Stern Cohen LLP is committed to protecting our clients’ privacy.
We comply with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act, or PIPEDA (the Act) to protect client information. The purpose of the Act is to protect personal information in the hands of private sector organizations and to provide guidelines for the collection, use and disclosure of that information in the course of conducting business.
The following information summarizes our privacy policy regarding information protected under the Act. We will continue to maintain control over any private information provided to us and only disclose it to authorized parties, or as required by law.
In compliance with the Act, we provide clients with a summary of our policies for protecting information; this includes the designation of a privacy officer, a person responsible for the firm’s compliance with the legislation.
If you have any questions regarding the Act, or Stern Cohen’s compliance with it, you may contact our privacy officer by e-mail at [email protected], or by mail to the privacy officer’s attention at our offices.
Changes or additions to the role of privacy officer will be made known to you upon request.
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Why we collect personal information from our clients
Over the course of conducting day-to-day business, and with clients’ full knowledge, we collect personal information. This data is collected and used in the process of providing our clients with professional services (Chartered Professional Accountants, Business Advisors, Tax, Bookkeeping), or simply for establishing and maintaining communications of a general or specific nature.
Clients’ consent
Clients’ knowledge of, and consent to, personal information gathering is essential to complying with the Act. We accept individual consent in writing, verbally or by electronic means. We also accept the consent of clients’ authorized agents.
Consent includes the voluntary provision of clients’ personal information to us. This information will be gathered directly from the source whenever possible, or from third parties that clients designate. As noted above, the reason for gathering the information should be provided to you, or reasonably inferred by you, during the process.
Clients may withdraw consent at any time, in writing. However, in such situations we will then be limited in the services we can provide. We do not share personal information with any entity outside our own group, other than third party service suppliers that we engage from time to time to assist us. We require our third party suppliers to acknowledge and comply with our standards.
Stern Cohen will not release information to anyone else without clients’ consent, unless required to provide the information by law.
There are limits to the information we collect
We collect only the information necessary to provide the professional services being offered. This information should usually come directly from you, or from people specifically designated by you to provide information to us.
There are limits to the use, disclosure and retention of the information
The personal information we collect from you will only be used for the purposes for which it was collected, and or communications purposes with you and other parties authorized by you. As a client, you may permit the use of the information for another purpose not specified earlier.
Accurate information is critical
As a professional practice, we strive to maintain the completeness and accuracy of all personal information. Therefore, we encourage clients to contact us to provide additions, deletions and updates, as appropriate and as the changes occur.
We protect clients’ information
Information collected from clients is stored in a security conscious manner in protected sites appropriate to the sensitivity of the information. Safeguards vary depending on the sensitivity, format, location and storage of the particular information collected from you. When no longer required, information is disposed of in a secure manner.
Accessing your personal information
You have a right to reasonable access of your personal information and an opportunity to correct/update it by submitting a written request to our Privacy Officer (see above). We will respond to your request within 30 days.
Stern Cohen LLP may not be able to complete your request where disclosure is unauthorized by law, or where it would result in the disclosure of the personal information of others.
