Internal Trade Secretariat Corporation Terms of Use

INTERNAL TRADE SECRETARIAT CORPORATION

TERMS OF USE

Last Revised: September 12, 2024

This Terms of Use Agreement (this "Agreement") governs your access to and use of the website located at https://www.cfta-alec.ca/ (the "Website"), together with the services and applications which are made available through the Website.

The Internal Trade Secretariat Corporation (“ITSC”) controls the Website and such services and applications, or contracts with third parties to provide them to you. In consideration for your right to access and use the Website, you agree to the terms and conditions set out below.

 

THESE TERMS OF USE (the "Terms of Use") AND ITSC’S PRIVACY POLICY (the "Privacy Policy") INCORPORATED HEREIN BY REFERENCE (collectively, the “Agreement”), SET FORTH THE LEGALLY BINDING TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR YOUR ACCESS TO AND USE OF THE WEBSITE. IN CONSIDERATION FOR YOUR RIGHT TO ACCESS AND USE THE WEBSITE, THE RECEIPT AND SUFFICIENCY OF WHICH ARE HEREBY ACKNOWLEDGED, YOU AGREE TO THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS SET OUT BELOW. The effective date of this Agreement is when you accept it, in accordance with the terms and conditions that are set out below.

You can view, print, download or save this Agreement at any time, under the “Terms of Service” link that appears on the Website.

1. Your Personal Information and Privacy

You consent to our collection, use and disclosure of the personally identifiable information you provide to us when you use the Website, in accordance with our Privacy Policy. You can click here to review our Privacy Policy, which explains what personally identifiable information we collect, how we use it and with whom it is shared.

2. Consent to Electronic Communication

When you visit the Website or send email to us, you are communicating with us electronically. You consent to receive communications from us electronically. We will communicate with you by email or by posting notices on the Website. You agree that all agreements, notices, disclosures and other communications that we provide to you electronically satisfy any legal requirement that such communications be in writing.

3. Modification to this Agreement

We may revise this Agreement, at any time, by updating this posting.  We may provide notice to you of such revisions by means of a general notice on the Website. Your continued use of the Website after such revisions are posted will signify your agreement to these revised terms.  Therefore, you should visit this page periodically to review this Agreement.

4. Ownership of Content

Our Content: Except for Your Content (which is discussed below), all materials displayed or otherwise accessible on the Website, including, without limitation, text, photographs, images, illustrations, graphics, icons, code (collectively, "Our Content") and the selection and arrangement of Our Content on the Website are protected by copyright, pursuant to Canadian copyright laws, international conventions and other copyright laws. We either own the intellectual property rights, including copyright, or have acquired the necessary rights or licences, in Our Content.  Portions of Our Content may have been licensed to us or otherwise been made available from third parties. Any reproduction, modification, publication, transmission, transfer, sale, distribution, display or exploitation of the Website or Our Content, whether in whole or in part, without our express written permission, is strictly prohibited.  The display of Our Content does not imply that you have been granted a license by us or other entities with respect to it.

Your Content: You retain ownership in and to materials you submit to us, including, without limitation, your text, photographs, images, illustrations, graphics and icons (collectively, "Your Content"), but you agree to grant us a non-exclusive, transferable, sub-licensable, royalty-free, worldwide licence to use Your Content, as we see fit, in our sole discretion, for the purpose of supporting our operation of the Website, generally, in accordance with our Privacy Policy. We reserve the right to disclose Your Content, at any time, as is required to comply with applicable laws, and the right to remove any of Your Content that is in violation of the terms and conditions of this Agreement. You also agree that any rights you assert in and to Your Content will be subject to standards of commercial reasonableness. You may request deletion of Your Content, but our ability to delete Your Content may be restricted if you have shared it with others. Aspects of the Website may have additional specific terms which apply to materials you submit to us. In the event of conflict or inconsistency between the terms and provisions this Agreement and those additional specific terms, the additional specific terms shall prevail and govern, to the extent of such conflict or inconsistency.

