We are responsible for all Personal Information under our control.
We are responsible for Personal Information in our possession or custody. This includes Personal Information we receive directly, such as from individual clients or other individuals, and Personal Information we receive indirectly from clients or others. We have established policies and procedures with the objective of protecting personal information and have appointed a Privacy Officer to oversee privacy matters for our firm. Where we disclose or transfer Personal Information to related corporations or third party service providers as set out in this Privacy Policy, we use contractual or other safeguards to provide a comparable level of protection.
We will identify the purposes for which we collect Personal Information at or before the time of collection.
The purposes will be limited to those which are related to our business and which a reasonable person would consider appropriate in the circumstances, including, but not limited to the provision of legal services for our clients.
We will make a reasonable effort to identify the purpose of collection to the individual from whom the Personal Information is collected. We will state the purpose in such a manner that an individual can reasonably understand how the information will be used or disclosed.
Personal Information will only be collected, used, or disclosed with the knowledge and consent of the individual, except where inappropriate.
The way in which we seek consent, including whether it is express or implied, may vary depending upon the sensitivity of the information and the reasonable expectations of the individual.
We will seek consent for the use or disclosure of information at the time of collection. In certain circumstances, consent may be sought after the information has been collected but before use (such as where we want to use information that has already been collected for a purpose not previously identified).
We will not, as a condition of the supply of services, require an individual to consent to the collection, use, or disclosure of Personal Information beyond that required to fulfill legitimate purposes.In certain circumstances, as permitted or required by law, we may collect, use or disclose Personal Information without the knowledge or consent of the individual. These circumstances include, Personal Information which is subject to solicitor-client privilege or is publicly available as defined by regulation, where collection or use is clearly in the interests of the individual and consent cannot be obtained in a timely way, to investigate a breach of an agreement or a contravention of a law, to act in response to an emergency that threatens the life, health or security of an individual, for debt collection, or to comply with a subpoena, warrant or court order.
Generally, if we are provided with Personal Information, we will assume that the provider consents to our collection, use and disclosure of such information as described in this Privacy Policy, if applicable, or otherwise at the time of collection.
We will limit the amount and type of Personal Information collected to that which is necessary for our identified purposes and we will only collect Personal Information by fair and lawful means.
Our collection of Personal Information shall be limited to that which is necessary for the purposes identified by us, including, but not limited to, the provision of legal services to our clients. We collect Personal Information by fair and lawful means.
Personal Information will not be used or disclosed for purposes other than those for which it was collected, except with the consent of the individual or as required by law. Personal Information will be retained only as long as necessary to fulfill those purposes.
We shall not use or disclose Personal Information for purposes other than those for which it was collected, except with the consent of the individual or as required by law.
We shall retain Personal Information only as long as necessary for the fulfillment of the purposes for which it was collected.
In addition to our service providers, only our employees with a business need to know, or whose duties reasonably so require, are granted access to an individual’s Personal Information.
Where Personal Information is no longer required to fulfill the purpose for which it was collected, it will be destroyed, erased, or made anonymous, provided there are no legal requirements for its continued retention.
In all these cases, we use contractual or other safeguards to ensure protection of Personal Information.
We will use our best efforts to ensure that Personal Information is as accurate, complete, and up-to-date as is necessary for the purposes for which it is to be used.
We will use our best efforts to ensure that Personal Information that is used on an ongoing basis and information that is used to make a decision about an individual, is accurate, complete, and up-to-date.
We will protect Personal Information with safeguards appropriate to the sensitivity of the information.
We have safeguards to protect Personal Information against loss or theft, as well as unauthorized access, disclosure, copying, use or modification, regardless of the format in which the information is held. We will make our employees aware of the importance of maintaining the confidentiality of Personal Information, and we will exercise care in the disposal or destruction of Personal Information to prevent unauthorized parties from gaining access to the information.
Although we have enacted various security measures, we cannot guarantee the absolute security of our website or the security of information is sent to us or from us over the internet, since no internet transmission is ever 100% secure or error-free. Use of the internet and electronic mail is at the risk of the user.
We will make information about our policies and procedures respecting Personal Information readily available to individuals.
The information we will make available will include how to gain access to Personal Information, the type of Personal Information held by us, including a general account of its use, general information concerning our policies respecting Personal Information.
Upon written request, we will inform an individual of the existence, use and disclosure of his or her Personal Information and we will give the individual access to that Personal Information. An individual can challenge the accuracy and completeness of his or her Personal Information and have it amended as appropriate.
We will respond to an individual’s written request within a reasonable time and at a reasonable or no cost. We will assist any individual who informs us that they need assistance in preparing a request. We may require an individual to provide sufficient information to permit us to provide an account of the existence, use and disclosure of Personal Information.
If an individual successfully demonstrates the inaccuracy or incompleteness of Personal Information, we will amend the information as required. If a challenge is not resolved to the satisfaction of the individual, we will record the substance of the unresolved challenge. Where appropriate the amended information or the existence of the unresolved challenge, as the case may be, will be transmitted to third parties having access to the information in question.
We may refuse a request or not be able to provide access to all the Personal Information we hold about an individual, as permitted or required by law. Where permitted, the reasons for denying access will be provided to the individual upon request. Exceptions may include: information that contains references to other individuals or contains confidential commercial information, where such information cannot be severed from the record; information collected in the course of investigating a breach of an agreement or in the course of a formal dispute resolution process; and information that is subject to solicitor-client privilege.
Any individual can address a challenge concerning our compliance with any of the Privacy Principles.
We will investigate all written complaints. If we find a complaint to be justified, we will take all appropriate measures, including, if necessary, amending our policies and practices. A customer or employee shall be informed of the outcome of the investigation regarding his or her complaint.
An individual is encouraged to use our internal information and resolution process to resolve a complaint. However, an individual may also seek advice from the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada at 1.800.282.1376 or info@privcom.gc.ca and, if appropriate, file a written complaint with that office.
In Quebec, an individual may also seek advice from the Ministére des relations avec les citoyens et de l’immigration: Director of Communications at 514-873-4546 or at this email address.
