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privacy

Privacy Commissioner v Facebook: Protecting Your Data From Tech Giants

Canadian privacy law hit Facebook hard in the Federal Court of Appeal’s recent decision in Privacy Commissioner of Canada v Facebook inc., 2024 FCA 140 [Facebook]. The unanimous decision held that Facebook failed to obtain meaningful consent from users prior to disclosing user data. The decision is part of a larger trend in Canadian jurisprudence […]

R v Bykovets: A Proactive Approach to Digital Privacy

In R v Bykovets, 2024 SCC 6 [Bykovets], a 5-4 majority of the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) found that Internet Protocol (“IP”) addresses are protected by the right against unreasonable search and seizure in section 8 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms [Charter]. Henceforth, police will require a search warrant to compel […]

Keeping Confident about Cabinet Confidentiality: Ontario v Ontario

In Ontario (Attorney General) v Ontario (Information and Privacy Commissioner), 2024 SCC 4 [Ontario], the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC” or the “Court”) held that the executive branch of the Ontario government was not required to disclose mandate letters sent to Cabinet Ministers because of society’s overriding interest in preserving Cabinet secrecy. The Court struck […]

R v Bykovets: Police Protocol for Internet Protocol

In R v Bykovets, 2024 SCC 6, the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) decided that Canadians have a reasonable expectation of privacy in their Internet Protocol (“IP”) addresses. As a result, law enforcement and investigative agencies will require judicial authorization to compel disclosure of IP addresses, or else be found to breach section 8 of […]

R v Canfield: Unrestricted Searches of Digital Devices at the Border Declared Unconstitutional

Over the past decade, personal electronic devices (“PEDs”) such as cell phones, tablets, and laptops have become mobile security safes for individuals’ core biographical and personal information. They contain banking information, credit card numbers, health data, private correspondence, and personal photos, all locked away by a single password. Having another person, especially a government official, […]

The Scope of the Federal Criminal Law Power in the Reference re Genetic Non-Discrimination Act

The need to safeguard privacy has long been a mainstay of the Canadian legal system. The right to secure autonomy and control over our private information has been preserved both by federal criminal legislation and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms [Charter], further bolstered by jurisprudence addressing the importance of privacy and autonomy to our […]

R v Jarvis: Carving out a Contextual Approach to Privacy

The Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC” or the “Court”) released a landmark decision last month that defines privacy rights in public areas. In R v Jarvis, 2019 SCC 10 [Jarvis], the Court overruled a Court of Appeal for Ontario (“ONCA”) decision and decided that people can have a reasonable expectation of privacy even in public […]