Copyright Act
Sections and provisions with full text and the judgments that cite each one.
Section 35 — Liability for infringement
Where a person infringes copyright, the person is liable to pay such damages to the owner of the copyright as the owner has suffered due to the infringement and, in addition to those damages, such…
Section 36
[Repealed, 2012, c. 20, s. 45]
Section 37
[Repealed, 2012, c. 20, s. 45]
Section 38 — Recovery of possession of copies, plates
Subject to subsection (2), the owner of the copyright in a work or other subject-matter may recover possession of all infringing copies of that work or other subject-matter, and of all plates used or…
Section 38.1 — Statutory damages
Subject to this section, a copyright owner may elect, at any time before final judgment is rendered, to recover, instead of damages and profits referred to in subsection 35(1), an award of statutory…
Section 38.2 — Maximum amount that may be recovered
An owner of copyright in a work who has not authorized a collective society to authorize its reprographic reproduction may recover, in proceedings against an educational institution, library, archive…
Section 39 — Injunction only remedy when defendant not aware of copyright
Subject to subsection (2), in any proceedings for infringement of copyright, the plaintiff is not entitled to any remedy other than an injunction in respect of the infringement if the defendant…
Section 39.1 — Wide injunction
When granting an injunction in respect of an infringement of copyright in a work or other subject-matter, the court may further enjoin the defendant from infringing the copyright in any other work or…
Section 40 — No injunction in case of a building
Where the construction of a building or other structure that infringes or that, if completed, would infringe the copyright in some other work has been commenced, the owner of the copyright is not…
Section 41 — Definitions
The following definitions apply in this section and in sections 41.1 to 41.21. circumvent means, in respect of a technological protection measure within the meaning of paragraph (a) of the definition…
Section 41.1 — Prohibition
No person shall circumvent a technological protection measure within the meaning of paragraph (a) of the definition technological protection measure in section 41; offer services to the public or…
Section 41.11 — Law enforcement and national security
Paragraph 41.1(1)(a) does not apply if a technological protection measure is circumvented for the purposes of an investigation related to the enforcement of any Act of Parliament or any Act of the…
Section 41.12 — Interoperability
Paragraph 41.1(1)(a) does not apply to a person who circumvents a technological protection measure that protects a lawfully obtained computer program for the purpose of obtaining information that…
Section 41.121 — Diagnosis, maintenance and repair
Paragraph 41.1(1)(a) does not apply to a person who circumvents a technological protection measure for the sole purpose of maintaining or repairing a product, including any related diagnosing, if the…
Section 41.13 — Encryption research
Paragraph 41.1(1)(a) does not apply to a person who, for the purposes of encryption research, circumvents a technological protection measure by means of decryption if it would not be practical to…
Section 41.14 — Personal information
Paragraph 41.1(1)(a) does not apply to a person who circumvents a technological protection measure if the work, performer’s performance fixed in a sound recording or sound recording that is protected…
Section 41.15 — Security
Paragraph 41.1(1)(a) does not apply to a person who circumvents a technological protection measure that is subject to that paragraph for the sole purpose of, with the consent of the owner or…
Section 41.16 — Persons with perceptual disabilities
Paragraph 41.1(1)(a) does not apply to a person with a perceptual disability, to another person acting at their request or to a non-profit organization, as defined in section 32.02, acting for their…
Section 41.17 — Broadcasting undertakings
Paragraph 41.1(1)(a) does not apply to a broadcasting undertaking that circumvents a technological protection measure for the sole purpose of making an ephemeral reproduction of a work, a performer’s…
Section 41.18 — Radio apparatus
Paragraph 41.1(1)(a) does not apply to a person who circumvents a technological protection measure on a radio apparatus for the sole purpose of gaining access to a telecommunications service by means…
Section 41.19 — Reduction of damages
A court may reduce or remit the amount of damages it awards in the circumstances described in subsection 41.1(1) if the defendant satisfies the court that the defendant was not aware, and had no…
Section 41.2 — Injunction only remedy
If a court finds that a defendant that is a library, archive or museum or an educational institution has contravened subsection 41.1(1) and the defendant satisfies the court that it was not aware,…
Section 41.21 — Regulations
The Governor in Council may make regulations excluding from the application of section 41.1 any technological protection measure that protects a work, a performer’s performance fixed in a sound…
Section 41.22 — Prohibition — rights management information
No person shall knowingly remove or alter any rights management information in electronic form without the consent of the owner of the copyright in the work, the performer’s performance or the sound…
Section 41.23 — Protection of separate rights
Subject to this section, the owner of any copyright, or any person or persons deriving any right, title or interest by assignment or grant in writing from the owner, may individually for himself or…
Section 41.24 — Concurrent jurisdiction of Federal Court