Trademarks: Certain words, phrases, names, designs or logos on the Website may constitute trademarks, services marks, or trade names that are owned by us or others. The display of such marks on the Website does not imply that you have been granted a licence by us or others with respect to them.

5. Complaints

If you believe in good faith that any material that is made available on the Website infringes your copyright, or if you have any other complaints about your use of the Website, please contact us at: secretariat@its-sci.ca. While we are not responsible for how others use the Website, we will make commercially reasonable efforts to make your use of the Website enjoyable.

6. Limited Licence

Subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement, you are granted a limited personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable license to access, view and use the Website, including a limited license to download, print and store single copies of Our Content from the Website, for your personal use, provided that you maintain all copyright and other notices contained in such items and you do not (and do not allow any third party to) copy, modify, create a derivative work of, reverse engineer, reverse assemble or otherwise attempt to discover any source code, in the Website. Our Content must not be reproduced, republished, or disseminated in any manner or form without our prior written consent or the prior written consent of the third parties from which such information was collected, as the case may be.

7. Children

 

Persons who are not the legal age of majority under applicable law in the country, province, state or territory in which they live, can only use the Website with the approval of their parent or guardian.

8. Acceptable Uses of the Website

While you use the Website, you must comply with all applicable laws, rules and regulations, as well as this Agreement, including our Privacy Policy. In addition, your use of the Website is based on the following rules of conduct. You will not:

• Post, transmit, or otherwise make available any material that is or may be: (a) threatening, harassing, degrading, hateful, or intimidating; (b) defamatory; (c) fraudulent or tortious; (d) obscene, indecent, pornographic, or otherwise objectionable; (e) an infringement of another person's privacy by disclosing the personal information of another individual, including, without limitation, an individual’s address, phone number or email address without the express consent of the person to whom the personal information relates; (f) criminal or otherwise contrary to applicable law; or (g) inflammatory, or discriminatory based on race, sex, religion, nationality, disability, gender, sexual orientation, or age or such other legally prohibited ground or be otherwise objectionable, such determination to be made in ITSC’s sole discretion;
• Post, transmit, or otherwise make available any Your Content or material that may violate the proprietary rights of any third party, including, without limitation, any rights protected by copyright, trademark, trade secret, or other proprietary right without the express permission of the owner of such proprietary right. This includes, without limitation, submission of copyrighted text, software, designs, videos, photographs, music or artwork or any moral rights associated therewith;
• Use the Website in a manner which will violate, advocate for, solicit or assist with, the violation of any applicable local, provincial, territorial, state, national or international law, rule or regulation, including, without limitation, applicable privacy laws and Canada’s anti-spam legislation;
• Use the Website to post, transmit, or otherwise make available any material which would: (a) give rise to criminal or civil liability; (b) encourage conduct that constitutes a criminal offence; or (c) encourage or provide instructional information about illegal activities, or activities such as hacking, cracking of phreaking;
• Impersonate any person or entity, including, but not limited to, any of our representatives; falsely state or otherwise misrepresent your affiliation with any person or entity; or express or imply that we endorse any statement you make without our prior written consent;
• Post, transmit, or otherwise make available any virus, worm, trojan horse, spyware, or any other computer code, file, or program that may, or is intended to, damage or hijack the operation of any hardware, software, server or telecommunications equipment;
• Interfere with or disrupt the Website; including, without limitation: (i) accessing content and data that is not intended for you; (ii) attempting to breach or breaching the security and/or authentication measures which are not authorized; (iii) restricting, disrupting or disabling service to users, hosts, servers or networks; (iv) illicitly reproducing TCP/IP packet header; (v) disrupting network services and otherwise disrupting ITSC’s ability to monitor the Website; (vi) using any robot, spider, or other automatic device, process, or means to access the Website for any purpose, including monitoring or copying any of the material on the Website; (vii) introducing any viruses, trojan horses, worms, logic bombs, or other material that is malicious or technologically harmful; (viii) attacking the Website via a denial-of-service attack, distributed denial-of-service attack, flooding, mailbombing, or crashing; and (ix) otherwise attempting to interfere with the proper working of the Website;
• Use the Website in any manner to harass, abuse, stalk, threaten, defame or otherwise infringe or violate the rights of any other party;
• Post, transmit, or otherwise make available any unsolicited or unauthorized advertising, promotional materials, "junk mail," "spam," "chain letters," "pyramid schemes," investment opportunity, or any other form of solicitation; or
• Use the Website if you are in violation of this Agreement.

