Privacy Policy

WELCOME

Welcome to the Blue HF Legal L.L.P. (“BHF”) website at www.blue-hf.com including all subpages and subdomains (the “Website”). We are delighted that you have chosen to visit us and/or use the Website. This Privacy Policy (the “Policy”) covers personal data collected from you or about you when: (1) you are using the Website; (2) you are a “Client” of BHF using our “Legal Services”; or (3) you have otherwise interacted with us in various ways.

BHF takes your privacy and security of personal data very seriously. We have provided and will continue to provide a secure environment and this Policy describes the limited ways your information is used and the limited access to such information. We ask that you read it carefully.

KEY ELEMENTS OF THIS POLICY

Here are the key elements of this Policy so you can know the important parts right away to make an informed decision about your consent for our collection, use and disclosure of your personal data. By submitting any personal data to us via any means, you consent to such collection, use and disclosure. You can find the details in the rest of the Policy.

Données personnelles que nous recueillons auprès de vous, mais uniquement avec votre consentement

Ce que nous faisons des renseignements

Les tiers à qui nous les communiquons

Coordonnées

Répondre à vos demandes et communiquer avec vous

Sociétés qui fournissent l’infrastructure de notre Site Web

Renseignements sur les clients

Fournir les Services juridiques

Aucune, sauf si le droit applicable l’exige ou dans le cadre de la prestation des Services juridiques

Respond to your inquiry and communicate with you.

Personal data we collect from you, but only with your consent

What we do with the information

Contact Information

Client Information

Provide the Legal Services.

Third parties to whom we communicate it

Companies that provide our website infrastructure.

None, unless required to do so by applicable law or in the course of providing the Legal Services.

DEFINITIONS

Before we get started with the details, here are a few terms we think you should know as you read this Policy.

“Data Protection Laws” refers to the laws that are designed to protect your personal data and privacy in the place where you live. BHF is committed to adhering to all applicable Data Protection laws.

The Data Protection Laws include: (1) the “GDPR”, the European Data Protection Law which stands for “General Data Protection Regulation”, with the official name Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council; (2) ) the “UK GDPR” which applies to our activities in the United Kingdom; please note that when this Policy refers only to the “GDPR”, this includes the UK GDPR as applicable; (3) “PIPEDA” (Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act), which is the Canadian Data Protection Law that applies to our activities in Canada; and (4) Quebec’s Act Respecting the Protection of Personal Information in the Private Sector (the “Quebec Privacy Act”) as amended by Law 25, that applies to our activities in Quebec. “Data Protection Laws” also includes those portions regarding technology of the various laws governing the legal profession in Quebec (and thus our offering of the Legal Services), such as the Professional Code and the Code of Professional Conduct of Lawyers; these laws are referred to collectively in this Policy as the “Legal Profession Laws”.

“Legal Services” includes any services that form part of the legal profession that are governed by the Legal Profession Laws, from identifying Clients and other parties, through representation in legal matters.

“Personal data” – this is information we collect from you or about you and which is defined in the GDPR as “any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person.” It can be as simple as your name or your email, or something more complicated like an online identifier (usually a string of letters and / or numbers) that gets attached to you. Under PIPEDA and the Quebec Privacy Act, the equivalent concept is “personal information”, which is roughly the same. Any mention of “personal data” in this Policy shall also mean personal information.

ABOUT US AND CONTACTING US

Blue HF Legal L.L.P. (“BHF”) is a registered limited liability partnership in the Province of Quebec, Canada, with an office at the address listed below. Where this Policy refers to BHF, it may refer to Blue HF Legal L.L.P. and / or its affiliates, and their respective shareholders, officers, directors, employees, agents, partners, principals, representatives, successors and assigns (collectively “Representatives”), depending on the context. Any reference to “we”, “our”, or “us” in this Policy shall also refer to BHF. In this Policy, a Website visitor or any other individual for whom we hold personal data may be referred to as “you” or “your”.

Under the GDPR, BHF is a “data controller”. That means we collect personal data directly from you and determine the purpose and means of “processing” that data. “Processing” is a broad term that means the collection, use, storage, transfer or any other action related to your personal data; it is used in this Policy in that way. Under PIPEDA, BHF is an “organization”, and under the Quebec Privacy Act, BHF is an “enterprise”. PIPEDA uses the phrase “collection, use and disclosure” and the Quebec Privacy Act uses “collects, holds, uses or communicates to third parties” as the rough equivalent to the “processing” of the GDPR. When we use “processing” in this Policy, you can substitute either of those phrases.

