Virgil Cojocaru is a JD Candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School. deCODE Genetics, an Icelandic firm that offers customers private DNA tests has filed for bankruptcy. Customers would typically take a genetic sample from the inside of their cheek and would mail it to the address provided. deCODE Genetics would calculate the chances of a person […]
Virgil Cojocaru is a JD candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School. The Privacy Commissioner of Canada, Ms. Jennifer Stoddart, in a letter to the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security concludes that the Investigative Powers for the 21st Century Act (Bill C-46) and the Technical Assistance for Law Enforcement in the 21st Century […]
Virgil Cojocaru is a JD candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School. Professor Emir Aly Crowne-Mohammed and Yonatan Rozenszajn argue in their article, DRM Roll Please: Is Digital Rights Management Legislation Unconstitutional in Canada? that the Digital Rights Management (DRM) Provisions in Bill C-61 are ultra vires (Latin for "beyond the powers") of Parliament’s power under […]
Brian Chau is a JD candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School. Given the essential role that entrepreneurs play in driving the economy, there is no question that the creation of patent laws must take into account the protection of their interests. From a small business perspective, patents play a large role not only in helping protect their inventions […]
Virgil Cojocaru is a JD candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School. ‘The Long Tail’, written by Chris Anderson refers to the alleged effect of online stores such as Netflix appealing to smaller niches. Individually these niches do not yield a large profit, but collectively (hence the long part) they can provide a handsome reward. Some […]
Virgil Cojocaru is a JD candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School. You are shopping online, surfing on Blockbuster. The next day one of your friends on Facebook messages you, “hey Dave, nice choice in movies!” What has just happened here? Some might argue this is just amicable banter between close friends. Others might quickly point […]
Brandon Evenson is a JD candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School. Given Google’s internet footprint, it would be easy for any web surfer to mistakenly conclude that Google is out to rule the online world. These surfers must be reminded, however, that Google’s true mission is to “organize the world's information and make it universally accessible […]
Alex Gloor is a JD student at Osgoode Hall Law School. Cleantech is everywhere you look. Hybrid cars. Energy efficient appliances. Geothermal power. There is a global realization that continuing our coal-burning, energy guzzling ways are unsustainable, both because we will exhaust the planet of its resources and because of the uncertain, but certainly disastrous, […]
On May 6, 2009, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger launched an initiative to make available free digital textbooks for high school students. California's Secretary of Education, Glen Thomas, was responsible for ensuring that digital resources were available for use in high school math and science classes this September. According to Governor Schwarzenegger, California's budget crisis motivated […]
Software patents have been criticized frequently in recent years for a multitude of reasons. Computer programmers argue that they can make programming impossible for both commercial and for non-profit projects. Some analysts have noted that they do not promote innovation like patents in other industries do, and may in fact be hurting research and development […]