The Federal Court has concurrent jurisdiction with provincial courts to hear and determine all proceedings, other than the prosecution of offences under sections 42 and 43, for the enforcement of a…
Section 41.25 — Notice of claimed infringement
An owner of the copyright in a work or other subject-matter may send a notice of claimed infringement to a person who provides the means, in the course of providing services related to the operation…
Section 41.26 — Obligations related to notice
A person described in paragraph 41.25(1)(a) or (b) who receives a notice of claimed infringement that complies with subsections 41.25(2) and (3) shall, on being paid any fee that the person has…
Section 41.27 — Injunctive relief only — providers of information location tools
In any proceedings for infringement of copyright, the owner of the copyright in a work or other subject-matter is not entitled to any remedy other than an injunction against a provider of an…
Section 42 — Offences
Every person commits an offence who knowingly makes for sale or rental an infringing copy of a work or other subject-matter in which copyright subsists; sells or rents out, or by way of trade exposes…
Section 43 — Infringement in case of dramatic, operatic or musical work
Any person who, without the written consent of the owner of the copyright or of the legal representative of the owner, knowingly performs or causes to be performed in public and for private profit…
Section 43.1 — Limitation or prescription period for civil remedies
Subject to subsection (2), a court may award a remedy for any act or omission that has been done contrary to this Act only if the proceedings for the act or omission giving rise to a remedy are…
Section 44 — Definitions
The following definitions apply in sections 44.02 to 44.4. court means the Federal Court or the superior court of a province. ( tribunal ) customs officer has the meaning assigned by the definition…
Section 44.01 — Prohibition on importation or exportation
Copies of a work or other subject-matter in which copyright subsists shall not be imported or exported if they were made without the consent of the owner of the copyright in the country where they…
Section 44.02 — Request for assistance
The owner of copyright in a work or other subject-matter may file with the Minister, in the form and manner specified by the Minister, a request for assistance in pursuing remedies under this Act…
Section 44.03 — Provision of information by customs officer
A customs officer who is detaining copies of a work or other subject-matter under section 101 of the Customs Act may, in the officer’s discretion, to obtain information about whether the importation…
Section 44.04 — Provision of information to pursue remedy
A customs officer who is detaining copies of a work or other subject-matter under section 101 of the Customs Act and who has reasonable grounds to suspect that the importation or exportation of the…
Section 44.05 — Restriction on information use — section 44.03
A person who receives a sample or information that is provided under section 44.03 shall not use the information, or information that is derived from the sample, for any purpose other than to give…
Section 44.06 — Inspection
After a sample or information has been provided under subsection 44.04(1), a customs officer may, in the officer’s discretion, give the owner, importer, exporter and consignee of the detained copies…
Section 44.07 — Liability for charges
The owner of copyright who has received a sample or information under subsection 44.04(1) is liable to Her Majesty in right of Canada for the storage and handling charges for the detained copies —…
Section 44.08 — No liability
Neither Her Majesty nor a customs officer is liable for any loss or damage suffered in relation to the enforcement or application of sections 44.01 to 44.04 and 44.06 because of the detention of…
Section 44.09 — Application to court
In the course of proceedings referred to in subsection 44.04(3), the court may, on the application of the Minister or a party to the proceedings, impose conditions on the storage or detention of the…
Section 44.1 — Damages against copyright owner
The court may award damages against the owner of copyright who commenced proceedings referred to in subsection 44.04(3) to the owner, importer, exporter or consignee of the copies who is a party to…
Section 44.11 — Importation of certain copyright works prohibited
Copies made outside Canada of any work in which copyright subsists that if made in Canada would infringe copyright and as to which the owner of the copyright gives notice in writing to the Canada…
Section 44.12 — Power of court
A court may make an order described in subsection (3) if the court is satisfied that copies of the work are about to be imported into Canada, or have been imported into Canada but have not been…
Section 44.2 — Importation of books
A court may, subject to this section, make an order described in subsection 44.12(3) in relation to a book where the court is satisfied that copies of the book are about to be imported into Canada,…
Section 44.3 — Limitation
No exclusive licensee of the copyright in a book in Canada, and no exclusive distributor of a book, may obtain an order under section 44.2 against another exclusive licensee of the copyright in that…
Section 44.4 — Importation of other subject-matter
Section 44.12 applies, with such modifications as the circumstances require, in respect of a sound recording, performer’s performance or communication signal, where a fixation or a reproduction of a…
Section 45 — Exceptions
Notwithstanding anything in this Act, it is lawful for a person to import for their own use not more than two copies of a work or other subject-matter made with the consent of the owner of the…
Section 46 — Copyright Office
The Copyright Office shall be attached to the Patent Office.