''Snow v. Eaton Centre Ltd.''
[''Snow v. Eaton Centre Ltd.'' (1982), 70 CPR (2d) 105.] is a leading Canadian decision on
moral rights. The
Ontario High Court of Justice affirmed the artist's right to integrity of their work. The operator of the
Toronto Eaton Centre was found liable for violating
Michael Snow's moral rights by putting
Christmas
Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus, Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by country, around t ...
bows on his work ''
Flight Stop''.
Background
Michael Snow was commissioned to do a sculpture called ''
Flight Stop'' consisting of a number of
Canada geese in flight in the atrium of the Toronto Eaton Centre. During the Christmas season of 1981, the Eaton Centre placed red ribbons around the necks of the geese. Snow brought an action against the Centre to get an
injunction
An injunction is a legal and equitable remedy in the form of a special court order that compels a party to do or refrain from specific acts. ("The court of appeals ... has exclusive jurisdiction to enjoin, set aside, suspend (in whole or in pa ...
to have the ribbons removed. He had argued that the ribbons offended the integrity of, and distorted, his work.
Judgment
The judge agreed with Snow. He held that the sculpture's integrity was "distorted, mutilated or otherwise modified" which was "to the prejudice of the honour or reputation of the author" contrary to section 28.2 of the
Copyright Act. The opinion was based both on the opinion of Snow as well as the testimony of experts in the art community.
Aftermath
Subsequent to this case, the standard for moral rights infringement has been raised by the requirement for more objective evidence of prejudice and harm. Evidence from other respected artists and people knowledgeable in the field is required to prove prejudice to honour or reputation.
The
Copyright Act of Canada
The ''Copyright Act'' of Canada is the federal statute governing copyright law in Canada. It is jointly administered by the Department of Industry Canada and the Department of Canadian Heritage. The ''Copyright Act'' was first passed in 1921 and su ...
has also been amended since this case so that any modification to a painting, sculpture or engraving is deemed to prejudice the author. For those types of works, no evidence of actual prejudice is required.
[David Vaver, ''Intellectual Property Law: Copyright, Patents'', Trade-Marks, 2nd ed (Toronto: Irwin Law, 2011) at 209.]
References
See also
* ''
Prise de Parole Inc v Guérin, Éditeur Ltée''
*
List of notable Canadian lower court cases
A select number of decisions from the superior and inferior courts that have proven to be the leading case law in a number of fields and have subsequently been influential in other provinces, or else they are famous decisions in their own right. T ...
*
Moral rights
Canadian copyright case law
1982 in Canadian case law
Ontario case law
1982 in Ontario
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