Thought Leadership

Traditional knowledge (TK) often helps researchers to locate, understand, and usefully apply genetic resources extracted from plants and animals. In some cases, TK provides the basis for cartographic insights and data on a wide range of otherwise inaccessible information. However, one of the sources of disquiet about TK is the perception that it is sometimes taken without permission, or when permission is given, TK may be used in a manner inconsistent with the expectations or wishes of the community. Even when researchers are working with Indigenous communities in good faith, there remains the risk of a misunderstanding or unintended misuse of the knowledge that can damage trust, build suspicion, and even cause economic, environmental, or other harm to the community.

A new legal application, Legalswipe developed by University of Ottawa Faculty of Law graduate Christien Levien, is changing the face of the administration of justice.

The global South is full of significant, diverse biological and genetic resources. It’s also home to most of the world’s indigenous communities. This is why developing countries are sensitive about protecting their genetic resources and traditional knowledge.

On Feburary 17, the University of Ottawa’s Faculty of Law and the Centre for Law, Technology and Society welcomed Bruce Schneier to give the 9th annual Deirdre G. Martin Memorial Lecture on Privacy.

R. v. Jarvis:  Cyberviolence against women – can criminal law respond?

In 2011,Ryan Jarvis, aLondon Ontario high school teacher, used a pen camera to surreptitiously record brief videos of students engaged in various activities around the school without their permission. After reports from another teacher, the school principal personally witnessed Jarvisrecording two female students, and demanded that he turn over the camera.  Police analysis of the device revealed 17 active videos, 2 videos which had been deleted but subsequently recovered and other videos that were not recoverable.  Of the 30 individuals depicted in the videos, 27 were female students; five of the images focused specifically on their breasts.  Some days later, police searched Jarvis’ home and found that most of the files on a hard drive located in Jarvis’ room had been placed there after the pen camera was seized. This article discusses the scope of application under the Criminal Code.

This paper argues that a focus on reasonableness draws attention away from the central problem with surveillance and lawful access, which is rooted in the conflict between the normative imperative to enforce the Criminal Code and the normative imperative to enforce the right to be secure against unreasonable search or seizure under section 8 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

On November 30, 2015 experts in trade and technology – Burcu Kilic, Carolina Rossini, Jeremy de Beer, Michael Geist and Tamir Israel – met at University of Ottawa to discuss the impact of technology provisions of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a 6000 page agreement between 12 countries negotiated with the goal of developing a 21^st century trade regime. 

It was a packed room with people either interested to hear what Canada’s role in banning killer robots could be, or curious about what the heck killer robots are. 2L Student Chelsey Colbert-Pollard reports on the panel discussion held by the CLTS on November 5.

One of the joys of copyright law is its tendency to produce unexpected and controversial decisions. Blacklock’s Reporter v. Canadian Vintners Association, an October 16, 2015, judgement from Ontario Small Claims Court, qualifies on both counts. The decision might originate with Small Claims but is nonetheless making big waves. What’s the fuss about?