Libel and Defamation

CANADIAN LIBEL LAW

http://www.libelandprivacy.com/
Canadian internet and defamation rulings

http://p2pnet.net/story/10248
Why plaintiffs outside Canada bring libel suits against non-Canadian defendants:
(because Canadian libel laws favour plaintiffs)

http://www.digital-copyright.ca/taxonomy/term/394/0/feed
Cybertorts in Canada: Trends and Themes in Cyber-Libel and Other Online Torts

http://www.digital-copyright.ca/taxonomy/term/394/0/feed
Digital Copyright Canada - Defamation (Slander and Libel)

http://saunderslog.com/2006/03/19/what-is-defamation-the-rise-of-internet-libel-cases-in-canada/
Alec Saunder's blog: The Rise of Internet Libel Cases in Canada

http://www.angelfire.com/ca2/defamation/main.html
Defamation in Canadian Cyberspace

From Leslie Ellen Harris (copyright lawyer and author of Canadian Copyright):
Defamation occurs when anyone produces untrue information or modifies that information to
misrepresent the original intention.

EXAMPES:
- an early work presented as if it were later;
- misappropriation of personality (unconsented use of a name to endorse of products or services

Canadian Federal Criminal Code:

311. No person shall be deemed to publish a defamatory libel where he proves that the publication of the defamatory matter in the manner in which it was published was for the public benefit at the time when it was published and that the matter itself was true.

BUT a libel suit can be filed in a Civil (not criminal) court in any Canadian province, and it is then subject to the libel laws of that province. Ontario's libel laws place the onus on the defendant to prove he or she did NOT publish anything defamatory, whereas in the U.S. the plaintiff has to prove that libel took place.

NOTE: YOU CANNOT COPYRIGHT AN IDEA OR A TITLE.
Plagiarism occurs when someone copies the exact wording from another source, without attribution. Even with attribution, you cannot copy substantial portions of anyone else's writing, and the law varies on how much amounts to "substantial." Always obtain permission!
Sometimes an author of a non-fiction books is upset when someone else writes about the same subject. But using the same sources does not constitute plagiarism. No one can "own" sources or access to original historical documents.