In a decision issued on April 22, 2021, the Supreme Court of Canada granted leave to appeal to the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN) and Music Canada from the decision of the Federal Court of Appeal in Entertainment Software Association v. SOCAN, 2020 FCA 100.
At issue in the appeal is the correct approach to the “making available” provisions in the Copyright Act, which affects the rights of copyright owners to control the on-demand distribution of their works, sound recordings and other protected subject matter via the Internet, as well as broader questions about the role of international law in the interpretation of statutory provisions that are enacted to implement international treaty obligations.
Cassels acted as co-counsel to SOCAN on the leave application.
This will be the seventh SCC appearance in recent years for our copyright litigation team. Most recently, the team secured leave to intervene for a coalition of music industry associations in York University v. Access Copyright, which will be heard by the Court on May 21, 2021.