If you want to ask us anything about what’s in this Policy, or anything else privacy- or data- related, or exercise any of your available privacy rights, you can contact:

Blue HF Privacy and Data Protection Officer

privacy@blue-hf.com

or:

Blue HF Privacy and Data Protection Officer

465 McGill St, Suite 700

Montreal, Quebec

Canada

H2Y 2H1

YOUR RIGHTS

You have the following rights regarding your personal data held by BHF, and other privacy rights. Please note that not necessarily all of these rights may be available to you; this depends on the Data Protection Laws where you are located that apply to you. Please note that exercising certain of these rights may affect your ability to use some or all of the Website or related activities, such as marketing, or your ability to receive the Legal Services.

The right to withdraw at any time your consent for BHF to process your personal data;
The right to have your personal data erased from BHF’s records;
The right to access your personal data and any relevant information around its processing and use;
The right to have a copy of your personal data given to you in an easy-to-read format so that you can transfer it to any data controller or data processor, as those terms are defined in the GDPR;
The right to have your personal data corrected or updated if you believe it is inaccurate or out of date;
The right to opt out of marketing communications we send you, at any time;
The right to know whether BHF sells or shares your personal data (and if so, who gets it). Please refer to that information elsewhere in this Policy, though you can contact our Privacy and Data Protection Officer if you need additional information or clarifications;
The right to restrict the processing of your personal data if it is inaccurate or if our processing or use of it is against the law; and
The right to refuse any marketing or advertising targeted at you by BHF.

If you wish to exercise any of these rights, please contact our Privacy and Data Protection Officer at the contact information above, or refer to certain relevant sections further in this Policy.

Notwithstanding your rights under Data Protection Laws, we may refuse your request to delete your personal data or withdraw your consent to use your personal data if we are required to do so by the Legal Profession Laws

LIMITED PERSONAL DATA COLLECTED FROM YOU AND WHAT WE USE IT FOR

BHF limits the amount of personal data we collect to what is necessary and appropriate for the identified purposes. We will not use or disclose your personal data for purposes other than those for which it was collected, except with your consent or as permitted or required by applicable law, including the Legal Profession Laws.

In the table below, please find all the personal data we may collect from you directly, what we use it for, and the legal basis under the GDPR for us having and processing this personal data. Under PIPEDA and the Quebec Privacy Act, the legal basis is your informed consent, and by submitting this personal data to us you acknowledge having granted this consent to BHF.

Catégorie de données personnelles

Données personnelles traitées

Coordonnées

Votre nom et votre adresse de courriel, ainsi que le contenu de votre message soumis par l’intermédiaire de la fonction « Contactez-Nous » sur notre Site Web, s’il contient des données personnelles.

Ce que nous en faisons (la « finalité » du traitement)

Pour communiquer avec vous en réponse à votre demande.

Fondement juridique du traitement en vertu du RGPD

Votre consentement en nous donnant ces renseignements.

Renseignements sur les clients

Selon les Services juridiques offerts, ces renseignements peuvent comprendre des éléments vous concernant (le Client) ou d’autres personnes concernées par les Services juridiques, par exemple le nom, la date de naissance, l’adresse du domicile et le numéro de téléphone, la profession, les détails d’une pièce d’identité délivrée par le gouvernement (permis de conduire, passeport, etc.), la résidence fiscale et l’identification, les données financières et de crédit, les renseignements relatifs à la facturation et au compte et d’autres renseignements relatifs à la prestation des Services juridiques.

Pour la prestation des Services juridiques

En fonction de la nature des données personnelles et des Services juridiques, votre consentement, l’exécution d’un contrat entre vous et nous, ou le respect de nos obligations légales.

Personal data category

Personal data processed

Contact Information

Your name and email address; and any content of your message submitted via the ‘contact us’ function on our Website if it includes personal data.

What we do with it (the “purpose” of processing)

To communicate with you in reply to your inquiry.

Legal basis of processing under the GDPR

Your consent in giving us this information.