Any person who is found or reasonably suspected to have violated the rules of conduct provided above may be barred from using the Website, in our sole discretion, and may be subject to other legal remedies.

9. Username and Password

 

You may be required, when you use certain features of the Website, to create a username and password. If we determine that the username you have chosen is in use by someone else or it is otherwise offensive, we may refuse to allow you, in our sole discretion, to use your chosen username. In addition, you are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your password and you are responsible for all uses of your username, whether or not you authorize such uses. You agree to notify ITSC of any unauthorized use of your username and password. ITSC is not liable for any loss or damage as a result of your failure to protect your password.

10. Practices Regarding Use and Storage

Storage or Deletion of Content: You agree that we have no responsibility or liability for the deletion of, or the failure to store or to transmit, any information maintained by us, including, without limitation, Your Content and Our Content. We will provide you access to Your Content, through your use of your account, but we are not responsible for copying, extracting or otherwise transferring Your Content to you.

Limits on Storage: We retain the right to create limits on use and storage, at our sole discretion, at any time, with or without notice.

Our Access to Stored Content: We also reserve the right to access, read, preserve, and disclose any information as we reasonably believe is necessary, including, without limitation, Your Content, to: (a) satisfy any applicable law, regulation, legal process or governmental request; (b) enforce this Agreement, including investigation of potential violations hereof; (c) detect, prevent, or otherwise address fraud, security or technical issues; (d) respond to user support requests; or (e) protect our rights, property or safety, our users or the public. We will not be responsible or liable for the exercise or non-exercise of our rights under this Agreement.

11. Privacy

 

ITSC respects privacy. By using the Website, you consent to your personal information being collected, used, and disclosed in accordance with our Privacy Policy, found at [■] as we deem necessary for use of the Website, or for any other purposes that are set out in our Privacy Policy, or required or permitted by law.

12. Customer Service

We may make customer service features available to you, as a courtesy only.  We are not obliged to provide customer service to you and our decision to do so shall not create an obligation to provide additional customer service to you.

13. Linking and other Websites

No Endorsement or Responsibility: The Website may include links to other websites, solely as a convenience to users. We do not endorse any users, linked websites or the information, material, product, services or opportunities created by, listed in, or contained on linked websites or accessible through other users or linked websites. We make no express or implied warranties with regard to the information, material, product, services, or opportunities that are contained on or accessible through other users and linked websites.

Use at Your Own Risk: Your access to and use of other users' and linked websites, including information, materials, products, services, and opportunities on linked websites or available through other users' and linked websites, is solely at your own risk and, with respect to linked websites, is governed by the terms of service of the linked website. If there is any conflict between this Agreement and any of the terms or notices set forth on any other website, then the terms of that other website will control your use of that link. Please review the terms of use for each link so that you understand all of the terms that will apply. You should note that the Internet is an inherently insecure medium, and sending any online communication provides no guarantee of successful delivery. Care should be taken to ensure that the content of your online communication is not sensitive or confidential, since we can take no responsibility for communication which is lost, delayed, or misdelivered.

Linking to the Website: Please request permission to link to the Website prior to linking to the Website. We reserve the right to cancel and revoke any permission we may give to link to the Website at any time, for any reason, without any notice, and without any liability to you or any other person.

14. Disclaimer of Warranties

 

THE INFORMATION AND MATERIALS POSTED ON AND ACCESSIBLE THROUGH THE WEBSITE ARE FOR GENERAL INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY AND ARE NOT INTENDED TO AMOUNT TO ADVICE ON WHICH YOU SHOULD RELY. YOU MUST OBTAIN YOUR OWN SPECIFIC OR PROFESSIONAL ADVICE BEFORE TAKING, OR REFRAINING FROM, ANY ACTION OR INACTION ON THE BASIS OF THE CONTENT ON OUR WEBSITE.

