Copyrightlaws.com: Copyright courses and education in plain English

Copyrightlaws.com is the place for copyright education. Online eTutorials and Certificate programs to demystify copyright law.

Centre for Canadian Copyright Law

centre for canadian copyright law

Welcome to Copyrightlaws.com’s Centre for Canadian Copyright Law.

What’s buzzing in Canadian copyright law?

  • The Statutory Review of the Copyright Act by the Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology (INDU) , and the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage report, Shifting Paradigms
  • Amendments to the Copyright Act due to the USMCA (see below)
  • York University’s appeal to the recent federal court fair dealing decision against them initiated by Access Copyright (see below)

How can you learn more about Canadian copyright law?

All of our courses are eTutorials :

“I really enjoyed the email format. No need to sign up for a course platform – super simple!” — Sarah Heath, Librarian

Questions About Our Online Courses?

I invite you to sign up for a 20 minute call to discuss the best course for you. Sign up here.

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Subscribe to our Canadian email list, featuring two mailings a month with the latest in Canadian copyright news, updates, course discounts and more.
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Latest Articles From the Centre for Canadian Copyright Law

  1. 10 Myths About Canadian Copyright Law
  2. 8 Facts About Canadian Copyright Law
  3. Canadian Copyright Law Quiz
  4. The Balance in Canadian Copyright Law
  5. Who Owns Copyright in Canada?
  6. Duration of Copyright in Canada
  7. Moral Rights in Canadian Copyright Law
  8. Orphan Works in Canada: Unlocatable Copyright Owners
  9. Canadian Versus U.S. Copyright Law
  10. Canadian Librarians and International Copyright

Certificate in Canadian Copyright Law

Canadian copyright law certificate program

Copyrightlaws.com’s Certificate in Canadian Copyright Law is a 12-week program that provides a strong foundation in copyright decision making skills.

It’s intended for those new to copyright or those seeking to enhance their current knowledge base. The program equips you with knowledge of copyright principles, with the primary focus on practical skills that can be adapted to individual needs. The fee for an individual is $1,499 (in Canadian currency).

The fall 2019 extended 7-month cohort is now open.

Registration — Testimonials — Graduates

Contact us for more information.

Course Testimonials

I recommend this course if you’re looking for Canadian Copyright Law in a nutshell. The topics were well organized and I loved the self-marking quizzes. I can now help our IP legal counsel with copyright-related research.
— Amra Porobic, Manager, Library Services, Insurance Bureau of Canada

The e-mail format of the lessons worked for me as I could do them as I was able within a busy schedule.
— Carolyn R. Wilker, Freelance Editor/Writer

I loved the Certificate program, it exceeded my expectations. Each tutorial delivered copyright information in an easy-to-understand format and I was pleasantly surprised at the amount of information that we received. After the program, my priority is to revise the copyright portion of our contracts. I will also make a copyright adherence policy for staff and begin staff copyright education. The program has been a very valuable experience for me and has made me feel more secure in managing copyright at work. I definitely recommend the Certificate program to others.
— Nicole Fletcher, Collections Manager, Winnipeg Art Gallery

The Certificate program has done wonders for me in terms of fuelling my confidence in my ability to do the job. I will be pushing for a more centralized approach to copyright administration — most immediately the completion of a long-promised database for managing copyright permissions.
— David M.P. Leggett, Library & Copyright Assistant, Northern Lights College

See more testimonials from our Certificate in Canadian Copyright Law graduates.

Canadian Copyright Law eTutorial

Copyrightlaws.com also offers the Canadian Copyright Law eTutorial. This eTutorial is a 16-lesson online primer/refresher on Canadian copyright law. It’s available on demand for groups. Register now for our 14 October – 1 November offering.

Fair Dealing Court Cases

Access Copyright and York University

On 31 July 2017, York University announced it would appeal the recent federal court fair dealing decision against them initiated by Access Copyright. York filed its Notice of Appeal on 22 September 2017. A summary of the court decision is here. Update: Hearings in the appeal of the Federal Court’s decision took place on 5 – 6 March 2019.

Copibec and Université Laval

In late September 2017, Copibec announced its copyright challenge in Canada against Université Laval. A favourable decision for Copibec was rendered on 27 November 2017.

On 13 November 2018, Copibec announced the conclusion of its lawsuit against Université Laval:

Copibec and Université Laval are pleased to announce that their out-of-court settlement agreement was approved by Justice Simon Hébert of the Quebec Superior Courtand that Université Laval has signed the comprehensive licence agreement applicable to Quebec universities.

The Court’s approval of the settlement has now put an end to the legal dispute between the two parties concerning copyright royalty management for the university’s teaching and research activities. Both parties are looking forward to once again working collaboratively for the benefit of authors, publishers, teaching personnel and students.

United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA)

On 30 September 2018, Canada, Mexico and the United States announced the completion of negotiations towards a new trade agreement to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) includes a chapter on intellectual property. Among other things, it requires member countries to protect copyright for a minimum of 70 years after an author’s death. Currently, the copyright duration in Canada is 50 years after an author’s death.

For information on the USMCA, and the procedure for implementing a new trade agreement, see the Canadian government website.

Bill C-100, An Act to implement the Agreement between Canada, the United States of America and the United Mexican States was introduced into the Canadian Parliament on 29 May 2019.

Learn more about Canadian copyright law and these recent developments in our unique Certificate in Canadian Copyright Law.

Want more Canadian copyright tips and information?
Subscribe to our Canadian email list, featuring two mailings a month with the latest in Canadian copyright news, updates, course discounts and more.
We respect your privacy.

Test Your Canadian Copyright Knowledge with our Quiz

Welcome to your Canadian Copyright Law Quiz




1. Copyright law is always the same throughout the world. (See our article Introduction to International Copyright Law.)

2. Canada is a member of the leading copyright convention, the Berne Convention.

3. Canada and all countries have the same copyright duration: life-plus-fifty or 50 years after the author's death.

4. If you have permission to reproduce an image in a print book, you may also post that image on your website.

5. Once you have copyright protection in Canada you automatically have protection in at least the 177 countries that belong to the Berne Copyright Convention.

6. Copyright registration is mandatory in Canada.

7. Fair use and fair dealing are exactly the same thing and both exist in the Canadian Copyright Act. (See our article US vs Canadian Copyright Law: Which Has Stronger Protection?)

8. Even if an author has assigned the copyright to you, the author still has the right to prevent modifications that may be harmful to their reputation or honour.

9. If you cannot locate a copyright owner in Canada, you may use that person's content if you put in reasonable efforts to locate the owner, even without obtaining an unlocatable copyright owner licence from the Copyright Board of Canada. (See our article Orphan Works in Canada: Unlocatable Copyright Owners.)

10. There is an exception in the Canadian Copyright Act for individuals for the use of non-commercial user-generated content, which is sometimes called the YouTube or mashup provision.

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