Publications
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Sponsorship agreements in the sports world: the promise of fame and exposure
“I was outraged!” “It beggars belief!” “It’s ridiculous!”1 These are just a few of the comments heard in connection with a controversial clause in Neymar’s contract with the Saudi Arabia-based Al Hilal soccer club, which he signed in August 2023. It provided for a payment of approximately $500,000 (…)
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Publicity contests no longer regulated by the Régie des alcools, des courses et des jeux
On June 2, 2021, the Québec government reduced the administrative burden relating to international publicity contests by excluding them from the jurisdiction of the Régie des alcools, des courses et des jeux (the “Régie”). It has now followed suit with all types of publicity contests launched on or (…)
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The forgotten aspects of AI: reflections on the laws governing information technology
While lawmakers in Canada1 and elsewhere2 are endeavouring to regulate the development and use of technologies based on artificial intelligence (AI), it is important to bear in mind that these technologies are also classified within the broader family of information technology (IT). In 2001, Quebec (…)
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Team trademarks: naming the champions
Choosing the name of a sports team can be a perilous exercise. In addition to representing certain values, names are supposed to fire up the fan base and motivate the athletes themselves. It must sometimes meet with the approval of major sponsors. But when sports teams are companies seeking to (…)
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Artificial intelligence in business: managing the risks and reaping the benefits?
At a time when some are demanding that artificial intelligence (AI) research and advanced systems development be temporarily suspended and others want to close Pandora’s box, it is appropriate to ask what effect chat technology (ChatGPT, Bard and others) will have on businesses and workplaces. Some (…)
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SOCAN Decision: Online music distributors must only pay a single royalty fee
In Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada v. Entertainment Software Association1 (the “SOCAN Decision”), the Supreme Court of Canada ruled on the obligation to pay a royalty for making a work available to the public on a server, where it can later be streamed or downloaded. At (…)
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Cybersecurity and the dangers of the Internet of Things
While the Canadian government has said it intends to pass legislation dealing with cybersecurity (see Bill C-26 to enact the Critical Cyber Systems Protection Act), many companies have already taken significant steps to protect their IT infrastructure. However, the Internet of Things is too often (…)
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Bill C-18 (Online News Act): Canada looking to create a level playing field for news media
Earlier this month, Canadian Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez introduced Bill C-18 (Online News Act) in Parliament. This bill, which was largely inspired by similar legislation in Australia, aims to reduce bargaining imbalances between online platforms and Canadian news outlets in terms of how (…)
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A False Sense of Cybersecurity?
Ransomware has wreaked so much havoc in recent years that many people forget about other cybersecurity risks. For some, not storing personal information makes them feeling immune to hackers and cyber incidents. For others, as long as their computers are working, they do not feel exposed to no (…)
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Do you know your open-source licences?
Do you have the right to copy source code written and developed by someone else? The answer to this question depends on the situation; however, even in the context of open innovation, intellectual property rights will be the starting point for any analysis required to obtain such an answer. In the (…)
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Adoption of Bill 64: what do public bodies need to know?
Bill 64, also known as the Act to modernize legislative provisions as regards the protection of personal information, was adopted on September 21, 2021, by the National Assembly of Québec. This new bill amends some 20 laws relating to the protection of personal information, including the Act (…)
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Amendments to Privacy Laws: What Businesses Need to Know
Bill 64, also known as the Act to modernize legislative provisions respecting the protection of personal information, was adopted on September 21, 2021, by the National Assembly of Québec. It amends some 20 laws relating to the protection of personal information, including the Act respecting access (…)
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Studios and designers: How to protect the intellectual property of your video games?
Behind every video game, there is intellectual property (IP) which is worth protecting to optimize monetisation of the game. As discussed in Studios and designers: Are you sure that you own the intellectual property rights to your video games, the first step for studios and designers is to make sure (…)
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Artificial intelligence soon to be regulated in Canada?
For the time being, there are no specific laws governing the use of artificial intelligence in Canada. Certainly, the laws on the use of personal information and those that prohibit discrimination still apply, no matter if the technologies involved are so-called artificial intelligence technologies (…)
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Studios and designers: Are you sure that you own the intellectual property rights to your video games?
