British Columbia’s Supreme Court has awarded a record-setting judgment of over $1 million to a B.C. businessman for invasion of privacy as reported by Canwest News Service.
In 2005, Hal Neumann’s home was searched by the Canada Revenue Agency, who were looking for records and documents he’d already given to the government. The CRA is studying the decision to determine if they will appeal.
This judgement is significant because it demonstrates that Canadian courts are now willing to award substantial damages for an invasion of privacy. Public bodies or private sector organizations in Canada that think privacy rights don’t have teeth should reconsider after seeing this groundbreaking decision.
