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ARTICLE · 18 NOVEMBER 2013

Alberta’s Personal Information Protection Act Violates Charter

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Noting the broad restrictions under PIPA the Supreme Court found that "these broad restrictions are not justified because they are disproportionate to the benefits the legislation seeks to promote".

CanadaEmployment and HR
J. Sébastien Gittens
J. Sébastien Gittens
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The Supreme Court of Canada has just held that the collective right to freedom of expression in a lawful strike situation trumps an individual's right to control their information in a public setting, striking down the Alberta Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA).

In its decision, Alberta (Information and Privacy Commissioner) v. United Food and Commercial Workers, Local 401, 2013 SCC 62, the Supreme Court weighed the collective rights of a union's freedom of expression under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms against the rights of individuals whose personal information was collected, used and disclosed without consent by the union.  The Supreme Court found that Alberta's Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA) violates s. 2(b) of the Charter (the right to right to freedom of expression) because its impact on freedom of expression in the labour context is disproportionate and the infringement is not justified under s.1 (the Charter provision which permits

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