Ongoing changes in the accumulation, storage and use of personal data – whether by government, employers, financial institutions, health care providers or the data subjects themselves – have given rise to new and more serious privacy concerns. Recent changes to privacy laws, varying standards internationally and one reported crisis after another have forced business, government and the public to seek guidance on managing the precarious balance between safeguarding personal privacy and third-party interests in acquiring and using personal information.
Bennett Jones performs groundbreaking work with governments, employers, institutions, device providers and public and private information-gatherers, advising on the far-reaching legal implications of privacy regulation, data protection and data dissemination.
Offering both compliance and enforcement advice, we can provide internal compliance procedures and policies for clients ranging from public and private industrial businesses to retail operations, Universities, charities, health regions and ISPs and other entities operating traditional and new media businesses. We train privacy officers on their rights and obligations under the law, and provide opinions and direction on specific incidents involving employees, customers, patients, Internet users, network providers and data miners whose activities involve the handling of sensitive information.
In regard to corporate transactions, we counsel purchasers on the privacy standards governing employee records, customer files and transaction lists as well as the unique due diligence issues involved when key assets of the target include important databases.
We help clients with privacy issues applicable to employee recruitment and the ongoing management of employment relationships.
In a world of cyber breaches, hacking, credit card and ATM fraud, Internet-based file sharing disputes, and acknowledged institutional surveillance of Internet and email usage, we advise on proactive data protection efforts to mitigate risk in advance of a breach or attack and counsel clients who have faced a breach or have been hacked. We assist with all manner of computer-related privacy and data protection matters, including electronic communications regulation (anti-spam).
We also aid clients with the protection and enforcement of electronic-based privacy rights both domestically and internationally.
The scope of our experience is broad and includes: