Articles 2019

Topics covered this week included franchise law and rescission, liability for wrongful patent enforcement, the duty to defend in the MVA context, family law (custody and access and breach of court orders), securities class actions, and mortgage enforcement. John Polyzogopoulos

Due to the flexible nature of the law of claims construction in Canada, the meaning of the commonly used transitional phrase "consisting essentially of" may surprise foreign lawyers and patent practitioners.

Dans une lettre (disponible uniquement en anglais) adressée à Innovation, Sciences et Développement économique Canada (ISDE), la Section nationale de l’ABC de la propriété intellectuelle relève que les modifications apportées en 2014 à la Loi sur les marques de commerce.

The British Columbia Court of Appeal (BCCA) in Vancouver Community College v. Vancouver Career College (Burnaby) Inc. recently decided that use of a trademark as a keyword advertisement constituted passing off of a trademark, unanimously reversing the trial judge’s decision. The BCCA held that trademark confusion occurs at the moment the consumer first encounters the trademark in the search results, and not the moment the consumer clicks on the link and arrives at the landing page.

Significant legislative changes are on the horizon in the field of genetic testing with Parliament’s recent passage of Bill S-201: An Act to Prohibit and Prevent Genetic Discrimination. The Act will implement broad protections relating to an individual’s right to access their genetic information, as well as to prevent an individual from being required to undergo genetic testing and to disclose the results of their genetic tests. This article examines the legislative changes.

Beacon Technology or Bluetooth Low Energy Beacons (collectively, “Beacons”) are becoming a major technological advancement available to Canadian retailers. However, Beacons also pose various legal concerns relating to privacy and data collection. This article discusses how Beacon technology works, and examines some of the legal considerations of which practitioners and business owners should be aware.

The Supreme Court of Canada heard oral arguments on November 8, 2016 in an important appeal challenging the “promise of the patent” utility doctrine in Canada. In AstraZeneca Canada Inc. v. Apotex Inc. (Esomeprazole), the Supreme Court was asked to decide on the question of whether the doctrine properly exists in Canada. This article provides a brief summary of the oral arguments heard by the Supreme Court.

John Simpson outlines the options available to companies experiencing an online attack on its brand.