File Sharing Movies Brings Potential Legal Consequences

As reported by CBC News, Hitman Two Productions Inc. is reportedly suing over 1,900 Canadians for copyright infringement for allegedly downloading and distributing the movie Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard.

Hitman Two Productions Inc.'s lawyer, Kenneth Clark, reportedly told the CBC that “there's a lot of online piracy that people think have no consequences”. Clark is reportedly “trying to enforce [his] client's rights because people are stealing their movies” and “to show people that illegal conduct has legal consequences."

However, David Fewer, an intellectual property and technology lawyer with the Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic (CIPPIC) at the University of Ottawa, reportedly has a different view on the nature of the litigation. Fewer reportedly told the CBC that what is “being monetized here isn't actually the copyright infringement," but rather it is “the fear and uncertainty of being sued in Federal Court [that is] being monetized."

The case of Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard is just one example of how content owners are protecting their copyrighted work. Matt Cohen, the director of Pro-Bono Ontario, reportedly stated that he has received several phone calls on similar matters over the past few years and urges those who receive a statement of claim in the mail to seek legal advice.