Cyber safety protection orders should be public, judge says

A Nova Scotia Supreme Court judge wants cyber safety protection orders made public, unless there are specific reasons to seal the orders. 

Justice Gerald Moir held a special media hearing at the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia Thursday afternoon.

The issue came to light when media requested access to the files and were denied.

"At some point court staff started treating these files as confidential," Moir said. "The treatment of these files as confidential was wrong."

He said a cyber safety protection order should only be kept confidential if a child is involved, or if there is a perceived threat to someone's safety.

"I became concerned because it appears the court may have led the public to believe that these files would be treated as confidential," he said.

Seven cyber protection orders have been granted since the act became law in 2013. Moir is giving the people involved in those seven orders until Jan. 19 to decide whether their orders should be kept confidential.

If they haven't made their case by then, Moir says the files will then be open to the public. He's imposed interim publication bans on those files.

'Troubling' legislation

Media lawyer Nancy Rubin attended Thursday's hearing. She described the law as well-intentioned, but flawed.

"This legislation is troubling in a lot of ways," she said outside court.

"I think it's over-broad and over-reaches, particularly where you can get these protection orders ex parte, which means without notice."

Rubin said the definition of cyberbullying under the act is too broad and can include things such as hurt feelings.

"Somebody can be the subject of a protection order, they can get their internet access rights denied, they can get their mobile phones confiscated, all sorts of orders made against them, without any notice," Rubin said.

Rubin said she will attend the hearing on Jan. 19.