Case information
Conduct a refined search of the Supreme Court of Canada database to obtain details on the status of a matter before the Court.
33884
Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television & Radio Artists, et al. v. Bell Aliant Regional Communications, LP, et al.
(Federal) (Civil) (By Leave)
Docket
Judgments on applications for leave to appeal are rendered by the Court, but are not necessarily unanimous.
| Date | Proceeding | Filed By (if applicable) |
|---|---|---|
| 2012-02-20 | Appeal closed | |
| 2012-02-10 | Formal judgment sent to the registrar of the court of appeal and all parties | |
| 2012-02-10 | Judgment on appeal and notice of deposit of judgment sent to all parties | |
| 2012-02-09 |
Judgment on the appeal rendered, CJ LeB De F Abe Ro Cro Mo Ka, The appeal from the judgment of the Federal Court of Appeal, Number A-303-09, 2010 FCA 178, dated July 7, 2010, heard on January 16, 2012, is dismissed with costs. Dismissed, with costs |
|
| 2012-01-31 | Transcript received, (57 pages) | |
| 2012-01-17 | Correspondence received from, T.G. Heintzman, dated Jan. 17/12; sub-section 4(4) of the Broadcasting Act was enacted in 1991 | Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television & Radio Artists |
| 2012-01-16 | Judgment reserved OR rendered with reasons to follow | |
| 2012-01-16 |
Hearing of the appeal, 2012-01-16, CJ LeB De F Abe Ro Cro Mo Ka Judgment reserved |
|
| 2012-01-16 | Acknowledgement and consent for video taping of proceedings, All parties consented | |
| 2012-01-16 | Respondent's condensed book | Shaw Communications Inc. |
| 2012-01-16 | Respondent's condensed book, Filed in Court | Bell Aliant Regional Communications, LP |
| 2012-01-16 | Appellant's condensed book, Filed in Court | Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television & Radio Artists |
| 2012-01-12 | Correspondence received from, Nadia Effendi rec'd by fax re: request for 8 reserved seats | Bell Aliant Regional Communications, LP |
| 2012-01-12 | Correspondence received from, Mr. Abramson rec'd by fax re: Request for 6 extra seats for a total of 12 | Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television & Radio Artists |
| 2012-01-06 | Correspondence received from, Mr. McHaffie rec'd by fax re: request for 12 reserved seats for University student (request refused) | Shaw Communications Inc. |
| 2011-12-21 | Correspondence received from, Mr. McHaffie request 5 reserve seats | Shaw Communications Inc. |
| 2011-12-21 | Notice of appearance, Nicholas McHaffie and Dean Shaikh will be present at the hearing. | Shaw Communications Inc. |
| 2011-12-19 | Notice of appearance, John Laskin, Yousuf Aftab and Nicole Mantini will be present at the hearing. | Bell Aliant Regional Communications, LP |
| 2011-12-16 | Notice of appearance, Thomas G. Heintzman, Q.C. and Bram D. Abramson will be appearing | Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television & Radio Artists |
| 2011-12-16 | Correspondence received from, McCarthy Tétrault by fax, re.: request for reserved seats at the hearing | Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television & Radio Artists |
| 2011-12-08 | Notice of hearing sent to parties | |
| 2011-12-07 |
Appeal hearing scheduled, 2012-01-16 Judgment reserved |
|
| 2011-09-20 | Appeal perfected for hearing | |
| 2011-09-12 | Respondent's book of authorities, Completed on: 2011-09-12 | Shaw Communications Inc. |
| 2011-09-12 | Respondent's record, Completed on: 2011-09-12 | Shaw Communications Inc. |
| 2011-09-12 | Respondent's factum, Completed on: 2011-09-12 | Shaw Communications Inc. |
| 2011-09-12 | Respondent's book of authorities, Completed on: 2011-09-12 | Bell Aliant Regional Communications, LP |
| 2011-09-12 | Respondent's factum, Completed on: 2011-09-12 | Bell Aliant Regional Communications, LP |
| 2011-09-06 | Correspondence received from, (Letter Form), from the respondent dated September 6, 2011 re: Borden Ladner Gervais is the agent for the respondent | Bell Aliant Regional Communications, LP |
| 2011-07-21 | Letter advising the parties of tentative hearing date and filing deadlines (Leave granted) | |
| 2011-07-18 | Appellant's book of authorities, Completed on: 2011-07-18 | Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television & Radio Artists |
| 2011-07-18 | Appellant's record, (3 volumes), Completed on: 2011-07-18 | Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television & Radio Artists |
| 2011-07-18 | Appellant's factum, Completed on: 2011-07-18 | Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television & Radio Artists |
| 2011-05-25 | Correspondence received from, John Keogh dated May 20, 2011. Re: Will not be participating in the appeal | Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission |
| 2011-04-26 | Notice of deposit for security, Included with Notice of Appeal | Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television & Radio Artists |
| 2011-04-26 | Notice of appeal, + Securty for Cost, Completed on: 2011-04-26 | Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television & Radio Artists |
| 2011-03-25 | Copy of formal judgment sent to Registrar of the Court of Appeal and all parties | |
| 2011-03-25 | Judgment on leave sent to the parties | |
| 2011-03-24 |
Judgment of the Court on the application for leave to appeal, The application for leave to appeal from the judgment of the Federal Court of Appeal, Number A-303-09, 2010 FCA 178, dated July 7, 2010, is granted with costs in the cause. Granted, with costs in the cause |
|
| 2011-03-07 | All materials on application for leave submitted to the Judges, LeB De Cha | |
| 2010-11-08 | Applicant's reply to respondent's argument, Completed on: 2010-11-08 | Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television & Radio Artists |
| 2010-10-29 | Respondent's response on the application for leave to appeal, Affidavit of Service rec'd Nov 1/10, Completed on: 2010-11-15 | Shaw Communications Inc. |
| 2010-10-28 | Respondent's response on the application for leave to appeal, affidavit of service rec'd Nov. 1/10, Completed on: 2010-10-29 | Bell Aliant Regional Communications, LP |
| 2010-10-01 | Letter acknowledging receipt of a complete application for leave to appeal | |
| 2010-09-29 | Book of authorities | Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television & Radio Artists |
| 2010-09-29 | Application for leave to appeal, Completed on: 2010-09-29 | Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television & Radio Artists |
Parties
Please note that in the case of closed files, the “Status” column reflects the status of the parties at the time of the proceedings. For more information about the proceedings and about the dates when the file was open, please consult the docket of the case in question.
