Publications
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AI in the Courtroom: A Call to Order in Specter Aviation
Eight quotes hallucinated by AI cost $5,000 for substantial breach (art. 342 C.C.P.) in the Specter Aviation case.1 While AI can improve access to justice, unverified AI use can lead to sanctions, adding to the risks unrepresented parties face. Quebec courts advocate for openness to AI, but with (…)
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Export controls: implications in a world of knowledge sharing
Introduction When we hear the term “export controls,” we may think it only applies to weapons and other highly sensitive technologies, but that is not the case. There are a multitude of circumstances—some unexpected—to which it is important to know that export controls apply. This is especially (…)
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Data Anonymization: Not as Simple as It Seems
Blind spots to watch for when anonymizing data Anonymization has become a crucial step in unlocking the value of data for innovation, particularly in artificial intelligence. But without a properly executed anonymization process, organizations risk financial penalties, legal action and serious (…)
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AI: Where Do We Go From Here?
In March 2017 – more than 3,000 days ago – Lavery established its Artificial Intelligence Legal Lab to study and, above all, anticipate developments in artificial intelligence. Quite innovative at the time, the goal of Lab was to position itself ahead of the legal complexities that artificial (…)
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Provincial Budget 2025: Major Changes to the Tax Credit for the Development of E-Business (TCEB)
In this bulletin, we will be discussing the TCEB as part of our series on the 2025 Quebec budget and corporate taxation. This particular tax credit aims to boost innovation and competitiveness in the digital marketplace by providing strategic tax assistance to businesses specializing in information (…)
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Businesses: Four tips to avoid dependency or vulnerability in your use of AI
While the world is focused on how the tariff war is affecting various products, it may be overlooking the risks the war is posing to information technology. Yet, many businesses rely on artificial intelligence to provide their services, and many of these technologies are powered by large language (…)
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Can artificial intelligence be designated as an inventor in a patent application?
Artificial intelligence (“AI”) is becoming increasingly sophisticated, and the fact that this human invention can now generate its own inventions opens the door to new ways of conceptualizing the notion of “inventor” in patent law. In a recent ruling, the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom (“UK (…)
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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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Smart product liability: issues and challenges
Introduction In 2023, where do we stand in terms of liability where smart products are concerned? The rules governing product liability set out in the Civil Code of Québec were introduced early in the 20th century in response to the industrial revolution and the growing number of workplace (…)
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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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Crypto asset works of art and non-fungible token (NFT) investments: Be careful!
On March 11, 2021, Christie’s auction house made a landmark sale by auctioning off an entirely digital artwork by the artist Beeple, a $69 million transaction in Ether, a cryptocurrency.1 In doing so, the famous auction house put non-fungible tokens (“NFT”), the product of a decentralized (…)
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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 (…)