Enter CARFAC Ontario as your partner program — this is what unlocks your preferred member pricing. Then add your membership number, or the name on your membership profile, so we can verify it. You'll also choose your entity type (Individual, Corporation, Sole Proprietorship, and so on — "Not sure" is a fine answer), and you can add your pronouns and your primary artistic discipline or medium.

You'll check two boxes: one confirming you've read the CARFAC Member Legal Services Agreement as well as the CARFAC-RAAV Minimum Recommended Fee Schedule, the other agreeing to the program's information-sharing terms.

Those terms matter, so here's the short version. To verify your member rate and for CARFAC's program reporting, Entcounsel shares only administrative details with CARFAC: your name and contact info, the type of service, the fee and whether a special rate applied, the date and duration, and your membership number. Entcounsel never shares the substance of your matter, your documents, the names of opposing parties, your communications with your lawyer, or any legal advice — all of that is protected by solicitor-client privilege, which this consent cannot waive.

Your full legal name (as it appears on your photo ID — it needs to match for identity verification), an optional preferred name, your email and phone, an optional cell number for text reminders, your date of birth, and your address. You'll also agree to the Entcounsel Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.

Why the date of birth and address? Along with your name, they're part of the client identification the Law Society requires (By-Law 7.1). Everything here is encrypted and handled under PIPEDA, and submitting the form doesn't create a lawyer-client relationship on its own.

This section is the Law Society's know-your-client requirement. Most members choose Individual, then give their occupation and upload a government-issued photo ID. If you're applying as an organization, you'll give the organization's name, your position, and basic corporate details (and, for corporations and partnerships, directors and officers and any owners of 25% or more).

Accepted ID: Canadian passport, provincial driver's licence, provincial photo card (including the Ontario Photo Card for non-drivers), Permanent Resident card, Secure Certificate of Indian Status, or an equivalent foreign government photo ID. Not accepted: health card (OHIP), municipal IDs, or expired documents. You can upload your ID now or send it to your lawyer later — a separate Stripe Identity check is also part of verification, and your ID is used only to confirm who you are.

This is where you describe your issue. As a CARFAC member it starts in Art Law, but you can change the area if your matter is something else. You'll pick the type of matter (for example, an artist contract, copyright, a gallery relationship, a public art commission, or an NFT or digital-art question), your role (artist, gallery, collector, curator, and so on), and the kind of service you need (a review, drafting, a consultation, a demand letter, and the like).

• Describe your legal issue — in your own words: what happened, what documents or agreements are involved, and any deadlines.
• Opposing parties (required) — the names of anyone on the other side of your matter, so we can run the conflict check. Type "None" if there isn't one. There are optional fields for similar, related, and third parties as well.
• Urgency and budget — how soon you need help, and a rough budget if you have one.
• Source of funds — this only appears if your budget is $7,500 or more, and it's another Law Society requirement.
• Attachments — upload contracts, letters, or images of your work now, or add them later in your portal.

The party names let us clear the conflict check before we can discuss your matter, and the description and documents let your lawyer scope the work and propose the right fee arrangement. The more organized this is, the faster we can help.

Four short confirmations: that submitting the form doesn't create a lawyer-client relationship yet; that your information is kept confidential; that you authorize the conflict-of-interest check; and that you consent to your data being handled under PIPEDA. A lawyer-client relationship begins only after the conflict check clears, Entcounsel accepts your matter, and you sign your engagement letter.

We review every submission personally, run the conflict check, and come back to you with the proposed scope and fee arrangement. Nothing is charged and no relationship is created until you accept and sign.

You sign two agreements, sent to you together. The Entcounsel engagement letter is your actual retainer with Entcounsel for your specific matter — signed once, it's the master framework for everything we do for you (sample at entcounsel.com/engagement-letter). The CARFAC Member Legal Services Agreement is the program's terms — it covers things like confidentiality, that your IP stays yours, and that CARFAC itself isn't responsible for the legal work or its outcome (Entcounsel provides the legal services). It's set out in full on the agreement page. You need to sign both before legal work begins.

• Your full legal name and best contact details
• Your preferred way to be contacted, and any accessibility needs
• Your CARFAC membership number
• A short description of your issue
• The names of everyone else involved
• Any relevant documents (contract, letter, images of your work)
• Any deadline you're working against

Preferred member pricing depends on active CARFAC Ontario membership at the time of service. If your membership lapses while a matter is already underway, the work already agreed continues at the price you accepted. For any new work or new matter, you'll need to renew your membership to keep member pricing — otherwise standard rates may apply. We'll always flag this before anything changes.

