Privacy policy

This Privacy Policy sets out how information about you ("Personal Information") is collected, used, disclosed and otherwise managed in connection with the www.enotarypublic.ca website (the "Website"), your notary and commissioning services, and other interactions you have with us. In this policy, enotarypublic.ca is referred to as "enotarypublic.ca", "we", "us" or "our".

Because Ontario has no general private-sector privacy statute, the federal Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) governs how we handle your Personal Information. We collect, use and disclose it as set out in this policy. Browsing the Website or receiving a price estimate does not, by itself, create a binding agreement or charge you anything.

enotarypublic.ca is accountable for the Personal Information in its control. We have designated a Privacy Officer who oversees compliance with this policy and applicable privacy law. You can reach the Privacy Officer using the contact information at the end of this policy.

Your right to complain. If you have a privacy concern we have not resolved, you may contact the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (priv.gc.ca; 1-800-282-1376).

We collect, use and disclose your Personal Information with your consent, except where the law permits or requires otherwise.

Because some of what we handle is sensitive — government-issued identification, a verification photo, your date of birth, and the contents of your documents — we rely on your express consent for that information and use it only for the purposes described here: verifying your identity, performing the service you requested, and meeting our legal and record-keeping obligations. You may withdraw consent subject to legal or contractual restrictions and reasonable notice; withdrawing consent may prevent us from providing the service.

Service request & quote. When you request a notary or commissioning service, or a quote, we collect information about you including, but not limited to, your name, contact information (such as mailing address and email address), date of birth, and details of the documents to be attested or notarized. We use this information to assess your request, review your documents and quote the price of the service.

Completing a service. If you receive a quote and choose to proceed, we collect additional information such as payment details.

We use your information for: quoting, administering, servicing and managing your notary and commissioning services; determining your eligibility and suitability for other products and services you request; verifying your identity and other information you have provided; meeting legal and regulatory requirements; detecting and preventing fraud and other unauthorized or illegal activities; and as otherwise permitted or required by applicable law.

When you complete a request or quote, we collect your email address and a password you choose in order to create and administer an online account through which you can access information about your request and documents. We strongly recommend you do not disclose your password to anyone. We will never ask you for your password in any unsolicited communication.

We send commercial electronic messages only with your consent, as required by Canada's Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL). Every such message identifies us and includes a working unsubscribe link; you can opt out at any time without affecting the services you have requested. You may continue to receive transactional or informational messages related to a service you have requested.

We may monitor and record telephone conversations with you for training and quality-assurance purposes. You will be given notice at the beginning of any call that is being recorded.

When you contact us with a comment, question or complaint, you may be asked for identifying information along with anything we need to respond promptly. We may retain this information to assist you in the future and to improve our services.

We collect Personal Information directly from you (such as the information you provide with your service request) as well as from third parties where permitted by law.

We will not disclose, trade, rent, sell or otherwise transfer your Personal Information without your consent, except as set out below.

Service providers. Your Personal Information may be transferred to third parties who provide services on our behalf — such as billing, identity and account verification, hosting the Website, and analyzing data. Service providers are bound by contract to protect it and to use it only for the services they provide to us, and receive only the information they need. Where a service provider processes information outside Canada, that information may be subject to the laws of the other jurisdiction, including lawful access by its authorities. We limit such transfers for identity and document information and prefer Canadian processing for it.

Legal and compliance. We may disclose your Personal Information in response to a search warrant or other legally valid order, to investigate a breach of an agreement or law, to detect or prevent fraud, or to establish, exercise or defend legal claims.

Sale of business. Personal Information may be transferred as an asset in connection with a merger, sale, reorganization or other change in control.

You can visit the Website without telling us who you are. We and/or our service providers (such as Google Analytics) collect IP addresses and related information to understand Website activity and to monitor and improve the Website. You can set your browser to decline cookies; some features may not be available if you do.

We may use third parties to serve advertisements on our Website and other websites, which may use cookies or web beacons to report on your visits. You can opt out of interest-based ads from Google through your Google ad settings, and learn more through the Digital Advertising Alliance of Canada.

Our Website may contain links to sites we do not own or operate. Linked websites have their own privacy statements, which we recommend you read carefully. We have no control over how those websites handle your Personal Information.

We use administrative, technical and physical safeguards appropriate to the sensitivity of the information, including encryption in transit and at rest, access on a least-privilege basis, and audit logging. Identity information and completed documents are stored in Canada.

If a breach of our security safeguards creates a real risk of significant harm to you, we will notify you and report to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada as required by law, and we keep records of security breaches as the law requires.

We keep Personal Information only as long as necessary for the purposes described here or as required by law and professional obligations.

Because a commissioner or notary must keep a record of the acts they perform, completed documents and their transaction records are retained for [a set period — to be confirmed against notary and commissioner record-keeping obligations and any LSO retention requirement]. Identity-verification material is retained no longer than needed to complete and evidence the service, and is then [deleted or reduced to a non-image confirmation record].

You may ask to see the Personal Information we hold about you and to correct inaccuracies, subject to limited legal exceptions. Contact the Privacy Officer using the information below; we will respond within the time the law allows.

Using this platform makes you a customer of a document-services business. It does not create a solicitor-client relationship or make you a client of any law firm, and your use of the platform does not, by itself, give rise to legal advice or privilege. Where you separately retain a lawyer through a referral, that relationship and its protections are governed by your engagement with that lawyer.

This Privacy Policy may be updated periodically. We will post the updated policy on our Website. Your Personal Information will be treated in accordance with the policy in place at the time it was collected, unless you otherwise consent.