relevant to legal services, this may include:

medical records;
diagnoses;
symptoms;
treatment history;
medications;
medical bills;
health-care-provider information;
disability information;
injury information;
mental or physical health information; and
other health-related information.

Financial Information

When relevant, this may include:

income or wage information;
employment records;
tax-related information;
damages information;
insurance information;
payment information; and
other financial information.

Sensitive or Legally Protected Information

Depending upon the matter, information processed may include information that is considered sensitive, confidential, privileged, or otherwise protected under applicable law.

For purposes of this Notice, these categories are collectively referred to as “Protected Information.”

5. Sources of Information

Information processed through approved Clio Manage and Clio Work AI Systems may come from:

you;
another client;
a prospective client;
witnesses;
health-care providers;
experts;
opposing parties;
opposing counsel;
insurers;
employers;
courts;
governmental agencies;
public records;
discovery;
Firm records;
case-management systems;
document-management systems;
legal research databases;
publicly available sources; and
other persons or organizations involved in a matter.

6. Human Review and Automated Decision-Making

The Firm does not authorize an AI System to independently act as your attorney or substitute for an attorney's professional judgment.

AI-generated information may assist our attorneys and staff, but material decisions concerning legal advice, case strategy, settlement recommendations, litigation positions, case valuation, acceptance or termination of representation, and other substantive legal decisions are made or supervised by Firm personnel.

We do not rely solely on Generative AI to make final decisions that determine your substantive legal rights.

7. Third-Party AI and Technology Service Providers

Like other professional service organizations, the Firm uses technology vendors and service providers to operate its information systems and provide legal services.

When we use an approved AI System, Protected Information may be transmitted to or processed by third-party service providers acting on our behalf. Depending on the service being used, these may include:

legal technology providers;
AI model providers;
cloud-hosting providers;
data-processing providers;
document-management providers;
case-management providers;
legal research providers;
transcription providers;
database and search providers; and
other technology subprocessors necessary to provide the applicable service.

These providers may use additional subprocessors in providing their services.

The Firm seeks to use providers that maintain appropriate contractual, technical, and organizational safeguards for the information they process.

Where required, we contractually restrict service providers' use of Protected Information to the purposes for which the provider has been engaged.

A current description of material AI service providers used by the Firm is made available at https://trust.clio.com/.

8. Generative AI Model Training

The Firm does not authorize Protected Information submitted for legal services to be used by third-party AI providers to train generalized or publicly available artificial intelligence models unless:

1. the Firm has specifically approved that use;
2. the use has been appropriately disclosed;
3. any consent required by law has been obtained; and
4. the use is otherwise consistent with the Firm's professional and legal obligations.

The Firm's approved AI systems are configured and selected with privacy, confidentiality, and data-use restrictions in mind. See Clio Manage and Clio Work system security details here https://trust.clio.com/.

9. Public Internet and External Search Features

Certain AI Systems may have functionality that can search publicly available internet sources.

Because information submitted through external search functionality may be processed differently from information maintained exclusively within Firm-controlled or vendor-controlled environments, the Firm restricts the use of external AI search features when Protected Information is involved.

Protected Information will not intentionally be submitted through an external AI web-search function unless the Firm has approved the functionality for that purpose and determined that its use is appropriate.

10. Confidentiality and Legal Privilege

The Firm maintains professional duties concerning the confidentiality of information relating to clients and, in certain circumstances, prospective clients.

Use of an approved AI System does not eliminate those obligations.

We implement policies and procedures intended to limit AI access to authorized personnel and information reasonably necessary for the applicable task.

Nothing in this Notice is intended to waive:

attorney-client privilege;
attorney work-product protection;
confidentiality obligations;
protections established by court order;
contractual confidentiality rights; or
any other applicable legal protection.

The Firm does not intend its use of approved technology service providers acting on its behalf to constitute a waiver of applicable privilege or protection.

11. Data Minimization

We endeavor to limit the Protected Information provided to an AI System to information reasonably appropriate for the task being performed.

Where feasible and appropriate, identifying information may be removed, limited, redacted, pseudonymized, or otherwise minimized before processing.

