The recent sequencing of two human genomes exemplifies the current pace of development in the field of genomics. Newer technology is making it much cheaper and quicker to carry out this process, which raises the possibility that its use will eventually become more widespread by researchers, such that the genomes of consumers and patients may […]
In my last privacy post I identified certain cloud-computing privacy issues that may be regulated by the free-market. This post will outline a risk-based approach to analyzing privacy issues that laws and legislation may be required to address. A risk-based analysis is beneficial in that it changes how a problem is viewed and the type of solution […]
The user-oriented approach to copyright law expressed in CCH Canadian Ltd. v. Law Society of Upper Canada cannot be used to justify media freeloading under the guise of fair dealing. After the death of Stefanie Rengel, four major Toronto newspapers ran photos of the victim that were taken from Facebook. Does this practice falls under […]
In a recent speech made at The CBA Canadian Legal Conference Expo, the Canadian privacy commissioner, Jennifer Stoddart, weighed in on the novel privacy concerns arising from advances in information technology. Of central concern in her speech is the widespread dissemination of personal information through online publication of judicial decisions. In some instances the names, […]
The pervasiveness of the internet and the rise of online communities present new challenges to copyright law and the notion of fair dealing. For instance - In the aftermath of the stabbing death of 14-year old Stefanie Rengel, all of Toronto’s daily newspapers ran photos of her taken from Facebook. Permission was not granted (or […]
Update July 7, 2009: Jonathan Giraldi's post "CIRA’s WHOIS Policy Strikes a Balance" won the Gowlings LLP Best Blog in IP Law and Technology Prize Fall 2008 in Professor D'Agostino's IP class In a hotly-debated move, Canada’s internet domain registry authority has allowed select groups to request the personal information of domain registrants, after promising […]
In August 2008, New Zealand judge, Justice David Harvey, made a ruling banning the publication of the names of two men who were charged with murder, on news websites. His main concern was the ability of jurors to Google the names of defendants before trials, and easily access information on their past criminal history. He […]
What started in early 2007 as just another simmering lawsuit against YouTube boiled over halfway through the summer into a full-blown battle over Internet privacy. While it’s still unclear who’s on which side, it’s fairly obvious that in the end, users are the ones losing out. And for that, we have Google to thank. In […]
In a column dated April 29, 2008,[1] Law professor Michael Geist called a draft version of CIRA’s WHOIS policy “a model for domain name registries around the world.”[2] When the policy was finally introduced in July, Professor Geist’s position changed dramatically; WHOIS was now “a significant setback.”[3] Why the stunning volte-face? First, some background. […]
Court and Tribunal decisions, being a work under the direction or control of Her Majesty, fall under the Crown Copyright.[1] Because of the importance in a democratic society to provide unimpeded access to the law, the federal government has officially made an exception to the exclusive copyright possessed by the government for decisions and the […]