Privacy Commitment Notice
Stewart McKelvey (the “Firm”) is committed to protecting the privacy of our clients, our people and our affiliates. The Firm collects and uses personal information only as permitted by law, including with the consent of individuals as appropriate. The amount and type of personal information collected will be limited to that which is necessary to fulfill the purpose(s) for which it was collected. The Firm follows the important principles for the protection of personal information in respect of commercial activity, as set out in the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (“PIPEDA”).
As legal professionals we are governed, in part, by the Rules of Professional Conduct that govern each of our professionals as members of our provincial Law Societies. As legal professionals we have an obligation to keep confidential all information received within the context of a lawyer client relationship.
This Privacy Commitment Notice outlines how the Firm collects, uses and discloses personal information in a responsible manner in accordance with applicable law. It also outlines how you can contact us if you have questions about the existence, use and disclosure of your personal information that the Firm may have.
If you do not consent to the collection, use, disclosure of your personal information in accordance with this Privacy Commitment Notice, please do not provide any personal information to Stewart McKelvey. Please note, Stewart McKelvey may not be able to offer you the full range of our services if you choose not to provide the firm with certain required personal information.
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Personal information is any information about an identifiable individual or information that allows an individual to be identified, but does not include certain business contact information used for employment, business or professional purposes.
The Firm collects personal information primarily about our clients to provide the legal services required. While such information is usually collected directly from our clients with consent, it may also be collected from other sources such as insurance companies, real estate agents, governmental agencies, accountants or other consultants retained to assist with a client’s legal matters. To help us make credit decisions about clients, prevent fraud, check the identity of new clients and prevent money-laundering, we may on occasion, request information about clients from the files of consumer reporting agencies.
Personal information about our clients is generally used to:
- confirm their identity;
- assess for conflicts of interest;
- provide services to them in accordance with their instructions and to communicate with them;
- render and collect accounts;
- provide them with information about our Firm, legal developments and special events; and
- conduct Firm business, and;
- comply with legal, professional, regulatory, or risk management obligations, including client due diligence, “know your client” obligations, anti-bribery, anti-money laundering, and sanctions screening.
Personal information about members of the general public may also be collected and used to gather and review information relevant to legal issues, legal developments and special events.
The Firm shall only collect and use personal information as permitted by law, including with the consent of individuals as appropriate.
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The Firm shall generally only disclose personal information to a third party:
- in accordance with client instructions and to provide services on our clients’ behalf;
- as required by our professional governing bodies and liability insurers;
- for the purpose of collecting fees owed to the Firm;
- in the case of employee information, for purposes related to the employment relationship;
- if the Firm engages a third party to provide administrative or other services for our benefit, in which case the Firm shall use contractual or other means to protect the personal information that is being provided to the third party; and
- where required by law (i.e. with consent or pursuant to a Court Order), including with the consent of individuals as appropriate.
Service providers are not permitted to disclose your information to others.
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Your personal information is treated as private and confidential by the Firm. We take precautions to keep the information that we collect secure, including organizational, physical and technical safeguards. The nature of the security measures we employ will vary depending on the amount, distribution, format, method of storage and, above all else, the sensitivity of the information that has been collected. Any personal information that we collect shall be retained as long as is necessary to fulfill the purpose for which the information was collected, and as required to satisfy any potential legal obligations that the Firm may have in respect of the information. Your personal information may be stored and processed outside Canada where we engage third-party service providers.
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In order to comply with the Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society identity verification requirements and to align with the guidance from the Federation of Law Societies of Canada, the Firm has implemented a virtual identity verification tool powered by Yoti.
If required, as part of the virtual identity verification process through Yoti, you will be asked to use a smartphone to upload a photograph of your identity document (i.e. passport, driving license or provincial identity card) and to take a scan of your face. Yoti will analyze and authenticate the identity verification submission and generate a report. Yoti deletes your data from their systems once it is no longer required for compliance purposes.
The Firm will verify the results and securely retain the report and findings to complete the identity verification process. The Firm will also follow the collection, use, disclosure, storing and securing requirements as outlined in this Privacy Commitment Notice.
Yoti and the Firm will not use your data for any other purpose unless consent is obtained or they are required to by law. For more information on Yoti, please review Yoti’s Privacy Policy.
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The Firm regularly reviews its policies and procedures, and this Privacy Commitment Notice may be changed from time to time. The Privacy Commitment Notice posted via the Stewart McKelvey website shall be deemed to be the Privacy Commitment Notice in effect. The collection, use and disclosure of personal information will be governed by the most recent version in effect.
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Stewart McKelvey uses cookies to improve user experience, and analyze website traffic.
A “cookie” is a string of information which assigns you a unique identifier that we store on your computer. Your browser then provides that unique identifier to use each time you submit a query to stewartmckelvey.com. We use cookies on our website to record your user preferences, remember your search queries and track the pages you visit. Cookies help us and our website development partners to understand how our website is being used. We access this data through standard website analytics programs. This allows us to improve your user experience by ensuring the information on our website continues to be relevant and easy to navigate, and that your language preferences and search terms are remembered for ease of use during your next visit. We may share your site data with our analytic partners, however this data is anonymous and does not identify you personally.
Most browsers are set to accept cookies by default. However, you can remove or reject cookies in your browser’s settings. Please note that such action could affect the availability and functionality of your user experience on our website.
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In line with the principles of applicable privacy legislation, you are permitted to have reasonable access to your personal information that the Firm may have. Certain exceptions to access apply, such as for information that contains references to personal information of other individuals, and information that is subject to privilege.
We may require you to provide proof of identification in order to process your request for access to personal information.
We will also take reasonable steps to update or correct your personal information when necessary, or when you request it.
If you are seeking access to information regarding an active or recently closed client matter, please contact your Stewart McKelvey Lawyer directly for review and assistance.
If you are requesting access to or correction of your personal information, that is separate from the above, please complete this form and email it to risk@stewartmckelvey.com. The Firm’s Privacy Management team will review the request and process accordingly. Should additional information be required we will contact you for further information.
For general inquiries, if you have any questions about Stewart McKelvey’s Privacy Commitment, or should you wish to file a complaint please email risk@stewartmckelvey.com.
Privacy Officer:
Sarah Dever Letson, Partner
