09/03/2025
Our global intellectual property lawyers have considerable experience in all aspects of copyright law, including assessing the scope of protection for different types of works, due diligence, licensing and enforcement. We assist clients in everything from litigating copyright issues and policing copyright portfolios to obtaining copyright registrations. We are skilled in developing and negotiating commercial licenses (e.g. data and software), joint development and ownership agreements. Our lawyers have technical backgrounds and open source licensing experience, which is invaluable for audits, compliance assessments, and developing in-house training programs and procurement processes.
Clients depend on our experience within a wide range of copyrightable works, including software, data and database, machine-generated works, audio recordings and music, art, motion pictures and television, technical and architectural designs, literature, mask works and semiconductor chips and evolving media, including telecommunications and the internet. Our knowledge spans different industries including health, computing, videogames, apparel, music, toys, media and entertainment, government and financial institutions.
Our work in copyright law is multi-jurisdictional, with our global team of IP lawyers able to represent our clients’ interests around the world. We are noted as a leading law firm in highly relevant technical copyright areas such as artificial intelligence, non-fungible tokens (NFTs), virtual worlds (e.g. metaverse), autonomous vehicles and blockchain technology, and we counsel businesses across all industrial sectors for future copyright readiness. Changes in technology can challenge traditional copyright frameworks and create uncertainty. Our global team closely follows case law and administrative decisions across jurisdictions on novel copyright issues such as the protection, enforcement and ownership of works created by artificial intelligence.
Our areas of work include: anti-counterfeiting enforcement and seizure of copyright-protected goods; copyright litigation and providing opinions relating to infringement and user rights (fair dealing); copyright clearance, registration and licensing; chain of title and usage analysis; copyright transactions, acquisitions and assignments; database rights; derivative works; eCommerce; open source; ownership agreements; portfolio management; software licensing and maintenance; and IP strategy, including copyright, designs, trademarks, patents, and trade secrets.
We are actively involved in different policy and government initiatives, including participation in associations and committees, and advising clients on legislative consultations and submissions. For example, our team has been involved in government consultations to modernize the Canadian copyright framework responsive to the development of new technologies.
