Copyright for WMDD

Canada's original Copyright Act dates back to 1921. It was last updated in 2012, and prior to that in 1997.

As you can imagine, a lot had changed between 1997 and 2012, particularly in regards to digital content. For this reason, the 2012 amendment was eagerly awaited by many. It introduced the concept of technological neutrality, meaning that principles in the Act apply to all works regardless of format. 

Court decisions provide guidance about how to interpret the Copyright Act and ultimately inform the way we use copyright-protected content. The higher the court, the more important the ruling. 

The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) is the highest court in this country. The SCC rarely rules on copyright cases, so the SCC decisions we do have form an important part of Canada's copyright regime. You will find reference to various landmark SCC copyright decisions throughout this site. 

There is no international copyright law. Instead, countries around the world have signed international copyright treaties that outline minimum standards signatory countries must follow. 

Canada is a signatory of the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works. One condition of the treaty is "life +50" (life of the creator +50 years) as the minimum term of copyright protection. 

Another condition outlined in the Berne Convention is national treatment. This means that all 176 Berne signatory countries agree to treat works created in other countries as they would their own. 

So, if you are in Canada and using a copyright protected work published in India, you will follow Canadian copyright law. This spares everyone from having to be intimately acquainted with other countries' copyright legislation.