On May 30, 2014, the British Columbia Supreme Court released its
decision in Douez v. Facebook, granting the
Plaintiff's motion to certify a claim for statutory breach of
British Columbia's Privacy Act (the Privacy Act)
against the defendant, Facebook.
The Plaintiff alleged that Facebook had taken names and images
of Facebook users in British Columbia without the knowledge or
consent of the user and featured them in "Sponsored
Stories". Sponsored Stories were advertisements, featuring the
Facebook user's name or likeness, that were sent to the
user's contacts without his or her knowledge or consent.
Section 3(2) of the Privacy Act provides that:
It is a tort, actionable without proof of damage, for a person
to use the name or portrait of another for the purpose of
advertising or promoting the sale of, or other trading in, property
or services, unless that other, or a person entitled to consent on
his or her behalf, consents to the use for that purpose.
