B.C. has jurisdiction in intimate image case even though video was made out of province: tribunal

A man was able to seek recourse under B.C.'s Intimate Images Protection Act even though the video shared without his consent was filmed in and posted online from a different province.

A man was able to seek recourse under B.C.'s Intimate Images Protection Act even though the video shared without his consent was filmed in and posted online from a different province.

The Civil Resolution Tribunal published its decision in the case last week, explaining how it determined the matter of jurisdiction. Both parties are referred to only by their initials – J.G. and R.C.

The video showed the two men having sex and J.G. brought the complaint to the tribunal after he saw that R.C. had shared it on his OnlyFans and Just For Fans accounts as well as on Twitter where one of his accounts has 100,000 followers. R.C. admitted to sharing the video and did not object to taking it offline or paying damages – although he did think the claimed amount of $5,000 was too high.

Tribunal member Micah Carmody noted that the first issue to decide was whether the provincial tribunal had jurisdiction.

"The respondent lives in Canada but outside of B.C. The video in question was made in the respondent’s home province and shared from there," the decision said.

"Before hearing an application, a court or tribunal must have 'territorial competence' to do so. This means there must be some connection between the application and the court or tribunal’s location."

When a tort or "legal wrong" happens online, establishing jurisdiction is not as straightforward as in cases where something happens in a "fixed physical location," Carmody noted. However, he explained why he found that in this case, the connection to the province was established.