Privacy Policy

LAST UPDATED: 22 May 2025

At Andromeda Law, I understand that privacy matters. As a lawyer, I have both professional and legal obligations to protect your personal information, and I take those responsibilities seriously.

This privacy policy explains how I, Benjamin Waterman, handle your personal information and what steps I take to keep it secure. It's designed to be straightforward and readable—because you shouldn't need a law degree to understand how your information is being used.

Getting in Touch Through the Website

Reaching out through my website or email doesn't automatically create a lawyer-client relationship. Any initial communication should be treated as a way to connect and explore whether I can help with your legal matter, not as formal legal advice.

If you have booked a consultation, even a free consultation, I consider any communication we have, such as anything you tell me during the Zoom meeting, to be privileged and confidential, even if you do not ultimately retain me.

Your Privacy Rights

Since January 1, 2004, Canadian businesses (including law firms) must follow the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) and the Canadian Standards Association Model Code for protecting personal information. This gives you specific rights about how your personal information is collected, used, and protected.

I'm responsible for any personal information I collect and maintain. To make sure I meet these obligations, I've developed clear policies and procedures that guide how I handle your information.

Why I Collect Personal Information

I collect personal information for specific, limited purposes:

  • To identify clients as required by the Law Society of Ontario

  • To maintain accurate client records and files

  • To provide you with effective legal representation

  • For internal practice management and professional development

What Information I Collect

Personal information means any information that identifies you or could be used to figure out who you are. I only collect what's necessary to provide you with legal services, and I do it in a fair and lawful way.

Most of the time, I'll collect this information directly from you when we start working together and throughout our professional relationship. I'll ask for your specific consent when collecting, using, or sharing your information—though sometimes your consent might be implied based on our interactions.

How I Use Your Information

When you hire me, you're placing your trust in my ability to handle your legal matter effectively and confidentially. I use your personal information to:

  • Provide legal advice and services

  • Manage client files and billing

  • Comply with professional and legal obligations

I don't sell or share client information for marketing purposes. Your information stays with me unless there's a specific legal or practical reason to share it (more on that below).

I'm required to retain client files for a certain period after our work together ends, as mandated by professional regulations.

When I Share Your Information

There are limited circumstances where I may need to disclose your personal information:

  • Legal requirements: When required by law (like responding to a court order or subpoena)

  • With your consent: When you've specifically agreed to the disclosure

  • Service delivery: When providing legal services requires sharing information with third parties (like expert witnesses, mediators, or other professionals), your consent is typically implied unless you tell me otherwise

  • Fee collection: When necessary to establish or collect legal fees

  • Service providers: When I use third-party providers for administrative services (like secure file storage or IT support), they're bound by confidentiality agreements

  • Public information: When the information is already publicly available

Keeping Your Information Secure

I've implemented security measures appropriate to the sensitivity of legal information. These include:

  • Physical security for my office and file storage

  • Restricted access to personal information

  • Technology safeguards like security software and firewalls

Transparency and Access

I'm committed to being open about my privacy practices. If you have questions about how I handle personal information, I'm happy to answer them.

You can request access to the personal information I have about you during regular business hours with reasonable notice. Basic information requests are typically provided at no charge, though detailed requests requiring extensive retrieval may be subject to reasonable fees.

Keeping Information Accurate

I work to maintain accurate and up-to-date personal information. If any of your information changes, just let me know and I'll update my records accordingly.

Anonymous Inquiries

When legally and practically possible, I'm happy to handle general inquiries without requiring you to provide your name—like browsing general information on my website.

Email Communication

Email isn't 100% secure, so keep that in mind when sending personal or confidential information. By using email to communicate with me, you're consenting to email communication unless you specifically request otherwise in writing. If you wish to communicate only by secure, encrypted methods, please let me know and I will make arrangements, such as only communicating over Signal.

I can't guarantee the security of email communication unless we've made special arrangements for secure communication.

Website and Third-Party Links

My website may contain links to other sites that aren't governed by this privacy policy. I provide these links for convenience, but I'm not responsible for the privacy practices of other websites. Check their privacy policies before sharing any personal information.

Like most websites, I may monitor traffic patterns and site usage to improve my web services. I might share aggregated, non-identifying statistics with third parties, but this never includes personal information that could identify individual visitors.

Remember: communicating through my website doesn't automatically make you a client of Andromeda Law.

Tor Mirror

For added privacy protection, I try to maintain a mirror of the Andromeda Law website over The Onion Network (TOR), at http://andromedazekqllpjmw3uzd74o6dapbjjjujisekjpwooa3imss7tqyd.onion . For practicality reasons, this is simply a mirror of the clearnet website, downloaded once per day. Due to the nature of how it is mirrored, the mirror may not function as fully as the clearnet site, and may sometimes be down fully. For the most secure communication with me, Signal is always an option.

Policy Updates

I review my policies regularly and may update this privacy policy from time to time. I'll post any changes on my website.

Questions or Concerns

If you have questions about this privacy policy or how I handle personal information, feel free to contact me at info@andromeda.law or through my website contact form.

This privacy policy reflects my commitment to protecting your personal information while providing effective legal services. It's part of the trust-based relationship that makes successful legal representation possible.