The year 2020 will have been difficult for the vast majority of industries, and in particular for the arts, entertainment and recreation industry. The video game industry, however, is growing in leaps and bounds. For example, Nintendo and PlayStation have each set record sales for their games (…)
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The Unforeseen Benefits of Driverless Transport during a Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic has been not only causing major social upheaval but disrupting business development and the economy as well. Nevertheless, since last March, we have seen many developments and new projects involving self-driving vehicles (SDV). Here is an overview. Distancing made easy thanks (…)
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E-commerce: Protecting Your Work
As distribution channels with a global reach, websites are a powerful tool for doing business, and during the pandemic, they even play a critical role. A website consists of a set of webpages accessible from an address hosted on a server through the internet or an intranet. A website is a (…)
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E-commerce: Your Obligations regarding Consumer Protection and Competition Matters
Before selling your products and services online, you will need to determine the form and content of your contract, and ensure that you comply with the provisions of the Consumer Protection Act (the “CPA”). The CPA applies to any contract between a consumer and a merchant entered into in Quebec, (…)
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E-commerce: Some Laws and Rules You Should Be Aware of
Various ways of doing e-commerce E-commerce can take different forms. For the purposes of this article, we will refer to e-commerce where the contract of sale or of supply of services is concluded by electronic means, E-commerce will be said to be “direct” when the product or service is delivered (…)
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Impact of technology on the practice of law
Technology is now a part of our day-to-day lives, and we’ve learned how to use it. But what about our judicial institutions? What impact does technology have on the administration of proof and the practice of law? The Court of Appeal provides us with some solutions (and grounds for discussion) in (…)
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Is an audio recording on magnetic tape a technological document?
This publication was co-authored by Luc Thibaudeau, former partner of Lavery and now judge in the Civil Division of the Court of Québec, District of Longueuil. Despite its coming into force in 2001, the courts have frequently avoided commenting on the application and interpretation of the Act to (…)
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The Superior Court of Québec analyses the exception allowing the use
of a work protected by copyright for the purpose of news reportingIn Cedrom-SNi inc. v. Dose Pro inc. (“Cedrom-SNi”), the Superior Court of Québec rendered a decision which, although issued at the interlocutory stage, is of interest to Canada’s media and entertainment industry since it is one of the rare decisions which analyses the criteria for applying the (…)
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Doing Business In Quebec
Download our complete guide to develop your business in Quebec Doing Business In Quebec
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Intellectual Property and Artificial Intelligence
Although artificial intelligence has been evolving constantly in the past few years, the law sometimes has difficulty keeping pace with such developments. Intellectual property issues are especially important: businesses investing in these technologies must be sure that they can take full advantage (…)
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Deceptive Online Marketing Practices: Intermediaries, what is your legal exposure?
In recent decades, online advertising has become the single most efficient and interactive way to reach consumers and assess their behaviour. While television and print audiences continue to dwindle and overall marketing strategies that focus on these mediums are less able to effectively measure and (…)
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“Like our Facebook page and you could win a tablet computer” - are you following the rules?
Promotional contests are among the advertising activities favoured by businesses. In the age of social media, they are increasingly frequent and popular — “Win a trip down South!”, “Fantastic stroller to be won among everyone who likes our Facebook page!”. However, not everyone is aware of all the (…)
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When artificial intelligence is discriminatory
Artificial intelligence has undergone significant developments in the last few years, particularly in respect of what is now known as deep learning.1 This method is the extension of the neural networks which have been used for a few years for machine learning. Deep learning, as any other form of (…)
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Artificial intelligence and its legal challenges
Is there a greater challenge than to write a legal article on an emerging technology that does not exist yet in its absolute form? Artificial intelligence, through a broad spectrum of branches and applications, will impact corporate and business integrity, corporate governance, distribution of (…)
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Artificial intelligence: contractual obligations beyond the buzzwords
Can computers learn and reason? If so, what are the limitations of the tasks that they can be given? These questions have been the subject of countless debate as far back as 1937, when Alan Turing published his work on computable numbers1. Many researchers have devoted themselves to developing (…)
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Artificial Intelligence and the 2017 Canadian Budget: is your business ready?
