“A photo of mine that I posted online has been taken and slightly modified by somebody who is claiming it as her own work. What can I do to assert my copyright and ownership of the image I took?”
You can register your copyright to assert your ownership over the image, but this is not always necessary to control copyright. Copyright is a sui generis right which exists so long as the requirements of the Act are satisfied, and it is an eligible work. Under the Copyright Act, you have a right to protect your work and dictate how it is used.[1] Registration of copyright is evidence that you are the person who owns the image. You may be entitled to damages or a court order stopping anyone from using your image.[2] Use this site to register a copyright: https://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/cipointernet-internetopic.nsf/eng/h_wr00021.html
[1] Copyright Act, RSC 1985, c 42, s 27(1) and 3(1).
[2] Copyright Act, RSC 1985, c 42, s 34(1).
The Queen’s Film & TV Research Group are not lawyers, and this is not legal advice! For more information on copyright law, please see the Copyright Law section of this site. Find out more about Queen’s Law on their website, and Pro Bono Queen’s at the PBSC Queen’s site.