RELIANCE ON ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED BY ITSC, ITS AFFILIATES, CONTRIBUTORS TO, OR OTHER USERS OF THE WEBSITE IS SOLELY AT YOUR OWN RISK, AND NEITHER ITSC, ITS AFFILIATES, NOR THEIR RESPECTIVE DIRECTORS, OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES, MEMBERS, VOLUNTEERS, AGENTS, SERVICE PROVIDERS, CONTRACTORS, LICENSORS, LICENSEES, SUPPLIERS, SUCCESSORS, OR ASSIGNS, AS MAY BE APPLICABLE, HAVE ANY RESPONSIBILITY OR LIABILITY WHATSOEVER FOR YOUR USE OF THIS WEBSITE.

There are no representations or warranties made by ITSC except for the representations, warranties, and obligations of ITSC which are expressly set out in this Agreement. Any advice, information, or statements provided by us, our employees or any third parties, agents, or their representatives, whether oral or written, will not create any representation, warranty, or condition or vary or amend this Agreement, including the above liability exclusions, liability limitations, release and indemnity provisions, and you may not rely upon any such advice or information.

Access to the Website and Our Content provided on the Website are provided "as is" and without warranties or conditions of any kind either expressed or implied. By accessing and using the Website, you acknowledge and agree that it is entirely at your own risk, and that it is your responsibility to evaluate your own requirements as a user of the Website, and to independently determine whether to perform, use or adapt any of the information or content available on or provided via the Website for your particular purposes, including, without limitation, the content or functionality provided in any videos, forms, or templates provided through the Website. Specifically, ITSC makes no representation, warranties or conditions regarding the Website, materials, Our Content or Your Content, either express or implied, including, without limitation: (i) that the materials, Our Content or any Your Content provided will be accurate, complete, correct, timely or suitable; (ii) that any services contained on or made available through the Website may be relied upon by you or fit for a particular purpose; (iii) that the Website will be available at all times; or (iv) that the Website will be free from errors, viruses or other harmful components.

ITSC is not responsible for any Our Content, Your Content or other information on the Website or any linked site that you may find offensive, undesirable or objectionable. Further, ITSC specifically disclaims any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, completeness, correctness, timeliness or usefulness of third party information. To the fullest extent permissible pursuant to applicable law, ITSC disclaims all warranties and conditions, express or implied, including, but not limited to, warranties and conditions regarding use of the Website, including all implied warranties or conditions of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose or non-infringement, whether express or implied, or arising from a course of dealing, usage or trade practice.

The security of your information is very important to us. We use physical, electronic, and administrative measures designed to secure any information transmitted to us from accidental loss and from unauthorized access, use, alteration, and disclosure. Unfortunately, the transmission of information via the internet is not completely secure. Although we do our best to protect any information submitted to us, we cannot guarantee the security of information transmitted to, or through, the Website. Any transmission of information is at your own risk. We are not responsible for circumvention of any privacy settings or security measures contained on, or in, the Website.

We also cannot and do not guarantee or warrant that files or data available for downloading from the internet or the Website will be free of viruses or other destructive code. You are solely and entirely responsible for your use of the Website and your device, internet, and data security. To the fullest extent provided by law, we will not be liable for any loss or damage caused by denial-of-service attack, distributed denial-of-service attack, overloading, flooding, mailbombing, or crashing, viruses, trojan horses, worms, logic bombs, or other technologically harmful material that may infect your device, programs, data, or other proprietary material due to your use of the Website or any services or items found or attained through the Website or to your downloading of any material posted on it, or on any site linked to it.

Verification: We are not responsible for verifying your identity, the identity of anyone who uses your account, or the identity or legitimacy of any other user, posting, resume, or profile.

15. Limitation of Liability, Release and Indemnity

THIS SECTION LIMITS OUR LIABILITY TO YOU AND PROVIDES FOR A RELEASE AND AN INDEMNITY, FROM YOU, IN FAVOUR OF US.  PLEASE READ IT CAREFULLY.