The March 22, 2017 Budget of the Government of Canada, through its “Innovation and Skills Plan” (http://www.budget.gc.ca/2017/docs/plan/budget-2017-en.pdf) mentions that Canadian academic and research leadership in artificial intelligence will be translated into a more innovative economy and (…)
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Public display of trade marks in a language other than French – Coming into force of the regulatory amendments
On May 4, 2016, a draft regulation amending the Regulation respecting the language of commerce and business was published in the Gazette officielle du Québec (see our bulletin on this subject). On November 3, 2016, the Quebec government announced that the amendments to the Regulation respecting the (…)
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Public display of trade marks in a language other than French
In 20141, major retailers Best Buy Canada Ltd., Costco Wholesale Canada Ltd., Gap (Canada) Inc., Old Navy (Canada) Inc., Guess? Canada Corporation, Wal-Mart Canada Corp., Toys “R” Us Canada Ltd. and Curves International Inc. had filed a motion for declaratory judgment before the Superior Court for (…)
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Tax relief to stimulate commercialization of intellectual property made in Québec
Inspired by a worldwide trend to encourage the growth of innovation, Québec has recently announced a new tax relief measure for innovative companies. Thus, the Québec government is instituting an “innovative companies deduction” (ICD). The goal of this initiative is to “ensure that innovations (…)
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English trademarks on public signs – Expected changes
Last April 27, the Court of Appeal of Quebec dismissed the appeal, from the bench, by the Attorney General of Quebec concerning the use of English trademarks on public signs. The Attorney General was contesting the judgment rendered by the Honourable Michel Yergeau of the Superior Court who held (…)
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Advance Tax Credit Financing
Corporations that are in need of liquidities can, simply put, not afford to wait until the end of the fiscal year to receive payment of refundable tax credits. For this reason, some lenders offer to advance funds to eligible taxpaying corporations (hereinafter “Taxpayers”) in the form of a loan, (…)
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Use of Social Media by Employees
In this age of social networks, the dividing line between private life and public life seems more and more blurred. The same is true of the boundary between individuals' personal and professional lives. Indeed, headlines in the past few weeks remind us that the personal and professional aspects of (…)
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Legal newsletter for business entrepreneurs and executives, Number 23
SUMMARY MUNICIPAL TAXES: IS IT POSSIBLE TO REDUCE THE BILL? PATENTS ON INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY: NEW BENCHMARKS MUNICIPAL TAXES: IS IT POSSIBLE TO REDUCE THE BILL? Audrey-Julie Dallaire The tax pressure stemming from municipal taxes certainly constitutes an irritant for businesses. It was (…)
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Legal newsletter for business entrepreneurs and executives, Number 21
CONTENT Overview of the Proposed Rules Respecting Equity Crowdfunding Trademarks in the English Language on Pubilc Signs and PostersOVERVIEW OF THE PROPOSED RULES RESPECTING EQUITY CROWDFUNDINGJosianne BeaudryIn 2013, the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) launched a consultation on equity (…)
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Labelling of your products in Canada, and particularly Quebec: don't forget to translate!
Our clients from outside the province of Quebec often ask us the following questions: what are the linguistic labelling requirements in Canada, and particularly Quebec? There are several statutes and regulations governing labelling in Quebec and Canada. The following is a summary of some of the (…)
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Trademarks in the English language on public signs and posters
On April 9 last, the Superior Court of Québec issued its judgement1 on a motion for a declaratory judgment pertaining to trademarks in the English language on public signs and posters. The applicants, Magasin Best Buy Ltée, Costco Wholesale Canada Ltd, Gap (Canada) Inc., Old Navy (Canada) Inc., (…)
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Canada initiates a process to ratify three international treaties on trademarks
On January 27, 2014, the parliamentary secretary of the Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs tabled five treaties in the House of Commons dealing with intellectual property, of which three relate to trademarks.These three treaties on trademarks are as follows: The Protocol Relating to the Madrid (…)
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A first concrete step in combating counterfeiting
The production and circulation of counterfeit products have been an economic and social problem for some time. Not only can such products pose a safety risk to consumers who use them, counterfeit products also lead to considerable lost income for legitimate businesses, decrease consumer confidence (…)
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Legal newsletter for business entrepreneurs and executives, Number 15
Employment Conditions of Foreign Workers Share Ownership : an Overview Certificate of Intellectual Property Pertaining to Software
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Francization – Bill No 14 amending the Charter of the French language
This publication was authored by Luc Thibaudeau, former partner of Lavery and now judge in the Civil Division of the Court of Québec, District of Longueuil. The title of this newsletter gives a good summary of the explanatory notes that serve as an introduction to Bill 14, entitled An Act to amend (…)
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Legal newsletter for technology, life sciences and intellectual property sectors, Number 2
Quebec tax holidays for foreign researchers The Amazon.com judgment : The patentability of the one-click Distinguish yourself! Online downloading in the sights of american justice
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Legal newsletter for technology, life sciences and intellectual property sectors, Number 1
Hyperlinks and defamation: a Judgment that Clarifies the Rules The Myriad Case: Are DNA Molecules Patentable or Not? Lessons Drawn From the Supreme Court's Decision in Masterpiece: Register Your Trade-Marks!
