Privacy and Private Law: The Dilemma of Justification

In recent years there has been a remarkable convergence across several common law jurisdictions regarding the need to recognize some form of a tort of invasion of privacy, particularly with respect to the publication of private facts. Despite this convergence, the author argues that there remains a palpable “containment anxiety” at play in the jurisprudence that is responsible for a number of recurring tensions regarding the scope of protection.Instead of focusing on the question of how to define privacy, this paper frames the containment anxiety at issue in the cases in terms of a justificatory dilemma rather than a definitional one. Using the work of Mill and Kant, the author argues that if we understand privacy rights as protecting either the value of autonomy or freedom from harm then we can justify a narrow legal right to privacy. Although this can explain the containment anxiety in the jurisprudence, it severely undermines the growing recognition of the importance of privacy. Therefore this paper proposes an alternative justification for privacy rights that is rooted in the value of protecting identity interests, where identity is understood in terms of one's capacity for self-presentation.On assiste depuis quelques années à une convergence remarquable à travers plusieurs juridictions de common law quant au besoin de reconnaître une forme de délit d’atteinte à la vie privée, plus particulièrement en ce qui a trait à la publication de faits privés. Malgré cette convergence, l’auteur maintient qu’il existe toujours un certain « malaise » quant aux limites à imposer aux mesures de protection. Ce malaise, qui se fait sentir dans la jurisprudence, est responsable de certaines tensions récurrentes quant à l’étendue de la protection à accorder à la vie privée. Plutôt que de se concentrer sur une définition de la vie privée, cet article présente le malaise dont il est question dans les arrêts en termes d’un dilemme de justification plutôt que de définition. En se basant sur les travaux de Mill et de Kant, l’auteur fait valoir que si nous entendons le droit à la vie privée comme protégeant soit l’autonomie, soit l’exemption du mal, il est alors possible de justifier un droit étroit à la vie privée. Si cette approche peut expliquer le malaise ressenti dans la jurisprudence, elle mine sévèrement l’importance croissante qui est accordée à la vie privée. Cet essai propose donc une justification alternative du droit à la vie privée qui se fonde sur l’importance de protéger les intérêts identitaires, où l’identité est conçue en termes de la capacité d’autoreprésentation d’une personne

Towards a Public Law of Privacy: Meeting the Big Data Challenge

Privacy law, to the extent that it regulates state information practices, wears two “public” hats. The first hat is constitutional law. For example, the Canadian Charter protects privacy through protecting individuals against unreasonable searches and seizures. The second hat is public sector data protection law modelled on what are known as Fair Information Practices (FIPs). For example, in Canada the federal Privacy Act regulates the collection, use and disclosure of personal information held by government institutions and provides individuals with a right of access to that information. The constitutional hat is concerned with state-individual relations in the context of law enforcement while the data protection hat is concerned with state-individual relations in the context of administering state programs. This article calls into question the ongoing relevance of this divide. The merging of these two frameworks is a large project to both undertake and defend. This article only purports to offer some initial reflections on a potential merger, focusing on recent Supreme Court cases, including R. v. Spencer; R. v. Wakeling; and R. v. Fearon. First, this article outlines some of the ways in which our Charter jurisprudence already adopts some of the insights that come out of the data protection law model and points to some of the ways in which this can be built upon. Next, the article outlines the potential problems of using data protection law framework in the context of law enforcement and anti-terrorism if the limitations of data protection are not well understood when balancing interests. Finally, it finishes with some proposals about how merging the two models might better address some new types of “Big Data” investigatory techniques, or, what we now all describe post-Snowden, as “collecting-the-haystack-to-find-the-needle”

I Keep my Problems to Myself: Negative Social Network Orientation, Social Resources, and Health-Related Quality of Life in Cancer Survivors

Cancer survivors treated with hematopoietic stem cell transplant rely on their social network for successful recovery. However, some survivors have negative attitudes about using social resources (negative social network orientation) that are critical for their recovery

N3-ligated Nickel(II) Diketonate Complexes: Synthesis, Characterization and Evaluation of O2 Reactivity

