1. Acceptance of these terms
These Terms of Use (“Terms”) govern your access to and use of the website at hmrg.org and the Lodestar operations application (together, the “Services”), operated by Hamilton Medical Research Group (“HMRG”, “we”, “us”, or “our”) — a clinical research site operated by 1140448 Ontario Ltd., located at 304 Victoria Ave N, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. By accessing or using the Services, you agree to be bound by these Terms. If you do not agree, do not use the Services.
2. The Services
The hmrg.org website provides information about HMRG, our clinical research activities, and how sponsors, contract research organizations, and prospective participants can engage with us. Lodestar is HMRG’s internal operations application used by authorized HMRG staff and contractors to manage clinical-trial portfolio operations, including study milestones, equipment records, and invoicing. Lodestar is not a public or consumer product; access is restricted to authenticated, authorized users.
3. Authorized use and licence (Lodestar)
Subject to these Terms, HMRG grants authorized users a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable licence to access and use Lodestar solely for HMRG’s internal business purposes and only in the manner expressly permitted by HMRG. This licence does not transfer any ownership interest in the application.
You agree not to:
- Access Lodestar without authorization, or share, transfer, or expose your credentials to any unauthorized person;
- Copy, modify, reverse-engineer, decompile, or create derivative works from any part of the Services, except as permitted by applicable law;
- Use the Services to violate any law, regulation, clinical-trial protocol, or third-party right;
- Interfere with, disrupt, or attempt to gain unauthorized access to the Services or their underlying systems, networks, or data;
- Use the Services to process data for any purpose other than HMRG’s authorized operations.
4. Third-party services and integrations
The Services integrate with third-party platforms to deliver their functionality. Where Lodestar connects to a third-party service on HMRG’s behalf, that connection is authorized by HMRG and used only for HMRG’s internal business purposes.
QuickBooks Online (Intuit) integration
Lodestar integrates with QuickBooks Online to record approved clinical-trial site invoices in HMRG’s own accounting records. This integration is used solely by authorized HMRG staff to push HMRG’s own invoice data, with attached invoice documents, into HMRG’s own QuickBooks Online company. HMRG does not use this integration to access, process, or store the financial data of any other organization. Your use of QuickBooks Online remains subject to Intuit’s own terms and privacy policy.
HMRG is not responsible for the availability, accuracy, or practices of third-party services, and your use of those services may be governed by their own terms.
5. Intellectual property
The Services, including their design, text, graphics, software, and the Lodestar application and its name, are owned by HMRG or its licensors and are protected by Canadian and international intellectual-property laws. Except for the limited licence granted above, no right, title, or interest in the Services is transferred to you.
6. No medical or professional advice
Information on the hmrg.org website is provided for general informational purposes and does not constitute medical, legal, financial, or other professional advice. Participation in any clinical trial is governed by the specific informed-consent documents for that trial. Nothing on this website creates a physician–patient relationship.
7. Disclaimers
The Services are provided “as is” and “as available”, without warranties of any kind, whether express or implied, including implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement. HMRG does not warrant that the Services will be uninterrupted, error-free, or secure. You use the Services at your own risk.
8. Limitation of liability
To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, HMRG and its directors, officers, employees, and contractors will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, or any loss of data, revenue, or profits, arising out of or related to your use of the Services — whether based in contract, tort, or any other legal theory — even if advised of the possibility of such damages.
9. Privacy
Our handling of personal information is described in our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated into these Terms by reference. Personal health information collected as part of a specific clinical trial is governed primarily by the consent form signed for that trial.
10. Governing law
These Terms are governed by the laws of the Province of Ontario and the federal laws of Canada applicable therein, without regard to conflict-of-laws principles. You agree to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts located in Ontario for any dispute arising out of or relating to these Terms or the Services.
11. Changes to these terms
We may update these Terms from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, the Services, or our legal obligations. The “last updated” date below indicates when these Terms were most recently revised. Your continued use of the Services after a change takes effect constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms.
12. Contact us
For questions about these Terms, contact:
Hamilton Medical Research Group304 Victoria Ave N, Hamilton, ON L8L 5G4
Email: info@hmrg.org