PRIVACY POLICY

Protecting your privacy is important to Simard & Associates and its management corporations (collectively, “Simard & Associates”, “we” or “us”). This Policy explains how Simard & Associates collects, uses and discloses personal information concerning its clients and other individuals (“you”), other than Simard & Associates’ professionals, employees and agents.

Any personal information you provide to us will be treated with care and, subject to this Policy and applicable law, will not be used or disclosed in a way to which you have not consented. Our professionals, employees and agents are also subject to professional and ethical obligations relating to the confidentiality of information Simard & Associates receives in the context of providing legal services.

By submitting your personal information to Simard & Associates, you signify your consent to the collection, use and disclosure of your personal information in accordance with this Policy. If you do not consent to the collection, use and disclosure of your personal information in accordance with this Policy, please do not provide any personal information to Simard & Associates. Of course, certain services can only be offered to you if you provide personal information to Simard & Associates, and therefore Simard & Associates may not be able to offer you those services if you choose not to provide us with required personal information.

The term “personal information” refers to any information about an identifiable individual or any information that allows an individual to be identified. In general, personal information does not include business contact information, such as your name, title or position, business address, business telephone or fax number in your capacity as an employee of an organization. During your relationship with Simard & Associates, you may be asked to provide certain personal information concerning you and/or other individuals (such as witnesses, family members, adverse parties, employees, directors, officers, shareholders, investors, business partners, customers, etc.). Examples of such information include name, date of birth, home address, financial and credit information, billing and account information and other information relating to the provision of legal services by Simard & Associates.

Simard & Associates collects, uses and discloses personal information for the purposes identified at the time of collection, or as otherwise permitted or required by applicable law, including for the following purposes:

We strive to limit the amount of personal information we collect to that necessary and appropriate for the identified purposes. We will not use or disclose your personal information for purposes other than those for which it was collected, except with your consent or as permitted or required by applicable law.

To the extent possible, we will obtain consent to collect, use and disclose personal information about an individual directly from such individual. However, if you provide personal information concerning another individual (including adverse parties and other individuals involved in legal proceedings) to Simard & Associates necessary consent or authority to permit us to collect, use and disclose such personal information for the purposes set out in this Policy, or the collection, use and disclosure is permitted by applicable law.

Simard & Associates will not collect, use or disclose personal information without the consent of the individual(s) concerned unless we are permitted or required to do so by applicable law. We generally do not obtain the consent of the individual(s) concerned in the following circumstances:

In some jurisdictions, you may withdraw your consent to the use and disclosure of your personal information, or opt-out of certain uses and disclosures To do that, please contact our Privacy Officer (identified below).

Our professionals are subject to professional and ethical obligations and, as such, we will not disclose personal information that is subject to solicitor-client privilege unless our client has waived privilege or we are permitted or required to do so by law.

Subject always to our professional obligations and only for the purposes of providing legal services, Simard & Associates may disclose personal information to third parties (including adverse parties and their counsel, experts, witnesses, service providers), including in the context of legal proceedings and business transactions.

Simard & Associates may also disclose your personal information to your agent or Attorney under a Power of Attorney or Guardian.

Simard & Associates may disclose your personal information to a government or regulatory entity that has asserted its lawful authority to obtain the information or where Simard & Associates has reasonable grounds to believe the information could be useful in the investigation of unlawful activity, or to comply with a subpoena or warrant or an order made by a court, person or body with jurisdiction to compel the production of information, or to protect Simard & Associates’ rights and property. If Simard & Associates is involved in a merger or other reorganization, Simard & Associates may disclose your personal information to the resulting organization.

Simard & Associates may also disclose personal information as otherwise required or permitted by applicable law.

Simard & Associates does not sell or exchange for consideration any personal information it holds.

Simard & Associates may store and process your personal information at Simard & Associates’ offices in Canada, or elsewhere. To help protect the confidentiality of your personal information, Simard & Associates employs security safeguards that are customary in the legal profession and appropriate to the sensitivity of the information, including physical, organizational and technological measures. Examples of such measures include restricted access to offices, training of personnel, limiting access to information on a “need-to-know” basis, using passwords and well-defined internal policies and practices.

To the extent Simard & Associates employs third-party service providers to store, handle or process personal information on our behalf (e.g. data processing or office services), we will use contractual and other means to provide a comparable level of protection while the information is being stored, handled or processed by them.

You may request access to your personal information and/or information about our collection, use and disclosure of that information by contacting our Privacy Officer, in writing, at the addresses identified below.

Carolyne Chénier
Simard & Associates
1417, Laurier St. P.O. Box 449
Rockland, ON K4K 1K5
Tel: (613) 446-5060 x.24
carolyne.chenier@simards.ca
Subject to certain exceptions prescribed by law, you will be
given reasonable access to your personal information and will be entitled to challenge the accuracy and completeness of that information and, to the extent that you have proven such inaccuracy or incompleteness, have it amended as appropriate. Examples of such exceptions include information that is prohibitively costly to provide, information that contains references to other individuals, information that cannot be disclosed for legal, security or commercial proprietary reasons, and information that is subject to solicitor-client or litigation privilege.

You can help us maintain the accuracy of your information by notifying us of any changes to your personal information.

If you have any inquiry or complaint that relates to our policies or procedures relating to the handling of personal information, we invite you to communicate with our Privacy Officer.

Simard & Associates’ Web Site and Electronic Communications Privacy Policy is an integral part of this Policy and it governs how we collect, use and disclose the personal information you may provide while using our web site and in its electronic publications, newsletters, and announcements.

Privacy laws are rapidly evolving and, as a result, this Policy may be changed by Simard & Associates from time to time in Simard & Associates’ full discretion without any prior notice or liability to you or any other person. The collection, use and disclosure of your personal information by Simard & Associates will be governed by the version of this Policy in effect at that time.