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY: SUBJECT TO APPLICABLE LAW, IN NO EVENT SHALL ITSC, ITS OFFICERS OR DIRECTORS, SUCCESSORS, SUBSIDIARIES, AFFILIATES, EMPLOYEES, REPRESENTATIVES, AGENTS, LICENSORS OR THEIR RESPECTIVE SUCCESSORS, LEGAL REPRESENTATIVES, HEIRS AND ASSIGNS, AS THE CONTEXT MAY REQUIRE, BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES OR ANY OTHER DAMAGES WHATSOEVER CAUSED, ARISING OUT OF, OR IN CONNECTION WITH, THE USE OF, OR INABILITY TO USE, THE WEBSITE, ANY ACCURACY, TIMELINESS, INCOMPLETENESS, OR INCORRECTNESS CONTAINED IN OUR CONTENT OR OUR CONTENT DISPLAYED, ACCESSED OR USED ON THE WEBSITE, OR YOUR RELIANCE OR ACTING UPON THE MATERIALS ON THE WEBSITE, INCLUDING ANY LOSS OR DAMAGES IN THE NATURE OF OR RELATING TO LOST BUSINESS, LOST EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY, LOST SAVINGS, LOST DATA AND/OF PROFITS, REGARDLESS OF THE CAUSE AND WHETHER ARISING IN CONTRACT, TORT, IN EQUITY, AT LAW OR OTHERWISE AND WHETHER OR NOT ITSC HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THESE LIMITATIONS OF LIABILITY CONTAINED IN THIS SECTION 15 REFLECT THE ALLOCATION OF RISK SET FORTH IN THIS AGREEMENT AND THAT WE WOULD NOT ENTER INTO THIS AGREEMENT WITHOUT THESE LIMITATIONS ON LIABILITY.

RELEASE:   EXCEPT AS SET OUT IN THIS SECTION 15, YOU AGREE TO RELEASE, REMISE, ACQUIT AND DISCHARGE US FROM ANY CLAIMS, ACTIONS, DEMANDS, COSTS AND EXPENSES OF ANY KIND WHATSOEVER, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, NEGLIGENCE OR TORT, AT LAW OR IN EQUITY, OR BY STATUTE OR OTHERWISE, HOWSOEVER CAUSED, WITH RESPECT TO YOUR USE OF, OR OUR OPERATION OF, THE WEBSITE.

INDEMNITY:  YOU AGREE TO INDEMNIFY, SAVE AND HOLD US HARMLESS FROM AND AGAINST ANY CLAIMS, ACTIONS, DEMANDS, JUDGMENTS, AWARDS, DECLARATIONS, ORDERS, SETTLEMENTS, DAMAGES (INCLUDING GENERAL, SPECIAL, PUNITIVE, AGGRAVATED OR EXEMPLARY DAMAGES), LIABILITIES, LOSSES, COSTS, CHARGES, INTEREST AND EXPENSES, OR PROCEEDINGS OF ANY KIND WHATSOEVER WHICH MAY BE INITIATED OR PRESENTED BY ANY OTHER PERSONS, INDIVIDUALS OR OTHER LEGAL ENTITIES, AND WHICH ARISE DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY FROM YOUR USE OF THE WEBSITE.  WITHOUT LIMITING THE GENERALITY OF THE FOREGOING, YOU HEREBY AGREE TO PAY ALL COSTS, FEES AND EXPENSES, ON A SOLICITOR AND OWN CLIENT BASIS, WHICH MAY BE INCURRED BY US, RELATING TO YOUR USE OF THE WEBSITE.

SINCE SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF CERTAIN TYPES OF DAMAGES OR LIABILITY, SOME OR ALL OF THE EXCLUSIONS AND LIMITATIONS IN THIS SECTION 15 MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.

FOR THE PURPOSE OF THIS SECTION 15, THE TERMS “WE”, "US" AND "OUR" SHALL INCLUDE OUR AFFILIATES AND OURS AND OUR AFFILIATES' RESPECTIVE DIRECTORS, OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS AND CONTRACTORS.

