The Federal Court recently issued a decision in 1395804 Ontario Ltd. (Blacklock’s Reporter) v. Canada (Attorney General), 2024 FC 829 arising from a summary judgement motion brought by the Attorney General of Canada.

Blacklock’s Reporter, a subscription-based news corporation, alleged that officers at Parks Canada acted contrary to the Copyright Act (the “Act”) by sharing a password to a single subscription to obtain and internally distribute Blacklock’s Reporter’s news articles. The Attorney General of Canada’s motion sought various declarations from the Court, which could also impact on other pending cases between the Crown and Blacklock’s Reporter.

The Court granted a declaration that Parks Canada’s use of the password in the circumstances constituted fair dealing under section 29 of the Act.

The Court considered that Parks Canada purchased the only type of subscription available, which provided the password required to access news articles produced by Blacklock’s Reporter. The Court also took into consideration that the subscription was used solely for monitoring news articles directly related to Parks Canada’s mandate and operations, which constituted fair dealing for the purpose of research.

The Court declined to address the issue of whether a password is a “technological protection measure” as defined in section 41 of the Act, but did grant a declaration that the licit acquisition and valid use of a password does not otherwise constitute circumvention of the technological protection measures of the Act.

For more information, read the decision here.