It ruled that the Ontario government does have copyright over land surveys digitized by Teranet, a contractor it employs. Published works need to be “under the direction or control” of government for them to be copyrightable, the court found. (The Logic)

Talking point: It’s the first time the Supreme Court has ruled on the section of the Copyright Act that gives government the authority to claim copyright over anything it publishes itself. The four-judge majority sided with Teranet over Keatley Surveying, which tried to launch a class action on behalf of 350 land surveyors in Ontario, claiming they have copyright over the plans they make. Some of Canada’s most powerful legal organizations—including the Federation of Law Societies of Canada and the attorneys general of Canada, Ontario, British Columbia and Saskatchewan—intervened in this case, attempting to shape an interpretation for government copyright in the digital age. The court suggested Parliament could change the law as part of its review of Canadian copyright law. That review included testimony from 263 witnesses, all of whom called for changes to the government provision.