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The Francization of Domain Names: a Step not to be Missed?
If your trademarks and business names contain letters with accents and you are the owner of domain names linked with them, it is important to familiarize yourself with the following.With a view to offering owners the possibility of registering domain names that comply with French spelling, the (…)
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Creation of New Internet Domain Names in 2012
On June 20, 2011, in Singapore, ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers), the global co-ordination body for Internet addresses, approved the new program for the thematic extension of gTLDs. This program will certainly lead to significant growth in the number of domain names (…)
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Legal newsletter for information technology and communication industries players, Number 4
Technology Licences in the Event of Bankruptcy New Quebec Business Corporations Regime The Shareholder Agreement: The ”Specifications” of the Private Corporation Shareholder
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Legal newsletter for business entrepreneurs and executives, Number 6
This publication was authored by Luc Thibaudeau, former partner of Lavery and now judge in the Civil Division of the Court of Québec, District of Longueuil. Disclosure Rules Applicable Prior to the Sale of Additionnal Warranties Attornment of Jurisdiction Clause set Aside in Bankruptcy (…)
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Legal newsletter for business entrepreneurs and executives, Number 5
SMEs are not Immune from Class-Actions Suits in Competition Law SMEs and Trade-Marks Dividing up Corporate Shares in the Event of Divorce, Separation from bed and Board, or Dissolution of a Civil Union
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Legal newsletter for information technology and communication industries players, Number 3
Breakdown in Negotiations: the Binding Effect of a Letter of Intent Providing Card Transactions Security: Your Responsibility Certificate of Intellectual Property Pertaining to Software
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Legal newsletter for information technology and communication industries players, Number 2
Financing and intellectual property — maximizing financing options through intellectual property assets The material adverse change clause: a strong tool Lawsuits against corporate directors: it doesn’t just happen to others!
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Protecting your trade-marks from Facebook usernames
As of June 13, 2009, Facebook Inc. allows Facebook users to create personalized usernames for their Facebook pages on a first-come, first-served basis.
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Increase Your Sales Through Licensing New edition
Increase Your Sales Through Licensing New edition
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Increase Your Sales Through Licensing New edition
Increase Your Sales Through Licensing New edition
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The Appearance of a Package and Trade-Marks
The Appearance of a Package and Trade-Marks
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Is Your Business Protected Against Prosecutions Under the Competition Act? Are You Protected Personally?
Is Your Business Protected Against Prosecutions Under the Competition Act? Are You Protected Personally?
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Protecting One's Trade-Marks: A Winning Strategy
Protecting One's Trade-Marks: A Winning Strategy
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New Domain Names Announced
New Domain Names Announced
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Who Owns the Copyright to Software?
Who Owns the Copyright to Software?
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Legislation Applicable to Exports
Legislation Applicable to Exports
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Electronic Signatures and Document Management
Electronic Signatures and Document Management
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Be Careful When Signing Contracts
Be Careful When Signing Contracts
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Does Your Domain Name Infringe Third-Party Rights?
Does Your Domain Name Infringe Third-Party Rights?
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Patents on Methods of doing Business (Business Methods)
Patents on Methods of doing Business (Business Methods)
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Domaine names .ca: Be Careful!
Domaine names .ca: Be Careful!
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Increase You Sales Through Licensing
Increase You Sales Through Licensing
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Is Software a Patentable Invention?
Is Software a Patentable Invention?
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Distribution agreements: market expansion through an international distributor : boon or bust for software companies
Distribution agreements: market expansion through an international distributor : boon or bust for software companies
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The year 2000 and the liability of users and suppliers of computer products and services
The year 2000 and the liability of users and suppliers of computer products and services
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More and more outsourcing projects ... Why ? ... and a contract checklist
More and more outsourcing projects ... Why ? ... and a contract checklist