Client Information

Depending on the Legal Services, this may include information concerning you (the Client) and/or other individuals involved with the Legal Services such as: name, date of birth, home address and phone number, occupation, details of government-issued identification (driver’s licence, passport, etc.), tax residency and identification, financial and credit information, billing and account information, and other information relating to the provision of the Legal Services.

To provide the Legal Services.

Depending on the nature of the personal data and the Legal Services: your consent, performance of a contract between you and us, or complying with our legal obligations.

PERSONAL DATA COLLECTED ABOUT YOU FROM THIRD PARTIES AND WHAT WE USE IT FOR

BHF does not routinely collect personal data about you from third parties, except for the following limited situations:

Clients of BHF may have given us information about third parties involved in our provision of the Legal Services. These third parties may include witnesses, family members, adverse parties, employees, directors, officers, shareholders, investors, partners, customers, etc. The personal data collected about these third parties may vary; examples of the types of personal data can be found in the Client Information section in the table above; and
To the extent that analytics identifiers are generated from third parties, these may be considered personal data collected from third parties, and you can find details about that further below in this Policy.

SENSITIVE PERSONAL DATA

We do not collect any of what the GDPR considers sensitive personal data (such as health data or data about your racial or ethnic origin) from you when you use the Website.

Depending on the nature of the Legal Services being offered, Client Information may include sensitive personal data. This sensitive personal data will be treated with the higher level of security required by the GDPR.

WHO WE TRANSFER YOUR PERSONAL DATA TO

We only share some of your personal data with third parties who are identified in the table further below in this section along with what they do with it.

We will share personal data with law enforcement or other public authorities if: (1) we are required by applicable law in response to lawful requests, including to meet national security or law enforcement requirements; (2) if we believe it is necessary in order to investigate, prevent, or take action regarding illegal activities, fraud, or situations involving potential threats to the safety of any person, or any violation of the Website Terms of Use; (3) if we believe it is necessary to investigate, prevent, or take action regarding situations that involve abuse of the Website infrastructure or the Internet in general (such as voluminous spamming or denial of service attacks); or (4) if we are required to under any applicable law. All such transfer will be done in accordance with the Legal Profession Laws.

We may also share personal data: (1) to a parent company, subsidiaries, joint ventures, or other companies under common control with (in which case we will require such entities to honour this Policy); or (2) if BHF merges with another entity, is subject to a corporate reorganization, sells or transfers all or part of its business, assets or shares (in which case we will require such entity to assume our obligations under this Policy, or inform you that you are covered by a new privacy policy).

We may also routinely share personal data with third parties (including adverse parties and their counsel, experts, witnesses, service provider, etc.) when necessary, in the course of providing the Legal Services, but always within the limits of the Legal Profession Laws.

Some of these third-party recipients may be based outside your home jurisdiction. If you are in the European Economic Area or the U.K., please see the “Transfer of Your Personal Data Outside of the European Economic Area” further down in this Policy for more information including on how we safeguard your personal data when this occurs. If you are in Quebec, please see the “Transfer of Your Personal Data Outside of Quebec” section further down in this Policy for information on how we safeguard your personal data when this occurs.

We will never share your personal data with other third parties except under these circumstances. We do not sell or rent your personal data to any third party for direct marketing purposes or any other purpose.

Catégorie de données personnelles

Destinataires des données

Ce qu’ils en font

Identifiants d’analyse et renseignements connexes, y compris l’adresse IP.

Sociétés qui fournissent des données analytiques pour le Site Web, en particulier Wix.com et Google Analytics.

Fourniture des analyses sur les utilisateurs du Site Web et sur la façon dont celui-ci est utilisé, comme indiqué plus en détail à la rubrique Collecte limitée de renseignements ci-dessous.

Coordonnées

Sociétés qui fournissent l’infrastructure du Site Web, en particulier Wix.com et Network Solutions.

Le nom, l’adresse de courriel et le contenu du message sont stockés et redirigés vers une adresse de courriel désignée du cabinet BHF.

Personal data category

Data recipients

What they do with it

Contact Information

Companies that provide the infrastructure for the Website, specifically Wix.com and Network Solutions.

Name, e-mail and message content is stored and redirected towards a designated BHF firm e-mail address.

