Milliken & Co. v. Interface Flooring Systems
T-3016-92
Strayer J.
7/10/93
6 pp.
Appeal from A.S.P.'s order striking out statement of claim as disclosing no cause of action-Action alleging copyright infringement-Plaintiffs alleging purchased rights to design by French citizen used in carpets and carpet tile in 1989-Design first published in U.S. in 1989-Copyright registered in Canada in 1992-Alleging defendant installed carpet tile incorporating design at Calgary International Airpor in 1991 and recently contracting to supply and install more of such carpet tile at airport-Copyright Act, s. 5 providing copyright in artistic works subsisting in Canada if author at date of making of work citizen or subject of foreign country adhering to Berne Convention, and if in case of published work, work first published within that foreign country-France, Canada and U.S.A. adhering to Berne Convention-A.S.P. holding s. 5 requiring work to be first published in foreign country of which author citizen or subject as mentioned previously in subsection-Holding French version referring to "l'un de ces pays étrangers" having same meaning as referred to "l'un", not "un"-Appeal allowed-Use of "that" in English version must refer to single foreign country referred to previously, i.e. country in "a citizen or subject of a foreign country"-"L'un" in French version indefinite pronoun, not referring back to particular thing mentioned before-"L" added to "un" for purposes of euphony-"L'un" in this context meaning same as "un" i.e. "one of these foreign countries" adhering to the Convention-As disagreement between two official language versions of statute, other rules of interpretation applied to find Parliament's true intent-English version of Convention referring to publication "in a country of the Union"-French version referring to publication "dans un pays de l'Union"-Both versions consistent with each other and with French version of s. 5 of Act-Therefore French version of s. 5 preferred-"L'un des pays" in Convention translated as "any of the countries", consistent with conclusions as to true equivalent of "l'un de ces pays étrangers" in Act, s. 5-Copyright Act, R.S.C., 1985, c. C-42, s. 5, Schedule II-Federal Court Rules, C.R.C., c. 663, R. 419.