Expert Guides - Canada

The Trolls have arrived: Suspicious trademark applications on the rise

In the wake of the 2014 announcement that the Canadian Trademarks Act would undergo significant overhaul, there was much speculation about how the changes would impact the behaviour of those filing trademark applications in Canada

22/05/2018 Kohji Suzuki, Smart & Biggar / Fetherstonhaugh, Canada Jamie-Lynn Kraft, Smart & Biggar / Fetherstonhaugh, Canada

Canada Prepares for 2019

The Canadian Government introduced legislation in March 2014 to modernize the Canadian Trademarks Act (“the Act”) – the first significant attempt at modernization since the 1950’s

22/05/2018 Robert A MacDonald, Gowling WLG, Canada

The Realities and Risks of Associated Trademarks in Canada

During prosecution of trademark applications in Canada, trademark owners with significant portfolios can expect to receive confusion citations based on other trademarks in the owner’s portfolio

21/05/2018 Grant W Lynds, Marks & Clerk, Canada

Taxes & value creation in the digital economy

Digital transformation is rapidly accelerating. It continues to reshape all facets of our lives from how we do banking, order coffee, or book travel

25/04/2018 Emma Purdy, PwC, Canada

Supreme Court of Canada strikes down patent utility “promise doctrine” as “not good law”

In mid-2017, the Supreme Court of Canada delivered an important and highly anticipated decision

25/04/2018 Gunars A Gaikis, Smart & Biggar / Fetherstonhaugh, Canada

Privacy Regulation and Emerging Risks for Insurers

On April 9th 2018 87 million people around the globe were notified that the personal information contained on their Facebook profiles had been accessed without their consent

25/04/2018 Dominic T Clarke, Blaney McMurtry, Canada David Mackenzie, Blaney McMurtry, Canada

The role of contract models in nuclear project risk management

Does the form of contract selected for use in a nuclear project affect the behaviour of participants in the project and the project’s performance against schedule and budget?

20/03/2018 Ahab Abdel-Aziz, Gowling WLG, Canada

The Canadian Pipeline Saga: Exploring the Limits of Cooperative Federalism

New energy infrastructure projects in Canada remain under attack, with project proponents facing increasing regulatory, political and financial risk

20/03/2018 Stephanie Stimpson, Torys, Canada Peter Danner, Torys, Canada

An Update on the Family Member Exclusion Clause: The End of Russian Roulette in Policy Interpretation

In my paper, “The Family Exclusion Clause: The Search for Ambiguity”, published in Expert Guides/Insurance and Reinsurance, London, UK, in August 2017, I commented on the British Columbia Supreme Court decision in Gill v. Ivanhoe Cambridge, 2016 BCSC 252

27/10/2017 Harmon C Hayden, Fulton & Company, Canada

Recent Structured Finance and Fintech Developments in Canada

The Canadian structured finance and Fintech space have seen a number of recent developments, including in the structured finance areas of residential mortgages, covered bonds and derivatives

19/09/2017 Marc J MacMullin, McCarthy Tétrault, Canada Michael K McConnell, McCarthy Tétrault, Canada Dirk Rueter, McCarthy Tétrault, Canada Ana Badour, McCarthy Tétrault, Canada Christopher Bamford, McCarthy Tétrault, Canada Candace Pallone, McCarthy Tétrault, Canada

Shifting Climate Change Risks Will Force Insurers To Adapt

Whether naturally occurring or caused by human activity, it is now generally accepted that the Earth is warming

04/09/2017 Dominic T Clarke, Blaney McMurtry, Canada Zack Garcia, Blaney McMurtry, Canada

The Family Exclusion Clause: The Search for Ambiguity

The family exclusion clause is a universal feature in personal liability insurance policies, apart from automobile liability insurance

04/09/2017 Harmon C Hayden, Fulton & Company, Canada

Captain Morgan forces Admiral Nelson’s to jump ship proving trade dress protection is alive and well in Canada

Ekaterina Tsimberis, part of Smart & Biggar’s trial team, successfully represented Diageo Canada in protecting and enforcing its CAPTAIN MORGAN trade dress before the Federal Court

01/09/2017 Ekaterina Tsimberis, Smart & Biggar / Fetherstonhaugh, Canada Renaud Garon Gendron, Smart & Biggar / Fetherstonhaugh, Canada

What to watch for in Canadian Trademark Law

Canada’s framework for trademark protection continues to change, with plans to implement major amendments now scheduled for early 2019, and several new pieces of legislation that impact tobacco products, foods and beverages for children, and marijuana products

03/05/2017 Cynthia Rowden, Bereskin & Parr, Canada

Cybersecurity: Risks, Liabilities and Strategies

Cybersecurity is the set of systems, policies and procedures that an organization has in place to address cyber risk

03/05/2017 Amy-Lynne Williams, Deeth Williams Wall, Canada Michael House, Deeth Williams Wall, Canada

The Cost-Effectiveness of Patent Litigation in Canada

Two important considerations for a patentee deciding whether to litigate the infringement of its patents are the likelihood of success and, of course, the cost of doing so

29/03/2017 Ron Dimock, DLA Piper, Canada Bentley Gaikis, DLA Piper, Canada

What might the next few years hold for Canadian pharmaceutical patent law?

An appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada on patent utility, a NAFTA investor-state dispute also on utility, and CETA provisions changing the nature of Canadian patent litigation, appeal rights and patent term extension, all weigh on the path ahead for Canada’s patent law, particularly as it applies...

29/03/2017 R Scott MacKendrick, Bereskin & Parr, Canada Noel Courage, Bereskin & Parr, Canada Melanie Szweras, Bereskin & Parr, Canada

The Darknet: What Every Technology Lawyer Must Know

The portion of the Internet that most people generally use is only one of three layers of the Internet

27/02/2017 Sheldon Burshtein, Blake Cassels & Graydon, Canada

Can you contract out of the Limitation of Liability Convention? A cautionary tale

The English Supreme Court recently dealt with whether parties to a contract involving the use of a vessel can, and did, exclude the application of the Convention on Limitation of Liability for Maritime Claims 1976 (the “Convention”)

24/01/2017 Shelley Chapelski, Norton Rose Fulbright, Canada Kaitlin Smiley, Norton Rose Fulbright, Canada

Real estate investment in Canada

In Canada, the savvy real estate investor has a myriad of opportunities across the spectrum of real estate asset classes

19/01/2017 Savvas Kotsopoulos, Miller Thomson, Canada Rosa L Mauro, Miller Thomson, Canada

Project bank accounts, their time has come

Despite the robust construction activity in Canada, insolvencies of owners and construction companies are at a pace that is significantly higher than the number of insolvencies ten years ago

19/01/2017 John Margie, Glaholt, Canada

Interim Relief and the Court’s Role

Arbitration provides parties with a unique opportunity to prospectively choose a private system of justice

14/10/2016 Joe McArthur, Blake Cassels & Graydon, Canada

Strategy Rethink: Canada’s Changing Trademark Topography

There is good news for brand owners in Canada: important civil, procedural and administrative changes mark a decisive shift in the enforcement of trademarks, providing a broader scope of rights and swifter mechanisms in Canada

26/08/2016 Monique M Couture, Gowling WLG, Canada

When it comes to biologics, Canada dances to a different tune

The “patent dance” in the U.S. has received a great deal of attention in the last few years, with pharmaceutical companies, their counsel and the courts struggling to determine the scope and meaning of the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act (BPCIA)

26/08/2016 Daphne C Lainson, Smart & Biggar / Fetherstonhaugh, Canada Nancy Pei, Smart & Biggar / Fetherstonhaugh, Canada