Privacy Policy
Cattanach Hindson Sutton VanVeldhuizen ("CHSV") recognizes
the importance of privacy and the sensitivity of personal information.
The Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents
Act sets out the rules that govern the collection, use and
disclosure of personal information. CHSV is committed to protecting
any personal information it holds. This Privacy Policy outlines
how CHSV manages your personal information and safeguards your
privacy.
Your Privacy Rights
From January 1, 2004, all businesses
engaged in commercial activities must comply with the Personal
Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act, and the Canadian
Standards Association Model Code for the Protection of Personal
Information, which it incorporates. These obligations extend
to commercial organizations such as CHSV. The Act gives you rights
concerning the privacy of your personal information.
CHSV is responsible for the personal
information it collects and holds. To ensure this accountability,
it has developed this policy, and trained our employees about
our policies and practices.
Why Does CHSV Need Personal Information
CHSV carries on business as a provider
of legal services to the general public. In doing so, it has
to contact its clients as well as third parties with respect to
each client's particular legal matter. Who needs to be contacted
with respect to a particular matter is based on the circumstances
of that matter.
What personal information does CHSV collect?
Personal information is any information
that identifies you, or by which your identity could be deduced.
Generally, CHSV will collect personal information such as your
name, address, telephone number, date of birth, bank account and
other financial information, etc.
If CHSV did not collect and use your
personal information it could not provide you with proper legal
service.
How does CHSV collect your personal information?
CHSV collects information only by
lawful and fair means and not in an unreasonably intrusive way.
Generally, CHSV will collect your personal information upon CHSV
being retained by you in a particular matter.
Consent.
In almost case, you shall be providing
your personal information directly to CHSV at CHSV's request,
and therefore, your consent is implied through your conduct with
CHSV.
Use of Your Information
CHSV uses your personal information
to provide service to you and to assist you with whatever legal
matter for which you have retained CHSV.
CHSV does not disclose your personal
information to any third party to enable them to market their
products and services. For example, CHSV does not provide its
client mailing lists to any other party. Depending on the nature
of the legal matter, your personal information may be disclosed
to a third party to assist in the resolution of the legal matter.
Disclosure of your Personal Information
Under certain circumstances, CHSV
will disclose your personal information:
» when
it is necessary to complete a transaction for which you have retained
CHSV (such as the purchase or the sale of a property);
» when you have consented to the disclosure;
» where it is necessary to establish
or collect fees;
» if
CHSV engages a third party to provide administrative services
to it (like computer back-up services or archival file storage)
and the third party is bound by CHSV's privacy policy;
» if
the information is already publicly known.
Updating Your Information
Since CHSV uses your personal information
to provide services to you, it is important that the information
be accurate and up-to-date.
If during the course of your dealings
with CHSV, any of your information changes, please inform CHSV
so that it can make any necessary changes.
Is Your Personal Information Secure?
CHSV takes all reasonable precautions
to ensure that your personal information is kept safe from loss,
unauthorized access, modification or disclosure. Among the steps
taken to protect your information are:
» premises security;
» restricted file access to personal
information;
» deploying
technological safeguards like security software and firewalls
to prevent hacking or unauthorized computer access;
» internal password and security policies.
Access to Your Personal Information
You may ask for access to any personal
information CHSV holds about you.
Summary information is available on
request. More detailed requests which require archive or other
retrieval costs may be subject to a reasonable fee.
Correcting Errors
If CHSV holds information about you
and you can establish that it is not accurate, complete and up-to-date,
CHSV will take reasonable steps to correct it.
Can You be Denied Access to My Personal
Information?
Your rights to access your personal
information are not absolute.
CHSV may deny access when:
» denial of access is required or
authorized by law;
» when granting you access would have
an unreasonable impact on other people's privacy;
» where the request is frivolous or
vexatious.
If CHSV denies your request for access
to, or refuse a request to correct information, CHSV shall explain
why.
CHSV does not use your Social Insurance
Number as a way of identifying or organizing the information it
holds upon you.
Can You request anonymity.
Whenever it is legal and practicable,
CHSV may offer the opportunity to deal with general inquiries
without providing your name (for example, by accessing general
information on our website).
Communicating with CHSV
You should be aware that e-mail is
not a 100% secure medium, and you should be aware of this when
contacting CHSV by e-mail to send personal or confidential information.
Changes to this Privacy Policy
Since CHSV regularly reviews all of
its policies and procedures, CHSV may change its Privacy Policy
from time to time.
Requests for Access
If you have any questions, or wish
to access your personal information, please write to CHSV's Privacy
Officer at
Cattanach Hindson Sutton VanVeldhuizen
52 Main Street Markham North
Markham, Ontario
L3P 1X5
Tel: (905) 294-0666
Fax: (905) 294-5688
Attn.: Privacy Officer
If you are not satisfied with CHSV's response, the Privacy Commissioner
of Canada can be reached at
112 Kent Street,
Ottawa Ontario, K1A 1H3
1.800.282.1376
Employment Inquiries
If you apply to CHSV for a job, it
needs to consider your personal information, as part of its review
process. CHSV normally retains information from candidates after
a decision has been made, unless you ask it not to retain the
information. If CHSV offers you a job, which you accept, the
information will be retained in accordance with CHSV's privacy
procedures for employee records.
Web Site
CHSV's website may contain links to
other sites, which are not governed by this privacy policy.
On CHSV's website, like most other
commercial websites, CHSV may monitor traffic patterns, site usage
and related site information in order to optimise its web service.
CHSV may provide aggregated information to third parties, but
these statistics do not include any identifiable personal information.
Cattanach
Hindson Sutton VanVeldhuizen 