Home
 
 
Practices: Information & Privacy

 

Go Printemail this page
Information Privacy

Information & Privacy
Practice

 

Practice Profile           

We provide access to information and privacy law advice to a wide range of private and public sector clients.  We work in partnership with our clients to develop policies and systems to ensure compliance with access to information and privacy laws and to manage those aspects of our clients’ operations where problems can arise if appropriate practices and procedures are not implemented. An important adjunct to the legal advice we give our clients is education and training to ensure that everyone in a clients’ organization understands the clients’ privacy and information handling obligations and procedures. In addition, we offer customized training for client executives and senior management staff to help ensure that human resources management and marketing initiatives are on side with all pertinent privacy laws.

 

Our clients range from large institutional clients through to small businesses and include universities, health authorities, local governments, school boards, professional governing bodies, major Canadian retailers, credit bureaus, medical research companies, accounting firms, health sector organizations, charitable organizations and numerous small to medium-sized private sector operations.

 

Public Sector Access to Information and Privacy Advice

We regularly assist clients in dealing with public sector privacy rights and obligations including:

 

  • Advising on compliance with the access to information and privacy requirements in the B.C. Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FOIPPA);
  • Conducting privacy audits and contract reviews for public sector clients to ensure compliance with their privacy and security obligations in FOIPPA;
  • Providing advice on service contract language to ensure the security of sensitive personal information;
  • Responding to requests for information and providing procedural advice and support as well as advice on discretionary and mandatory severance of information under FOIPPA;
  • Representing public and private sector clients in proceedings before the Information and Privacy Commissioner;
  • Training and education for management teams and employee groups on the obligations of public bodies under FOIPPA;
  • Advising and representing private sector business clients on the privacy implications of doing business with public bodies and protecting confidential business information provided to public bodies from disclosure under FOIPPA; and
  • Advising and representing private sector clients seeking disclosure of information from public bodies.

Private Sector Privacy Advice

 

We regularly advise clients on the application of the B.C. Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA) and the federal private sector legislation, the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA).

 

Our services to clients include:

 

  • Advising on compliance with the privacy and access to information requirements under PIPA and PIPEDA;
  • Conducting information and privacy audits;
  • Drafting privacy policies and other required forms such as consent to release and access forms to ensure our clients are in compliance with the prevailing legislation;
  • Advising on and drafting privacy schedules and privacy clauses in agreements;
  • Advising clients of conflict of laws and overlapping jurisdiction issues with respect to inter-provincial and international data flows.
  • Leading staff training on privacy legislation;
  • Managing the resolution of complaints under PIPA and PIPEDA and advising on steps required to avoid future breaches of privacy; and
  • Representing clients in proceedings before the B.C. Information and Privacy Commissioner and the federal Privacy Commissioner.

Legal Updates for Clients

Private sector privacy regulation in B.C. is still relatively new and the guidelines related to the application of the new private sector privacy laws are still evolving, particularly with respect to the obligations of employers in handling employee information.  Part of the service we provide includes ensuring our clients are kept up to speed with guidelines and decisions with respect to how employee privacy and other issues are being dealt with by the B.C. Information and Privacy Commissioner and federal Privacy Commissioner.

 

We also monitor developments in the interpretation and application of key FOIPPA provisions that affect our public sector clients and private sector clients who do business with the public sector.

 

Members of our Practice team maintain membership in the Information and Privacy subsection of the Canadian Bar Association and regularly attend CLE events and information and privacy conferences to ensure our clients receive the latest information on developments in the law and practice governing information and privacy at both the federal and provincial levels. We also participate from time to time in consultation groups with government in drafting and amending information and privacy legislation.