Canada: New Technology

The past few months have brought milestones worth sharing. We were named a Top Diversity Employer for the eighth consecutive year, and we welcomed 23 new lawyers to partnership. These moments build on the inclusive culture and leadership that so many of you helped shape during your time at BLG.

Artificial intelligence has entered a new phase: models can take actions—deploy code, interact with enterprise systems and operate through automated agents—with real-world consequences.

The British Columbia Court of Appeal (BCCA) recently confirmed the British Columbia courts’ jurisdictional competence over foreign litigants that conduct business virtually with British Columbians. In Airbnb, Inc. v. Ware, the BCCA partially allowed Airbnb’s appeal of certification, finding that the real and substantial connection analysis cannot be based solely on a foreign entity’s relationship to other defendants or ancillary activities. In Clearview AI Inc. v. British Columbia (Information and Privacy Commissioner), the BCCA held that provincial privacy law applies to foreign businesses that operate online.