Under By-Law 7.1 of the Law Society of Ontario, a lawyer must confirm who their client is before any work starts. We do this securely through Stripe Identity, and a valid, current government-issued photo ID (licence, passport, or provincial photo card) is required. We use it only to confirm your identity.

A lawyer owes complete loyalty to every client, so we can't act for you if it would clash with a duty to someone else we've represented. We check the names of everyone involved first — that's why we ask for them early. Signing once saves you re-registering, but each new matter still gets its own scope, its own fee arrangement, and its own conflict check before we begin.

You can end the engagement at any time; you're only responsible for work already done. In limited situations a lawyer may also have to stop acting (for example, an unresolved conflict or non-payment) — if that happens we'll tell you promptly and, where possible, help you find another option.

CARFAC Ontario's associate and institutional members can use the service at CARFAC member pricing. All our work follows, and is consistent with, the guidelines CARFAC has written for the benefit of Canadian visual artists. These include the Ontario Status of the Artist Action and the CARFAC-RAAV Minimum Recommended Fee Schedule (see Clause 13 of the agreement, Standards and Conflicts).

The program serves individual artists and also the people and organizations that hire them. If an artist member's interests conflict with those of an associate or institutional member, Entcounsel puts the artist first and will not act for the associate or institutional member (see Clause 14 of the agreement, Conflicts of Interest and Joint Representation).

Member Legal Services covers brief, non-litigation matters. Litigation, tribunals, and court proceedings fall outside the program — but Entcounsel can take these on for you separately, outside Member Legal Services, at standard rates. This is not an emergency legal service; if you have a same-day deadline, tell us at triage.

Your intellectual property remains yours at all times. Nothing you sign transfers any ownership of your art, copyright, or moral rights to Entcounsel or CARFAC — we're here to help you protect and make the most of them.

Many legal rights come with deadlines — in Ontario, often two years from when you first knew about the problem — and contracts have their own windows to act. Once they pass, your options narrow. Tell us about a deadline even if you're not sure it matters.

Once you are a client, what you share about your matter is confidential and generally protected by solicitor-client privilege. CARFAC Ontario cannot access, review, or store your privileged files — it only ever sees basic administrative details, never the substance of your matter. We use your work only to advise you; we never reproduce or reuse it.

Concerned about cost? We'll confirm the scope and fee arrangement before any work begins, and the triage call and Clinic are free — so you can start without commitment.

Not full-time or incorporated? You don't have to be — members across all categories qualify.

Have to come to an office? No, everything is remote — by phone, video, or the portal.

Worried about legalese? We explain things plainly, and you can always ask.

Already signed something? It's still worth a triage call to look at where things stand and your options.

Just one question? That's exactly what the triage call and Clinic are for.

Non-discrimination and human rights. We serve all members with dignity and respect, and do not discriminate on the basis of race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, marital status, family status, or disability. We provide our services in keeping with the Ontario Human Rights Code.

Indigenous artists. We acknowledge that we live and work on the traditional territories of Indigenous peoples, and that the artists we serve create across many nations and treaty lands. We are committed to respecting Indigenous artists and their rights — including their cultural, moral, and intellectual property rights.

CARFAC Ontario members pay preferred rates for legal services from Vandana Taxali of Entcounsel Law Firm. Rates are set by CARFAC Ontario member type:

• Artist — professional artist member
• Associate — non-artist professional working within the sector
• Institutional — Ontario-based organizations that share CARFAC's values

Depending on the matter, we may charge a value-based fee, a fixed fee, or by the hour. Group consultations with shared fees, and installment payment plans, may be available in certain circumstances.

All fees are in Canadian dollars and subject to applicable taxes such as HST. The program does not include court, tribunal, or litigation matters, which are quoted separately. Disbursements and government filing fees are extra.

Fixed fees apply only to the services described; additional or more complex work is quoted separately. The listed rates are a guide, and more complex matters are individually assessed and quoted. Time noted for a service is total lawyer time — it includes reviewing your intake and documents as well as the meeting itself.

This is a pilot project, so services, pricing and the tier structure can change, be updated or end at any time. All services are provided under Entcounsel's engagement terms, privacy policy, terms of service, and the CARFAC Member Legal Services Agreement.