Robinson

Music and Copyright: How the Supreme Court Struck the Right Note in Robinson (Even if its Timing was a Little Off!)

In the recent case of Cinar Corporation v Robinson, the Supreme Court of Canada considered the scope of copyright in a children’s television show. The defendants’ show, Robinson Sucroë, was, frankly, so similar in its essential elements to that developed by plaintiff Claude Robinson that few people, if any, were surprised by the Court’s finding […]

Substantially Different or Substantially the Same Approach to Copyright Infringement?

In Cinar Corporation v Robinson, The Supreme Court of Canada ruled that a copyright protected work can be infringed not only by literal reproduction, but also by copying substantial features from a work. In the decision, which awarded damages to the author of a children's TV show, the court clarified the test for substantial reproduction... or did […]