Interest in O2-dependent aliphatic carbon–carbon (C–C) bond cleavage reactions of first row divalent metal diketonate complexes stems from the desire to further understand the reaction pathways of enzymes such as DKE1 and to extract information to develop applications in organic synthesis. A recent report of O2-dependent aliphatic C–C bond cleavage at ambient temperature in Ni(II) diketonate complexes supported by a tridentate nitrogen donor ligand [(MBBP)Ni(PhC(O)CHC(O)Ph)]Cl (7-Cl; MBBP = 2,6-bis(1-methylbenzimidazol-2-yl)pyridine) in the presence of NEt3 spurred our interest in further examining the chemistry of such complexes. A series of new TERPY-ligated Ni(II) diketonate complexes of the general formula [(TERPY)Ni(R2-1,3-diketonate)]ClO4 (1: R = CH3; 2: R = C(CH3)3; 3: R = Ph) was prepared under air and characterized using single crystal X-ray crystallography, elemental analysis, 1H NMR, ESI-MS, FTIR, and UV-vis. Analysis of the reaction mixtures in which these complexes were generated using 1H NMR and ESI-MS revealed the presence of both the desired diketonate complex and the bis-TERPY derivative [(TERPY)2Ni](ClO4)2 (4). Through selective crystallization 1–3 were isolated in analytically pure form. Analysis of reaction mixtures leading to the formation of the MBBP analogs [(MBBP)Ni(R2-1,3-diketonate)]X (X = ClO4: 5: R = CH3; 6: R = C(CH3)3; 7-ClO4: R = Ph; X = Cl: 7-Cl: R = Ph) using 1H NMR and ESI-MS revealed the presence of [(MBBP)2Ni](ClO4)2 (8). Analysis of aerobic acetonitrile solutions of analytically pure 1–3, 5 and 6 containing NEt3 and in some cases H2O using 1H NMR and UV-vis revealed evidence for the formation of additional bis-ligand complexes (4 and 8) but suggested no oxidative diketonate cleavage reactivity. Analysis of the organic products generated from 3, 7-ClO4 and 7-Cl revealed unaltered dibenzoylmethane. Our results therefore indicate that N3-ligated Ni(II) complexes of unsubstituted diketonate ligands do not exhibit O2-dependent aliphatic C–C bond clevage at room temperature, including in the presence of NEt3 and/or H2O

A usability and feasibility study of a computerized version of the Bath Adolescent Pain Questionnaire: the BAPQ-C.

Background Pain is a common experience in adolescence, with up to 44% of adolescents reporting chronic pain. For a significant minority, severe pain becomes an ongoing disabling problem. Treatment of adolescent chronic pain aims to reduce the impact of pain on adolescents’ lives. Efficient, accurate assessment of the impact of pain is essential to treatment. The ‘Bath Adolescent Pain Questionnaire’ (BAPQ) is a psychometrically robust multidimensional self-report measure of adolescent functioning. Whilst widely used, the paper-based format of the BAPQ can present completion difficulties for adolescents experiencing chronic pain. To increase the accessibility and clinical utility of the BAPQ, an electronic version of the measure is needed. This study assesses the usability and feasibility of a computerized version of this measure (BAPQ-C) in an adolescent chronic pain population. Methods Fourteen adolescents (13 females; 13–16 years) were recruited from a hospital-based residential pain management programme. Participants completed a qualitative ‘thinking aloud task’ whilst completing the BAPQ-C. and, an acceptability questionnaire regarding the BAPQ-C. Data were analysed using thematic analysis, a widely used qualitative method of data analysis. ResultsTwo themes labelled ‘engagement and technological appeal’ and ‘accessibility and independence’ were generated. Themes revealed numerous factors contributing to participants’ preference for the BAPQ-C compared with the paper version of the BAPQ. Participants reported that the BAPQ-C was ‘quicker’ and ‘easier’ to complete than the BAPQ. Functional aspects of the BAPQ-C which included use of a touch screen rather than a pen and paper, font colours/styles, the zoom function and the spellchecker, provided participants with improved access. This subsequently increased participants’ independence and confidence when completing the measure. ConclusionThe BAPQ-C is a feasible multidimensional tool for the assessment of functioning in adolescents who experience chronic pain. It was well-received by participants who were able to complete the measure more quickly, independently and confidently than the paper-based BAPQ. Increased speed, ease and accuracy of completion make the BAPQ-C an ideal tool for use in busy clinical and research settings. Findings highlight the potential benefits of adopting the BAPQ-C when assessing the impact of chronic pain on adolescents in clinic and home-based settings

