Blogs

IP Intensive: Intellectual Property and Entrepreneurialism within a Mid-sized Business Accelerator - A Semester at ventureLAB

During my IP Intensive internship with Markham’s business accelerator, ventureLAB, I gained valuable insight into current issues that start-up companies and entrepreneurs alike face. The management team at ventureLAB is dedicated to providing a wide array of opportunities and resources to companies and individuals (referred to as tenants) to help them remedy some of their […]

CUSMA: The Highlights

It was a thrilling tale of will they, won’t they, but in the end Canada and the US agreed on a trade deal, which was signed today by Canada, the United States and Mexico at the G20 leaders’ summit in Buenos Aires.  While large parts of the new Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) seem to be […]

Target’s Plaid Scarves: Drawing Inspiration or Trademark Infringement?

British fashion-house Burberry is known for its $500 scarves, which are easily recognizable thanks to the brand’s iconic checked pattern. However, with the rise of high-quality imitation designer products, it has become incredibly difficult to tell whether a designer item is counterfeit or not. In particular, imitations of the famous Burberry scarf are rampant at […]

Moral Ethics of Artificial Intelligence Decision-Making – Who Should be Harmed and Who is Held Responsible?

As autonomous vehicles begin their test runs and potential commercial debuts, new liability and ethical questions arise. Unlike other computer algorithms which are already available to the public, a fully automated car divorces the authority of the device from the driver, instead vesting all power and decision-making into the car and its software. Accidents may […]

The Tech Law Ultimatum: Consent or Exile?

Living in the twenty-first century comes with the need to manage expectations. While we live in a modern age with a variety of technological advancements, we may not be as innovative as we previously imagined. After decades of television shows like The Jetsons, some may even be inclined to ask, “Where’s my jetpack?”  Professor Daithí […]

The Confusing Side of Offensive Marks: Matal v Tam’s Implications

The Supreme Court of the United States’ decision in the 2017 case of Matal v Tam (“Matal”) has important implications for trademark law inside and outside of the United States.”  In ruling that the Lanham Act’s “non-disparagement” provision violated the First Amendment, the Court affirmed the decision of the Court of Appeal for the Federal […]

Regulating by proxy, restricting rights, and reducing competition? Pitfalls of the EU copyright directive.

On September 12th, 2018, the European Parliament voted in favour of legislation that purports to be an important step toward integrating EU copyright law in the internet age. Generally, the goal of the Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market (“the Directive”) is to give rights holders direct control over their copyright on internet […]

Use of Facial Recognition Software at Calgary Malls Raises Privacy Concerns

This article was originally published by The Lawyer’s Daily (www.thelawyersdaily.ca), part of LexisNexis Canada Inc. It is a common occurrence to see people checking the directory in a mall to get the location of the most popular stores. But what is less well known is that some malls have begun using those directories to identify […]

Big Data, Privacy and the GDPR

When I attended the Institute for the Future of Law Practice boot camp in May 2018 in Chicago, Professor Matthew Kugler from Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law gave a lecture on cybersecurity, explaining how big data companies are turning humans into business products. In this information age, we are creating a breadcrumb trail of information about who we […]

The Highs and Lows of Patenting Marijuana Strains

After over 95 years of prohibition, recreational usage of marijuana will be legalized nation-wide on October 17th. While the Cannabis Act will transform cannabis breeding from an illegal cottage industry to a legitimate profession, there has so far been no corresponding change in plant breed intellectual property protection. While there are some protections under existing Canadian law, they are weak […]