Analytics identifiers and related information including IP address

Companies that provide data analytics for the Website, specifically Wix.com and Google Analytics.

Provide us with analytics about Website users and how the Website is used, as further detailed in the Limited Gathering of Information section below.

LIMITED GATHERING OF INFORMATION FOR STATISTICAL, ANALYTICAL AND SECURITY PURPOSES

BHF automatically collects certain information using the “Third-Party Analytics Programs” from Wix.com and Google Analytics, to help us understand more about our site visitors and users and how they use the Website, but none of this information identifies you personally, except via an alphanumeric string. For example, each time you visit the Website, we automatically collect (as applicable) your IP address, browser and computer or device type, access times, the web page from which you came, the web page(s) or content you access, and other related information. We use information collected in this manner only to better understand your needs and the needs of Website visitors. BHF also makes use of information gathered for statistical purposes to keep track of the number of visits to the Website, the specific pages visited on the Website, and the number of Website visitors with a view to introducing improvements to the Website and our marketing activities.

Your IP address and other relevant information we collect using the Third-Party Analytics Program may be used in order to trace any fraudulent or criminal activity, or any activity in violation of the BHF Website Terms of Use.

TRACKING TECHNOLOGY (“COOKIES”) AND RELATED TECHNOLOGIES ON THE WEBSITE

BHF uses tracking technology (“cookies” and related technology such as tags, pixels and web beacons) on the Website. Cookies are small text files placed on your computer or device when you visit a website, in order to track the use of the site and to improve the user experience by storing certain data on your computer. By visiting or using the Website you agree to their use, but only if you explicitly consent to such use, according to the cookie banner presented to you when you visit the Website. By default, all non-necessary cookies are turned off when you first visit the Website; you can use our cookie management tool to accept or decline other categories of cookies.

Specifically, we use cookies and related technologies for the following functions:

to provide general internal and user analytics and to conduct research to improve the content of the Website using the Third-Party Analytics Programs as described above in this Policy; and
to assist in identifying possible fraudulent activities.

Your browser can be set to refuse cookies or delete them after they have been stored. You can refer to your browser’s help section for instructions, but here are instructions for the most commonly-used browsers and operating systems:

Please note that deleting these cookies may reduce your user experience on the Website. Furthermore, deleting cookies may prevent certain functions from working at all.

HOW WE PROTECT YOUR PERSONAL DATA

We have implemented very strict technical and organisational procedures for ensuring that, by default, only personal data which are necessary for each specific purpose of the processing are processed by us. These procedures prevent your personal data from being lost; or used or accessed in any unauthorised way. Examples of such procedures include restricted access to offices, training of personnel, using passwords and well-defined internal policies and information technology practices.

We also have procedures in place to deal with any suspected data security breach. We will notify you and any applicable supervisory authority of a suspected data security breach where the Data Protection Laws requires us to do so, and within the time frame required by the applicable Data Protection Law.

BHF uses only industry best practices (physical, electronic and procedural) in keeping any data collected (including personal data) secure. In addition, we use third-party vendors and hosting partners to provide the necessary hardware, software, networking, storage, and related technology required to operate the Website, and these third parties have been selected for their high standards of security, both electronic and physical. For example, BHF uses Wix.com, for hosting of the Website and related data, which has a robust security program that you can read about here.

All information, including personal data, when transferred via the Website is done with encryption using Secure Sockets Layer (“SSL”) or Transport Layer Security (“TLS”), robust security standards for Internet data transfer. You can use your browser to check BHF’s valid SSL security certificate on the Website.

All Client Information in digital form is stored on internal servers which are protected by the very strict procedures described above. BHF makes use of offsite backups for Client Information, but these backups are on encrypted physical media and not accessible by the internet; these backups are protected by the strictest physical procedures and standards.

INTERNAL PROCEDURES AND POLICIES

In addition to the measures to protect your personal data described in the previous section, we have drafted and implemented certain internal procedures and policies regarding personal data, including the following:

A framework for the keeping and destruction of the personal data that we collect, including where we may keep anonymized data;
Defining and describing the roles and responsibilities of the members of BHF personnel throughout the life cycle of the personal data;
A process for dealing with individual complaints and requests for personal data and exercising of the individual’s rights under Data Protection Laws; and
A management strategy for addressing potential data breach incidents involving personal data in the custody of BHF.

