Supreme Court of Canada on the Appropriateness and Scope of a Global Website Takedown Order

Authors

Jennifer C. Daskal, American University Washington College of LawFollow

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

10-2018

Journal

American Journal of International Law

Volume

112

Issue

4

First Page

727

Last Page

733

Abstract

In Google v. Equustek, the Supreme Court of Canada ordered Google to delist all websites used by Datalink, a company that stole trade secrets from Equustek, a Canada-based information technology company. Google had agreed to do so in part, but with respect to searches that originated from google.ca only, the default browser for those in Canada. Equustek however, argued the takedowns needed to be global in order to be effective. It thus sought an injunction ordering Google to delist the allegedly infringing websites from all of Google's search engines whether accessed from google.ca, google.com, or any other entry point. Google objected. The Canadian Supreme Court, along with the two lower Canadian courts that considered the issue, sided with Equustek. The ruling sets up a potential showdown between Canadian and U.S. law and raises critically important questions about the appropriate geographic and substantive scope of takedown orders, the future of free speech online, and the role of intermediaries such as Google in preventing economic and other harms.

Recommended Citation

Jennifer C. Daskal, Supreme Court of Canada on the Appropriateness and Scope of a Global Website Takedown Order, 112 American Journal of International Law 727 (2018).
Available at: https://digitalcommons.wcl.american.edu/facsch_lawrev/2165