International Law
Appeals Watch: Public or Private Law? SCC grants leave in Langford Sharp v Autorité des marchés financiers
Introduction On April 22, 2022, the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) granted leave to an application for appeal in the Quebec Court of Appeal’s (“QCCA”) decision in Langford Sharp v Autorité des marchés financiers 2021 QCCA 1364 (“Langford”). The case concerns the appropriate standard of review when assessing the decisions of financial regulators and the […]
Double Royalties or Users' Rights? The SCC Interprets the Copyright Act in SOCAN
In Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada v Entertainment Software Association, 2022 SCC 30 [SOCAN], the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) heard an appeal from the Federal Court of Appeal (“FCA”). The case turned on the interpretation of s. 2.4(1.1) of the Copyright Act, RSC 1985, c C-42 [the Act].
Enforcement of Foreign Judgements: SCC Grants Leave to Appeal in Lanfer v. Eilers
On March 3, 2022, the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC” or “the Court”) granted leave to appeal in the case of Lanfer v. Eilers, a ruling from the British Columbia Court of Appeal, 2021 BCCA 241 [Eilers]. The SCC will rule on whether a foreign judgement granting the remedy of specific performance for the transfer […]
Supreme Court of Canada to Decide on Definition of “Carrying on Business”: H.M.B. Holdings Limited v. Antigua and Barbuda
On November 12, 2020, H.M.B. Holdings Limited v. Antigua and Barbuda, 2020 ONCA 12 [HMB Holding] was granted leave by the Supreme Court of Canada ("SCC"). The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council decided in 2014 that Antigua and Barbuda ("Antigua") owed H.M.B Holdings Limited's ("HMB") compensation for expropriating its Antiguan property ("Privy Council Judgement") […]
Transnational Canadian Corporations Can Be Liable Under Customary International Law For Human Rights Abuses: The Phoenix Flies in Nevsun v Araya
Content warning: mention of slavery, torture, false confinement, murder, and rape Can Canadian courts adjudicate international human rights violations committed by Canadian companies abroad? Usually, the spectre of limited corporate liability within an asymmetrical transnational legal regime precludes this and allows such abuses to continue. However, in an unprecedented decision released in February 2020, a […]
Protection from Cruel and Unusual Punishment Does Not Apply to Corporations, rules Québec (AG) v 9147-0732 Québec Inc
In recent years, mandatory minimum sentencing legislation for people convicted of criminal offences has often been ruled unconstitutional as cruel and unusual punishment contrary to Section 12 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms [Charter] (R v Nur, 2015 SCC 15; R v Loyd, 2016 SCC 13; R v Boudreault, 2018 SCC 58). However, […]
RS v PR: Private International Law & Lis Pendens
In RS v PR, the Supreme Court of Canada clarified the conditions for international lis pendens under the Civil Code of Quebec, as well as the scope of discretion to deny a stay even when the conditions are met.