Legal & Compliance Framework — DivorceConnect India

Privacy Policy

Last Revised: January 15, 2026 | Effective Date: January 15, 2026

DivorceConnect India (“we,” “us,” or “our”) is committed to protecting your privacy and ensuring the highest standards of data security for our users. This Privacy Policy governs the collection, storage, encryption, processing, and permanent deletion of information collected through our legal technology marketplace.

1. Role-Based Data Collection

Our platform processes distinct categories of personal and operational records tailored to the system roles of our users:

Clients: We collect and index registration details (name, email, mobile number, username), verification status metadata, secure case-tracking history states, payment identifiers, and technical logs generated during user support sessions.
Lawyers: In addition to basic credentials, we collect verifiable professional records, including Bar Registration Numbers, State Bar Council memberships, years of active practice, billing schedules, and completed client case ratings.
Administrators: To enforce strict accountability, our database archives immutable audit logs detailing every verification action, updates made to user statuses, and reports evaluated by admin staff.

2. Sensitive Verification Document Handling

The verification of identities and legal claims requires the upload of sensitive records, including Aadhaar cards, PAN cards, Marriage Certificates, Income Proofs, Court Notices, and legal Affidavits. We handle these documents with extreme security precautions:

🔒 Critical Data Protection Protocol

All sensitive documents uploaded to the DivorceConnect India platform undergo automated end-to-end encryption at rest using AES-256 standard encryption keys. Only authorized admin panel verifiers with multi-factor authentication are permitted temporary read access. Numeric identification digits (e.g., full Aadhaar or PAN numbers) are never exposed, cached in plain text, or shared with third parties under any circumstances.

3. Data Retention & The 14-Day Purge Pipeline

We believe in user ownership of data. If a client or lawyer initiates an account deletion request, the platform triggers a secure, multi-stage decommissioning process:

⏱️ Strict 14-Day Cooling Period Rule Once a user confirms their deletion request via their email verification link, their account status changes to 'Deactivated'. For a strict period of fourteen (14) days, their profile is hidden from all searches, and active services are suspended. Upon the expiry of this 14-day cooling window, our database scheduler executes a permanent script that deletes all profile columns, notification tables, and uploaded case files from our storage engines. This process is final and completely irreversible.

4. Real-Time Communication & WebSocket Logs

To facilitate coordination, the platform operates a real-time communication portal powered by secure WebSockets. This supports messaging, document attachments, and photo exchanges. All messages and file links sent through the chat are transient, encrypted in transit, and strictly restricted to the assigned lawyer and verified client. No diagnostic logs or plain-text content are archived beyond the necessary lifespan of the active dispute resolution.

Terms of Service

Last Revised: January 15, 2026 | Effective Date: January 15, 2026

Welcome to DivorceConnect India. By registering an account, accessing our portal, or engaging lawyers through the marketplace, you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service.

1. User Eligibility & Verification Gates

To protect platform integrity, all registrations must pass specific validation requirements:

Clients: Granted immediate access to navigate the informational portal and browse directory profiles. Full case engagement is restricted until identity verification has been approved.
Lawyers: Prohibited from accepting client cases, appearing in search results, or initiating communication until their profile completion rate is 100% and their credentials have been officially verified by our administration team.
Admins: System actions and audit privileges are blocked until approved and authorized by the Superuser.

2. Case Lifecycle & The 9-Stage Tracking Workflow

When a client hires an active lawyer on our marketplace, the dispute follows a structural, 9-stage tracking lifecycle:

1. Case Created

2. Document Verification

3. Lawyer Assigned

4. Petition Drafted

5. Petition Filed

6. First Motion

7. Second Motion

8. Decree Issued

9. Completed

Clients bear the sole responsibility for submitting authentic documents and details at Stage 2. Lawyers retain exclusive administrative authority to update tracking phases as the dispute proceeds in the respective family court.

3. Platform Conduct & The 3-Strike Warning Rule

We maintain a zero-tolerance policy against platform manipulation, harassment, and malicious filings. Any user (client or lawyer) can report misconduct by uploading screenshots or chat log evidence:

🚫 Automated Account Ban Policy Every validated report processed by the administration panel can result in an official warning. Any account (lawyer or client) that receives three (3) official warnings will be automatically and permanently banned from the DivorceConnect India database. Banned users are instantly logged out, their active access tokens are invalidated, and their credentials are blacklisted.

Refund Policy

Last Revised: January 15, 2026 | Effective Date: January 15, 2026

This Refund Policy outlines the financial terms governing the consultation fees, retainer payments, and verification transactions conducted through our payment gateway integration.

1. Consultation Fee Escrow Management

All financial transactions between clients and lawyers are routed through our secure platform mediator layer. When a client initiates a hire request, the consultation fee is captured and held in our escrow account. The funds are not released to the lawyer until the case request has been officially accepted, verified, and the initial case stage has commenced.

2. Case Rejection & Cancelation Windows

To ensure client protection, consultation fees are fully refundable under the following circumstances:

If the lawyer rejects the incoming case request, the platform automatically triggers a 100% refund of the captured fee back to the client's original payment source.
If the lawyer fails to respond or take action within the designated 72-hour operational window, the system automatically marks the request as expired and processes a full refund.

3. Verification Failures & Fraudulent Submissions

We maintain strict compliance gates. If a client pays a consultation fee but is unable to pass the mandatory document verification review:

⚠️ Verification Rejection Protocol If the document verification fails due to accidental mismatch or formatting errors, the consultation fee will be refunded after deducting a nominal processing charge. However, if the verification is rejected because the user uploaded explicitly falsified documents or fraudulent identity materials, the fee is forfeited to cover administrative validation costs, and the account will be immediately flagged for suspension under our warning guidelines.