Why Universities Are Rethinking Their Copyright Policies

The Canadian Copyright Licensing Agency ("Access Copyright") v York University, 2017 FC 669

Overview

For over a decade, universities have had free-rein to use copyright-protected work for the purposes of education, research, private study, criticism, review, news reporting, satire and/or parody, so long as their use of the work was considered "fair dealing".

Several decisions from the Supreme Court of Canada have provided guidance as to what falls within the scope of "fair". However, with the release on 12 July 2017 of Access Copyright v York University, 2017 FC 669 (York University), a decision of by Justice Michael Phelan of the Federal Court, it appears the Supreme Court's guidance has been ignored. It is now uncertain whether the copyright policies found in most universities across Canada are sufficient to protect these institutions from liability for copyright fees.