TRANSFER OF YOUR PERSONAL DATA OUTSIDE OF THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AREA (“EEA”) AND THE U.K.

For our European users and Clients, please note that our data processors and BHF are in countries outside of the EEA and the U.K. where your personal data will be transferred. However, these countries are limited to countries with particular circumstances that protect your data, specifically:

Canada. We will transfer personal data to our operations in Canada, but Canada has been determined to have an “adequate level of protection” for your personal data under European data protection law.

Under the GDPR, you have the right to request that your personal data is not transferred outside the EEA or the U.K. Please contact our Privacy and Data Protection Officer to make that request. Please note that if you make such a request, you will be unable to use the Legal Services or those portions of the Website where personal data is collected.

TRANSFER OF YOUR PERSONAL DATA OUTSIDE OF QUEBEC

For our Quebec Users and visitors, we endeavour to keep your personal data in Quebec. However, certain of our third-party service providers are in other provinces or countries where your personal data may be transferred. When this happens, we do the following to safeguard your personal data:

We will perform what the Quebec Privacy Act calls an “Assessment of the privacy-related factors” (what is generally called a “Privacy Impact Assessment,” or “PIA”) prior to the personal data leaving Quebec. If the PIA does not meet our standards and the standards required by the Quebec Privacy Act, we will not transfer your personal data to such a service provider; and
If the PIA allows us to transfer the personal data to such a service provider outside Quebec, we will sign what is generally called a “Data Processing Agreement,” or DPA, with the service provider, which protects the personal data transferred to them and limits their use of it to what we have contracted with them to do. This DPA will adhere to the requirements of the Quebec Privacy Act.

Furthermore, any time we are considering sending your personal data outside Quebec to a third party who is not a service provider, we will perform a PIA. If the PIA does not meet our standards and the standards required by the Quebec Privacy Act, we will not transfer your personal data to such third party.

SUPERVISORY AUTHORITIES AND COMPLAINTS

If you are in the EEA or the U.K., under the GDPR you have the right to make a complaint to the appropriate supervisory authority. If you are not satisfied with the response received or the actions taken by our Privacy and Data Protection Officer, or if you would like to make a complaint directly about BHF’s data practices, we invite you to contact the supervisory authority in your country. For example, if you are in the U.K., you should contact the Information Commissioner’s Office who is the supervisory authority. You can reach them in a variety of ways, including by phone (0303 123 1113 in the UK) and mail (Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF). If you are in France, you should contact the Commission Nationale de l'Informatique et des Libertés which is the supervisory authority there. Their contact information can be found here. The full listing of all Data Protection Authorities (the supervisory authorities) across the EEA can be found here.

If you are in Canada and you are not satisfied with the response received or the actions taken by our Privacy and Data Protection Officer, you can make a complaint to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada. Instructions on how to do so can be found on their website. In Québec you can make a complaint to the Commission d’accès à l’information, with the instructions for contacting them on their website.

DATA RETENTION

Your personal data will only be kept for as long as it is necessary for the purpose needed for that processing. For example, we will only retain your Contact Information for as long as necessary to fulfil the relevant purposes set out in this Policy.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, and especially as it relates to the provision of the Legal Services, we may retain your personal data for longer than required for its collected purpose if we are required to do so by the Legal Profession Laws or other applicable laws.

AUTOMATED DECISION-MAKING

BHF does not use any automated decision-making processes regarding your personal data in providing the Website or the Legal Services.

CHILDREN’S PRIVACY STATEMENT

The Website is not intended for children under the age of 16. We do not knowingly collect any personal data from a child under 16. If we become aware that we have inadvertently received personal data from a person under the age of 16 through the Website or other methods, we will delete such information from our records.

Exceptionally, we may possess personal data of persons under the age of 16 if it is required for our provision of the Legal Services. We will treat such personal data with the same strict security standards described above in this Policy.

CHANGES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY

The date at the top of this page indicates when this Policy was last updated. Because Data Protection Laws are constantly evolving, every now and then we will have to update this Policy. You can always find the most updated version at this URL. If we make significant changes to the Policy, we will always post a notice on the Website, and contact you if you are a Client.