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Copyright Office

Legislation & policy

This page provides a brief introduction to the basics of copyright law in Canada and its application in the UVic context. It is not intended to be a complete reference to the Copyright Act.

To learn more about copyright ownership of works, including works made during employment, see our information about protected works.

The Canadian Copyright Act (R.S.C., 1985, C-42) provides legal protection for original works of authorship, which includes literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works, as well as a performer's performance, communication signals and sound recordings.

The author of the work is usually the copyright owner. The author has the right to produce, reproduce, perform, publish, translate or adapt the work, and to authorize anyone else to exercise these rights.

Copyright protection exists as soon as a work is expressed in a fixed format, such as a book.

Learn more about how the Act applies in the academic context.

Users' rights

The Act balances the rights of authors and the public interest. It does this by providing certain exceptions to copyright infringement, which are regarded as users’ rights. These users’ rights encourage the wider public dissemination of works.

One of the most important exceptions is known as “fair dealing.” The Act states that fair dealing for the following purposes does not infringe copyright:

  • research
  • private study
  • education
  • parody or satire
  • criticism or review
  • news reporting

Learn more about other exceptions for copyright-protected works.

Instructors at UVic are allowed to use works in the classroom or on campus for teaching and training purposes, subject to UVic’s Fair Dealing Guidelines.

Policy IM7310 outlines how UVic manages its rights and obligations under Canadian copyright law when using copyright-protected works. This includes any media and format used for the following purposes:

  • teaching
  • learning
  • research
  • administrative purposes

It also specifies the support and services UVic offers, and who is responsible for implementing the policy, including employees and students.

The policy includes the detailed Fair Dealing Guidelines.

Other resources

Infringement

Infringement refers to the breach or violation of copyright law. Decisions about whether infringement has occurred and any resulting liability or statutory damages are decided in a court of law.

There are two kinds of infringements: direct and indirect.

Direct infringement happens when someone violates a copyright owner’s rights by doing something that only the copyright owner is allowed to do, without their permission.

Indirect infringement means handling illegal copies by selling, renting, distributing or importing them.

Consequences

There are consequences to infringing copyright law, and the copyright owner is entitled to remedies. As stated in the Copyright Act, these remedies may include damages to compensate the copyright owner for losses caused by the infringement.

A copyright owner may instead choose to seek statutory damages at any point before a final court decision is made. This applies whether a single person is responsible or multiple people are jointly responsible for the infringement.

Remedies

(a) Commercial purposes: The court may award an amount between $500 and $20,000 for each work or other subject matter, as it considers fair.

(b) Non-commercial purposes: The court may award between $100 and $5,000 for all works or other subject matter involved in the case, as it considers fair.

Consequences at UVic

If UVic is found liable for a breach of the Copyright Act in circumstances where the person responsible:

  • is not acting in the ordinary course of their normal duties and responsibilities at the university, or
  • has recklessly or wilfully failed to adhere to the university's Fair Dealing Guidelines,

UVic has the right to claim contribution or indemnification from such person.

Notice and Notice

Notice and Notice is a provision in the Copyright Act that helps protect copyright owners against copyright infringement online.

If a copyright owner believes that someone has infringed their copyright, they can send a notice to the user’s Internet Service Provider (ISP) or website host. The ISP is then required to send a notice of possible copyright infringement to the user. The ISP must also let the copyright owner know that this notice has been sent.

For more information, see the Notice and Notice Quick Facts from the Canadian government.

What does this mean at UVic?

  • under the Copyright Act, UVic is considered a digital network provider and therefore must forward infringement notices it receives
  • UVic will not show the identity of the user to the content owner, unless needed to do so by a court order or legal process
  • UVic does not evaluate the legitimacy of the notice it receives, but will send the notice as required by law
  • UVic faculty members, students and staff who believe that their copyright has been infringed online can send a takedown notice to the ISP

Learn more about protecting your copyright:

The Notice and Notice system does not in any way change the existing laws that govern the use of copyrighted materials under the Copyright Act.

Learn more about Notice and Notice and what to consider if you receive a copyright infringement notice.

Exceptions to copyright infringement are described in section 29.4 to 30.3 of the Copyright Act.

Fair dealing

The fair dealing exception (section 29) states that it is not a copyright infringement when short excerpts of a work are used for:

  • research
  • private study
  • education
  • parody
  • satire

Learn more about fair dealing.

Libraries, archives & museums

It is not a copyright infringement when a library, archive, museum or an authorized person from these organizations makes a copy of a work for maintaining or managing its collection (section 30.1(1)). This applies if:

  1. the original is rare or unpublished and is deteriorating, damaged, or lost,
  2. the original cannot be viewed, handled, or listened to due to its condition or preservation needs,
  3. the original is in an obsolete format or the technology to use it is unavailable,
  4. the copy is for internal record-keeping and cataloguing,
  5. the copy is for insurance purposes or police investigations,
  6. the copy is necessary for restoration.

Persons with perceptual disabilities

It is not a copyright infringement for a person with a perceptual disability, someone acting on their behalf, or a non-profit organization to reproduce materials in an alternate format (section 32 (1)). This includes:

  1. Making a copy or sound recording of a literary, musical, artistic, or dramatic work (excluding films) in a format designed for people with perceptual disabilities.
  2. Translating, adapting, or reproducing a literary or dramatic work (excluding films) in sign language for people with perceptual disabilities.
  3. Performing a literary or dramatic work (excluding films) in sign language, either live or in a format designed for people with perceptual disabilities.

This does not authorize the creation of large print books. It does not apply if the work or sound recording is commercially available in a format designed for people with perceptual disabilities.

Educational institutions

An educational institution or individuals acting under its authority can reproduce a work for education or training purposes without infringing copyright (section 30.1(1)). See UVic’s Fair Dealing Guidelines and ways to use protected works for more information.

User-generated content

The creation of non-commercial user-generated content (“mash-ups”) also falls under the fair dealing exception (section 21.21).

Questions?

If you have any questions, please contact the Copyright Office at copyright@uvic.ca.

The Copyright Office makes every effort to provide accurate information but does not offer it as counsel or legal advice.