Test, Trace, and Isolate: Covid-19 and the Canadian Constitution

Contact tracing is essential to controlling the spread of infectious disease and plays a central role in plans to safely loosen Covid-19 physical distancing measures and begin to reopen the economy. Contact tracing apps, used in conjunction with established human contact tracing methods, could serve as part of Canada’s “test, trace, and isolate” strategy. In this brief, we consider the potential benefits of using contract tracing apps to identify people who have been exposed to Covid-19, as well as the limitations of using this technology. We also consider the privacy implications of different app design choices. Finally, we consider how the privacy impacts of contact tracing apps could be evaluated under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which provides a framework for balancing competing rights and interests. We argue that so long as apps are carefully constructed and the information they reveal is appropriately safeguarded, tracing apps may have a role to play in the response of a free and democratic society to the Covid 19 pandemic. 1. Improving the Efficiency of Human Contact Tracing: The public health goal of a contact tracing app should be to integrate with human contact tracing and make it more efficient rather than replace it. We need to keep humans in the loop to ensure accuracy and to maintain the important social functions of contact tracing, which includes educating people about risks and helping them access social supports. 2. Privacy Choices: Currently, the most privacy-protective design for contact tracing apps makes use of proximity data (via Bluetooth) through a decentralized design. This method is receiving significant technical support from Apple and Google. However, this method fails to integrate with the human contact tracing system. Other options, such as the use of location logs or a centralized registration system, are more aligned with the public health goal of integration with human contact tracing but raise additional privacy questions. In addition to the constitutional questions raised by these privacy choices, there are two important considerations. First, social trust is important. If individuals do not feel comfortable with using a particular contact tracing app there will not be the large-scale uptake needed to make these an effective addition to human contact tracing. Second, due to various technical challenges, it is difficult to make effective contact tracing apps utilizing proximity data unless one uses the method supported by Apple and Google. However, Google and Apple prohibit app developers both from utilizing centralized methods and from utilizing location data. 3. Constitutional Balancing: Our privacy commissioners have discussed the need to assess these privacy choices according to the principles of necessity and proportionality. The Canadian Charter provides an important framework for thinking about these principles as it provides us with a framework for how to balance rights and interests in a free and democratic society. The Charter requires that we choose the most privacy-protective app design that meets the public health goal, so long as the benefits of meeting this goal outweigh its deleterious effects on privacy. This requires a reasonable belief in the efficacy of such an app. It also requires an assessment of the nature of the benefits, which are not just the economic benefits of reopening the economy. The currently prevailing restrictions on movement and work are themselves limitations of basic rights and liberties. Individuals who self-isolate in situations of poverty, precarious housing, mental health challenges, abusive relationships, or other vulnerabilities face challenges that affect their security of the person. There are also broader effects on equality and human flourishing. If contact tracing, enhanced by an app, reduces the need for restrictions in the form of self-isolation, it promotes other Charter rights and values (e.g., security of the person) which must be balanced against the potential infringement of privacy rights

Reelin Mobilizes a VAMP7-Dependent Synaptic Vesicle Pool and Selectively Augments Spontaneous Neurotransmission

SummaryReelin is a glycoprotein that is critical for proper layering of neocortex during development as well as dynamic regulation of glutamatergic postsynaptic signaling in mature synapses. Here, we show that Reelin also acts presynaptically, resulting in robust rapid enhancement of spontaneous neurotransmitter release without affecting properties of evoked neurotransmission. This effect of Reelin requires a modest but significant increase in presynaptic Ca2+ initiated via ApoER2 signaling. The specificity of Reelin action on spontaneous neurotransmitter release is encoded at the level of vesicular SNARE machinery as it requires VAMP7 and SNAP-25 but not synaptobrevin2, VAMP4, or vti1a. These results uncover a presynaptic regulatory pathway that utilizes the heterogeneity of synaptic vesicle-associated SNAREs and selectively augments action potential-independent neurotransmission

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms Contribute to Staff Perceived Irritability, Anger, and Aggression After TBI in a Longitudinal Veteran Cohort: A VA TBI Model Systems Study

Objective To examine the relationship between staff perceived irritability, anger, and aggression and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in veterans with traumatic brain injury (TBI) of all severity levels. Design Longitudinal cohort design. Setting Veterans Affairs Polytrauma Transitional Rehabilitation Programs. Participants Veterans and service members with TBI of all severity levels enrolled in the Veterans Affairs Polytrauma Rehabilitation Centers’ Traumatic Brain Injury Model System national database (N=240). Interventions Not applicable. Main Outcome Measure Univariable and multivariable logistic regression modeling was used to examine the association between irritability, anger, and aggression and potential risk factors, including PTSD symptoms. Irritability, anger, and aggression was measured as a single construct using an item from the Mayo-Portland Adaptability Inventory-4 that was rated by program staff at admission and discharge from the inpatient rehabilitation program. PTSD symptoms were assessed using the PTSD Checklist–Civilian Version. Results PTSD symptoms uniquely predicted program staff-rated irritability, anger, and aggression at discharge even after controlling for severity of TBI, age, male sex, education, and annual earnings. The model explained 19% of the variance in irritability, anger, and aggression. Conclusions When TBI severity and PTSD symptoms were considered simultaneously in a sample of veterans, only PTSD symptoms predicted staff-rated irritability, anger, and aggression. Given the negative outcomes linked with irritability, anger, and aggression, veterans may benefit from assessment and treatment of PTSD symptoms within rehabilitation settings