E-TIPS

On August 21, 2020 in Choueifaty v Canada (Attorney General), 2020 FC 837, the Federal Court of Canada (the Court) considered an appeal from a decision of the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) refusing a patent application as not being directed to patent-eligible subject matter.

On July 24, 2020, in Rallysport Direct LLC v 2424508 Ontario Ltd, 2020 FC 794, the Federal Court of Canada (the Court) awarded Rallysport Direct LLC (RSD) statutory and punitive damages against the defendants for copyright infringement.

On August 20, 2020, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (the Office) published an announcement detailing privacy guidance on the Internet of Things (IoT) to assist manufacturers in the development of smart devices that comply with federal privacy laws and respect privacy rights, and to provide advice for Canadians on how to protect their personal information while utilizing smart devices.

On August 31, 2020, in Canada (Health) v Glaxosmithkline Biologicals SA, 2020 FCA 135, the Federal Court of Appeal of Canada (the Court) dismissed a motion by the Minister of Health (the Minister) to stay the judgement of the Federal Court issued on April 7, 2020 (2020 FC 397) until the appeal is determined.

On August 27, 2020, the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (Commissioner) shared with members of two parliamentary committees his response to an information request on the privacy implications of the federal government’s COVID-19 exposure notification application, COVID Alert.

On August 13, 2020, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC) released the new Privacy Guide for Businesses (the Guide). The Guide provides organizations with a summary of the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) and explains how it applies. The goal of the Guide is to make it easier for businesses to protect their customers’ privacy and comply with PIPEDA.

On August 4, 2020, in TFI Foods Ltd v Every Green International Inc, 2020 FC 808, the Federal Court of Canada (the Court) issued an interlocutory injunction enjoining Every Green International Inc. (Every Green) from selling any products bearing the I-MEI trademark with labels identifying Every Green as the exclusive distributor, and requiring Every Green to recall all products with such labelling.

On August 15, 2020, the Government of Canada released a Statement advising that GCKey service and Canadian Revenue Agency (CRA) accounts were the subject of “credential stuffing” attacks and that online CRA services would be temporarily disabled as a precaution.

On August 17, 2020, the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (the Court) released its decision in Tiffany and Co et al v Costco Wholesale Corp, No. 17-2798, overturning the district court’s judgement for Tiffany and Co. (Tiffany).

On August 13, 2020, the province of Ontario (the Province) launched consultations with people and businesses from a wide range of sectors, including technology, finance and service, and the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario in an effort to improve the province’s privacy protection laws. The Province’s overarching goal of these consultations is to strengthen transparency and accountability concerning the collection, use and safeguarding of personal information online.

We are asked this all the time. It is a good question. We explain in this article how recent developments have impacted the progress of trademark applications in Canada.

In 2017, a former TD employee filed a complaint with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada regarding the outsourcing of TD’s fraud claim investigations to service providers operating in India. The Commissioner recently released its Report of Findings in respect of the complaint.

On July 28, 2020, the Federal Court of Appeal of Canada (FCA) in Salt Canada Inc v Baker, 2020 FCA 127, clarified the powers of the Federal Court to adjudicate title to a patent under section 52 of the Patent Act, including engaging in interpretation of contractual agreements and other commercial instruments between private parties, to ensure that the records of the Patent Office reflect the correct legal situation.

On July 29, 2020, the US Federal Circuit (the Court) released its decision in FanDuel, Inc v Interactive Games LLC, No. 19-1393 (Fed. Cir. 2020), affirming the decision of the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) finding that FanDuel, Inc (FanDuel) failed to prove that claim 6 of Interactive Games LLC (IG)’s patent for a system for remote gambling via mobile phones was obvious.

On July 31, 2020, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada and the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario (collectively, the commissioners) issued a news release supporting use of the COVID-19 tracing application developed by the Canadian federal government, COVID Alert, after completing their review of the application and undergoing in-depth discussions with the federal and Ontario governments.

On July 10, 2020, in ViiV Healthcare ULC v Canada (Health), 2020 FC 756, the Federal Court of Canada (the Court) found the decision of the Minister of Health (the Minister) denying a Certificate of Supplementary Protection (CSP) in respect of Canadian Patent No. 2,606,282 (the 282 Patent) and the drug JULUCA® unreasonable. The matter was remitted to the Minister for redetermination.

On July 10, 2020, the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC), in Reference re Genetic Non-Discrimination Act (2020 SCC 17), upheld the Genetic Non-Discrimination Act (the Genetic NDA) as constitutional, acknowledging an individual’s right to privacy over genetic information.

On July 16, 2020, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) released its decision in Data Protection Commissioner v Facebook Ireland Limited and Maximillian Schrems (C-311/18), declaring the EU-US Privacy Shield to be invalid on the basis that it does not provide adequate protection for transferring personal data from the European Union (EU) to third parties in the United States (US).

On July 17, 2020, the government of Ontario (the government) announced the province’s first Intellectual Property Action Plan (the Action Plan). The Action Plan is intended to drive Ontario’s competitiveness by prioritizing intellectual property (IP) generation, protection and commercialization, especially as Ontario recovers from the economic downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The unveiling of the Action Plan coincides with the government’s announcement of a second round of research projects supported through the Ontario COVID-19 Rapid Research Fund.

On July 21, 2020, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada published a news release and an open letter to video teleconferencing companies (VTC companies) outlining the obligation to comply with data protection and privacy laws and responsibly handle the personal information of its users.