I’ve written about FATCA before, here and here, with respect to the privacy law implications of this American tax compliance initiative. However, I was recently presented with a letter on the subject that made me pause.  A noted Canadian constitutional law expert has raised a rather interesting aspect and it seems what may get Canadian [...]

When one considers the subject of privacy audits, the first impulse is to ask about the purpose and scope of the audit,  followed by a question as to what privacy controls are in play. While purpose and scope can be more readily defined, privacy controls are not a topic one sees addressed very much and [...]

Since the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) decision in R. v. Cole was issued in October 2012, I’ve seen press reports, blog posts and law firm newsletter articles talk about the existence of computer-related expectations of privacy in an employment context. This is somewhat contrary to the conventional wisdom that employers, with notice and through [...]

How can employers use locational information without running afoul of data protection laws? No doubt the question will appear more prominently in queries to lawyers as we evolve into a more technologically mobile society but the first place it comes up is in the context of motor vehicle telematics. “Telematics” refers to the merger of [...]

If you follow privacy law, you’ve probably heard about the case of U.S. v. Jones.  This American decision, issued last week, is the US Supreme Court’s latest take on technology and privacy. A 9-0 decision, the justices got to the same place by different routes. Unfortunately, for a GPS-related decision, it turns out not to [...]

Ontario’s Court of Appeal has issued its decision in Jones v Tsige and the result recognizes a common law tort of invasion of privacy. More technically, the court recognized a “right of action for intrusion upon seclusion” – one of several aspects of privacy.

Under PIPEDA, “lawful authority” arises as a preliminary matter when an organization is approached for a request for personal information by a “government institution or part thereof”. While a “clarification” of “lawful authority” is one of the proposed amendments to PIPEDA, the issue is really about whether organizations should disclose to law enforcement authorities. While [...]

There were a number of letters, news items and posts this past week about the new lawful access proposals before Canada’s Parliament. While the focus has been on telcos and the data they hold, it is important to note that there are also other “access” proposals – ones that significantly change the Personal Information Protection [...]

It is somewhat fitting that Halloween and the anniversary of the enactment of the PATRIOT Act are close together. In Canada, the latter, which turned 10 last week, has come to embody fear about government access to personal information.  The troubling part is that this fear may needlessly complicate life for everyone in this country.

Tort law in Canada may take a new privacy-related turn if a recent press report is to be believed.