Statutes, Cases & Treaties

[Updated: 10 Dec 2024]

This page includes links to some of the current statutes, cases and treaties most relevant to Canadian copyright law. Related Opening Up Copyright instructional modules are also linked throughout.

Statutes

Copyright Act, (R.S.C., 1985, c. C-42). This federal legislation governs copyright in Canada, and makes it clear that there is no copyright protection in Canada except through federal statute.

 

Cases

Snow v. The Eaton Centre Ltd. et al., 1982 OJ No. 3645 (Ontario High Court of Justice)
In this well-known moral rights case, the Court found that the modification of a sculptural installation (tying red ribbons around the necks of geese at Christmas time) was a violation of the artist’s moral rights because it was found to prejudice the artist’s honour and reputation.

 

Théberge v. Galerie d'Art du Petit Champlain Inc., 2002 SCC 34
The first major Supreme Court of Canada case on copyright this century, the Théberge decision asserts that the purpose of copyright is to balance the rewarding of creators with encouraging the dissemination of works. Moreover, it cautions against protecting creators’ rights excessively.

 

CCH Canadian Ltd. v. Law Society of Upper Canada, 2004 SCC 13
CCH is most significant for clarifying how to make a determination of fair dealing, and for endorsing the two-stage approach and establishing the six-factor test for fairness.

 

Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada v. Canadian Association of Internet Providers, 2004 SCC 45
This case examines Internet Service Providers’ technological requirements in terms of caching the copyright-protected content transmitted, and whether this constitutes copyright infringement. 

Robertson v. Thomson Corp., 2006 SCC 43
In Robertson v. Thomson, the Supreme Court of Canada makes a distinction between the rights a copyright owner has in a collective work (e.g., a newspaper’s layout as it appears in print) and the rights for articles published separately in a database (out of context from the collective work).

Entertainment Software Association v. Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada, 2012 SCC 34
This case examines the meaning of “communication” as it relates to section 3(1)(f) of the Act. The Court held that the download of a video game amounts to reproduction, not communication. This judgment is the first in a series of five copyright-related decisions in 2012, collectively referred to as the copyright pentalogy.

Rogers Communications Inc. v. Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada, 2012 SCC 35
This case concerns the issue of music streaming, and whether this transmission method constitutes communication “to the public.” The Court ruled that music streamed through online services is considered communication to the public, thus making the service providers liable for royalty fees.

Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada v. Bell Canada, 2012 SCC 36
This case reaffirms and further clarifies the application of CCH’s six-factor test. The Court found that the previews of songs streamed on the internet were for a research purpose, that the research was conducted by the customer, and that this use satisfied the six-factor test and thus counted as fair dealing.

 

Alberta (Education) v. Canadian Copyright Licensing Agency (Access Copyright), 2012 SCC 37
As in SOCAN v. Bell, the application of the CCH six-factor test is reaffirmed and further clarified in this case. The Alberta (Education) decision confirms that, under fair dealing, a teacher can lawfully reproduce short excerpts of materials and distribute those copies to the students in their classes. 

 

Re:Sound v. Motion Picture Theatre Associations of Canada, 2012 SCC 38
At issue in this case is the interpretation of the term “soundtrack” (undefined in the Copyright Act) as it applies to the definition of sound recordings. The Court’s determination of the term’s meaning resulted in ruling against Re:Sound, which sought to collect royalties on pre-existing sound recordings that accompany a cinematographic work.

Warman v. Fournier, 2012 FC 803
In this case, which deals with the alleged infringement of copyright-protected works, one of the issues at hand was to determine whether or not a substantial portion of the works in question had been used. The Court outlined relevant factors to be considered, providing guidance on assessing substantiality.

Cinar Corporation v. Robinson, 2013 SCC 73
As with Warman v. Fournier, this case provides further interpretation for assessing substantiality. Here, the Court considers the cumulative effects of copied features in the creation of a new work, and states the need to examine how reliant the derivative remains on the skill and judgment of the original author.
 

Nintendo of America Inc. v. King, 2017 FC 246
This case was the first time the Copyright Act’s provisions regarding the circumvention of technological protection measures (TPMs) were tested. As a result of providing services and goods that circumvent TPMs, Go Cyber Shopping faced a heavy fine for selling devices that modify Nintendo systems. The limited exceptions for circumvention of TPMs did not apply in this case. 

 

York University v. Canadian Copyright Licensing Agency (Access Copyright), 2021 SCC 32
The main issues of this case revolve around whether tariffs approved by the Copyright Board are mandatory and whether the copyright fair dealing guidelines used by York University were fair. 

 

Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada v. Entertainment Software Association, 2022 SCC 30
At issue in this case is whether or not “making works available” online constitutes a separate copyright holder's right. If yes, payment of royalties would be required for uploading a work to the internet in addition to the downloading or streaming of the same work. As part of this decision, the Supreme Court asserts the principle of technical neutrality, confirming that a user should not have to pay more to access a work simply because it is accessed online.

 

Treaties and Agreements

(The dates within parentheses refer to implementation in Canada.)

Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, (April 10, 1928)
The Berne Convention deals with the protection of works and the rights of authors. Among the treaty’s principles and provisions is a minimum international standard for the term of copyright protection, which lasts 50 years after the author’s death.

Overview: The TRIPS Agreement, (World Trade Organization, January 1, 1995)
The TRIPS (Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights) Agreement links intellectual property rights and trade. This Agreement introduced a considerably stronger level of international protection to copyright holders than under the Berne Convention.

 

Rome Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organizations, (June 4, 1998)
The Rome Convention secures protection in performances for performers (actors, singers, musicians, etc.), in phonograms (fixations of sound) for producers of phonograms and in broadcasts for broadcasting organizations.

WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty, (August 13, 2014)
The WPPT deals with the rights, particularly in the digital environment, of performers (actors, singers, musicians, etc.) and producers of phonograms (persons or legal entities that undertake the fixation of sounds).

WIPO Copyright Treaty, (August 13, 2014)
The WCT is a special agreement under the Berne Convention which deals with the protection of works and the rights of their authors in the digital environment. Additionally, it describes copyright protection for computer programs and compilations of data or other material (i.e., databases).

Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who Are Blind, Visually Impaired or Otherwise Print Disabled, (September 30, 2016)
The Marrakesh Treaty sets mandatory limitations and exceptions to copyright rules for the benefit of the blind, visually impaired and otherwise print disabled. This includes making published works available in formats designed to be accessible.

Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA), (July 1, 2020)
In Article 20.62: Term of Protection for Copyright and Related Rights (ch. 20, s. H), this Agreement sets the duration for the general term of copyright protection as “not less than the life of the author and 70 years after the author’s death.” The term of protection in Canada was thus extended from life plus 50 years effective 30 December 2022, without retroactive effect.