16. Conflict of Laws

Application of Manitoba Laws: We are physically located, and all activities with respect to the Website take place, across Canada. This Agreement will be governed by the laws of the Province of Manitoba and the laws of Canada applicable therein and shall be treated in all respects as a Manitoba contract, without reference to the principles of conflicts of law. In the event of a dispute, you agree to submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of Manitoba’s courts.

Waiver of Rights: You agree to waive any right you may have to: (a) a trial by jury; and (b) commence or participate in any class action against us related to your use of the Website, the exchange of electronic documents between us or this Agreement and, where, applicable, you also agree to opt out of any class proceedings against us or our licensors.

Agreement in English and French: The parties hereto have required that this Agreement and all documents relating thereto be drawn up in both English and French. Nous avons demandé que cette convention ainsi que tous les documents qui s’y rattachent soient rédigés en anglais et en français. Both versions of this Agreement are equally authoritative and are intended to operate and be interpreted harmoniously, so as to arrive at the same meaning.

17. International Matters

Unless otherwise specified, Our Content in the Website are presented solely for the purpose of promoting programs and other services available in Canada and its provinces. We make no representation that the Website, Our Content or Your Content on the Website are appropriate or available for use in any particular location. Those who choose to access the Website do so on their own initiative and are responsible for compliance with local laws, if and to the extent that local laws are applicable.

18. Force Majeure

We will not be liable for failure or delay in our performance of our obligations under this Agreement due to any cause beyond our reasonable control, including, but not limited to: (a) acts of God; or (b) failure or disruptions in third-party-controlled or operated communications facilities; or (c) worms, viruses and other disabling or disruptive software, communications or files.

19. Monitoring, Enforcement, Suspension and Termination

 

If you breach any provision of this Agreement, you may no longer use the Website. ITSC may at any time, without provision of notice:

(a) for any reason, with or without cause, and in its sole discretion, immediately suspend or terminate (in whole or in part) your permission to use the Website, all without liability to you or any other person;

ease, suspend or interrupt operation of or access to the Website or any part thereof, and shall not be required to provide any notice in respect of such cessation, suspension or interruption of access, nor shall ITSC have any liability for such cessation, suspension or interruption of access; or

(c) take appropriate legal action, including, without limitation, referral to law enforcement or regulatory authority, or notifying the harmed party of any illegal or unauthorized use of the Website. Without limiting the foregoing, we have the right to fully cooperate with any law enforcement authorities or court order requesting or directing us to disclose the identity or other information of anyone posting any materials on or through the Website.

We have no obligation, nor any responsibility to any party to monitor the Website or its use, and do not and cannot undertake to review material that you or other users submit to the Website. We cannot ensure prompt removal of objectionable material after it has been posted and we have no liability for any action or inaction regarding transmissions, communications, or content provided by any user or third party, subject to applicable laws.

20. Miscellaneous

Our failure to exercise or enforce any right or provision of this Agreement shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision.  If any provision of these terms shall be unlawful, void, or for any reason unenforceable, then that provision shall be deemed severable from these terms and shall not affect the validity and enforceability of any remaining provisions. We may assign this Agreement without restriction. This Agreement, and such other agreements and documents as are expressly referenced herein, contains the entire understanding of the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof, and supersedes all prior and contemporaneous written or oral understandings, agreements, representations and warranties with respect to such subject matter. The relationship between the parties is that of independent contractors. Nothing contained in this Agreement shall be construed as creating any agency, partnership, joint venture or other form of joint enterprise, employment or fiduciary relationship between the parties, and neither party shall have authority to contract for or bind the other party in any manner whatsoever.

21. Survival

The provisions of Sections that are by their nature intended to survive termination of this Agreement shall survive termination of this Agreement including, but not limited to, Sections 4, 8, 9, 10, 13, 14, 15, 20 and this Section 21 of this Agreement.

22. Our Contact Information

If you have any questions about this Agreement, or the ITSC services generally, please contact us at: secretariat@its-sci.ca.