12. Retention

Information processed through Clio Manage and Clio Work AI Systems may be retained:

in the Firm's case-management or document-management systems;
as part of the applicable client or matter file;
as part of an AI conversation or workspace;
by authorized technology providers for the period permitted by their contracts with the Firm; or
as otherwise necessary to provide legal services or comply with legal, ethical, security, record-retention, or contractual obligations.

Retention periods vary based upon the nature of the information, the system involved, the purpose for which the information was processed, and applicable legal requirements.

Where the Firm's AI providers operate under contractual zero-data-retention or similar restrictions, information transmitted for model processing may be processed temporarily without being retained by the model provider after completion of the request.

13. Security

The Firm maintains administrative, technical, and organizational safeguards designed to protect information from unauthorized access, acquisition, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. See Clio Manage and Clio Work system security details here https://trust.clio.com/.

No information system can guarantee absolute security, however, and no electronic transmission or storage technology is completely risk-free.

14. Sale and Advertising Use of Protected Information

The Firm does not sell Protected Information provided in connection with legal services.

The Firm does not authorize Protected Information concerning the substance of a client's or prospective client's legal matter to be used by AI service providers for their own targeted advertising.

15. Your Choices

Depending upon applicable law and the circumstances of the processing, you may have the right to:

request information concerning how your information is processed;
request access to certain information;
request correction of certain information;
request deletion of certain information;
withdraw a previously provided consent for future processing;
object to or restrict particular processing; or
request additional information concerning third parties to whom information has been disclosed.

These rights may be subject to exceptions or limitations, including obligations relating to legal representation, preservation of evidence, legal holds, litigation, professional responsibility, record retention, or applicable law.

To make a request, contact:

Dowd & Dowd, P.C.
Attn: Privacy Contact
Email: contact@dowdlaw.net

16. Withdrawal of Consent

Where our processing is based upon your consent, you may withdraw that consent prospectively by contacting us.

Withdrawal does not affect:

processing that occurred before your withdrawal;
processing authorized on another lawful basis;
processing required by law;
information the Firm is required to preserve;
processing necessary to establish, exercise, or defend legal claims; or
processing otherwise permitted notwithstanding withdrawal.

If withdrawal materially affects our ability to use a particular technology in providing services, we will evaluate whether a reasonable alternative method is available.

17. Information Concerning Other People

If you provide the Firm with Protected Information concerning another individual, you should do so only when you are lawfully permitted to provide that information.

Your submission of information concerning another individual does not necessarily constitute that person's consent to every use or disclosure of the information.

18. Prospective Clients

Providing information to the Firm does not by itself establish an attorney-client relationship.

The Firm nevertheless handles information received from prospective clients in accordance with applicable professional obligations.

Please avoid submitting information that is unrelated to the legal matter for which you are seeking assistance.

Please consult us before uploading our communications, advice, drafts, or similar information into any public, consumer, or institution-provided AI platform. Depending on the platform’s terms and the circumstances, disclosure to a third party could compromise confidentiality or privilege and make the material available in a dispute. Please also consult us before using an AI transcription, note-taking, or summarization tool in a meeting with us or in connection with this matter.

19. Children and Minors

Legal matters may sometimes involve minors.

When the Firm processes information concerning a minor, it will do so in connection with the applicable legal matter and subject to applicable law and professional obligations.

Where parental, guardian, or other legally authorized consent is required, the Firm will obtain or confirm such authorization as appropriate.

20. Jurisdiction-Specific Rights

Privacy, health-data, biometric, genetic-information, and artificial-intelligence laws differ among jurisdictions.

Individuals in certain jurisdictions may have additional rights or may receive supplemental notices concerning particular categories of information.

Where a supplemental notice conflicts with this Notice, the supplemental notice will control with respect to the matters it addresses.

21. Changes to This Notice

We may modify this Notice as technology, Firm practices, or applicable law change.

If a change materially alters how Protected Information previously collected from you will be used or disclosed, we will provide any additional notice or obtain any additional consent required by applicable law before applying the change.

The date at the beginning of this Notice identifies when it was last updated.

22. Questions

Questions concerning this Notice or the Firm's use of Clio Manage and Clio Work artificial intelligence may be directed to:

Dowd & Dowd, P.C.
Attn: Privacy Contact
Email: contact@dowdlaw.net