R. v. Cole

Understanding employee privacy and work-issued computers

October 31, 2012 Lauren Bride Employee Relations, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Privacy and Security

Last week, Alison J. Bird wrote for the First Reference Talks blog about the R. v. Cole case, involving a high school teacher who had kept photos of a naked, underage student on his work computer. In the several days, there have been a flurry of news stories calling attention to privacy boundaries employees can expect regarding work-licensed technology.

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Employee privacy update: Supreme Court of Canada releases decision in R v Cole

October 25, 2012 Alison J. Bird Employee Relations, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Privacy and Security

The Supreme Court of Canada released its much-awaited decision in R. v. Cole, 2012 SCC 53, on October 19. This criminal law case is notable for employers because it provides commentary on an employee’s right to privacy when using an employer-supplied laptop.

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The risks of BYOD policy

June 7, 2012 Rudner Law, Employment / HR Law & Mediation Employee Relations, HR Policies and Procedures, Human Resources, Privacy and Security, Training and Development

In the “old” days, employees took whatever their employers gave them when it came to cellphones or personal digital assistants. However, the popularity of devices such as Apple and Android smartphones prompted a backlash from staff demanding to use their product of choice. Many employers, seeing a way to reduce costs, invited employees to “bring your own device”…

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Common law privacy rights: a shifting stance

April 20, 2011 Andrew Taillon Human Resources, Privacy and Security

The recent case of R. v. Cole 2011 ONCA 218, a decision of the Ontario Court of Appeal suggests that employees may have some expectations of privacy with regard to work based emails under the Charter.

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