Main parties
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television & Radio Artists | Appellant | Active |
| Canadian Media Production Association, Directors Guild of Canada and Writers Guild of Canada | Appellant | Active |
v.
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Bell Aliant Regional Communications, LP | Respondent | Active |
| Bell Canada, Cogeco Cable Inc., MTS Allstream Inc., Rogers Communications Inc., Telus Communications Company and Videotron Ltd. (The "ISP Coalition") | Respondent | Active |
| Shaw Communications Inc. | Respondent | Active |
Other parties
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission | Intervener | Active |
Counsel
Party: Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television & Radio Artists
Counsel
Bram Abramson
4700 TD Bank Tower
PO Box 48
Toronto, Ontario
M5K 1E6
Telephone: (416) 601-7627
FAX: (416) 868-0673
Email: theintzm@mccarthy.ca
Agent
1111 Prince of Wales Drive
Suite 401
Ottawa, Ontario
K2C 3T2
Telephone: (613) 569-8558
FAX: (613) 569-8668
Email: cbaxter@cwcb-law.com
Party: Canadian Media Production Association, Directors Guild of Canada and Writers Guild of Canada
Counsel
Bram Abramson
4700 TD Bank Tower
PO Box 48
Toronto, Ontario
M5K 1E6
Telephone: (416) 601-7627
FAX: (416) 868-0673
Email: theintzm@mccarthy.ca
Agent
1111 Prince of Wales Drive
Suite 401
Ottawa, Ontario
K2C 3T2
Telephone: (613) 569-8558
FAX: (613) 569-8668
Email: cbaxter@cwcb-law.com
Party: Bell Aliant Regional Communications, LP
Counsel
Sarah M. Huggins
Yousuf Aftab
Nicole Mantini
3000 Maritime Life Tower, TD Centre
79 Wellington Street West
Toronto, Ontario
M5K 1N2
Telephone: (416) 865-7317
FAX: (416) 865-7380
Email: jlaskin@torys.com
Agent
World Exchange Plaza
100 Queen Street, suite 1100
Ottawa, Ontario
K1P 1J9
Telephone: (613) 237-5160
FAX: (613) 230-8842
Email: neffendi@blg.com
Party: Bell Canada, Cogeco Cable Inc., MTS Allstream Inc., Rogers Communications Inc., Telus Communications Company and Videotron Ltd. (The "ISP Coalition")
Counsel
Sarah M. Huggins
Nicole Mantini
3000 Maritime Life Tower, TD Centre
79 Wellington Street West
Toronto, Ontario
M5K 1N2
Telephone: (416) 865-7317
FAX: (416) 865-7380
Email: jlaskin@torys.com
Agent
World Exchange Plaza
100 Queen Street, suite 1100
Ottawa, Ontario
K1P 1J9
Telephone: (613) 237-5160
FAX: (613) 230-8842
Email: neffendi@blg.com
Party: Shaw Communications Inc.
Counsel
Dean Shaikh
1600 - 50 O'Connor Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1P 6L2
Telephone: (613) 566-0546
FAX: (613) 230-8877
Email: nmchaffie@stikeman.com
Party: Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission
Counsel
Carolyn Pinsky
Les Terrasses de la Chaudière
1, Promenade du Portage
Hull, Quebec
K1A 0N2
Telephone: (819) 953-3990
FAX: (819) 994-0218
Summary
Keywords
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Summary
Case summaries are prepared by the Office of the Registrar of the Supreme Court of Canada (Law Branch). Please note that summaries are not provided to the Judges of the Court. They are placed on the Court file and website for information purposes only.
Communications law – Broadcasting – Reference – Whether Court of Appeal erred in determining jurisdiction of Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission in holding that retail Internet service providers do not carry on “broadcasting undertakings” pursuant to the Broadcasting Act, S.C. 1991, c. 11 when, in their role as Internet service providers, they provide access through the Internet to “broadcasting requested by end users.” – Whether Court of Appeal erred in law in failing to apply the ordinary meaning of the word “transmission” when interpreting the definitions in section 2 of the Broadcasting Act.
The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission applied to the Federal Court of Appeal for a reference to determine the status of Internet service providers (“ISPs”.) The question was: Do retail ISPs carry on, in whole or in part, “broadcasting undertakings” subject to the Broadcasting Act, S.C. 1991,c. 11 when, in their role as ISPs, they provide access through the Internet to “broadcasting” requested by end-users? The Applicants took the position that the answer should be in the affirmative while the Respondents submitted that it should be answered in the negative.
Lower court rulings
Federal Court of Appeal
A-303-09, 2010 FCA 178
Decision that Internet service providers do not carry on "broadcasting undertaking"
Memorandums of argument on application for leave to appeal
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Factums on appeal
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If you have questions about a factum or want permission to use a factum, please contact the author of the factum directly. Their contact information appears on the first page of each factum.
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