Andrea Slane
Dr. Andrea Slane J.D. PhD (she/her) is Associate Dean, Research, and Professor in Legal Studies, Faculty of Social Science and Humanities, Ontario Tech University. Her research focuses on law’s interface with digital communication and information technologies, including the nature of privacy interests and appropriate limits to privacy protection; legal approaches to various forms of online and other digital exploitation of vulnerable people; and personality rights and other efforts to use intellectual property to protect personal information and identity. Her work and teaching centrally concerns the social impact of current and emerging information and communication technologies, and the legal and policy protections needed to ensure their safe, equitable and principled use. Current research projects grapple with legal and ethical issues in two domains: those raised by law enforcement use of facial recognition technology, and those raised by anthropomorphic social support technologies for seniors.
Education
J.D. with Honours, University of Toronto, Faculty of Law, 2003.
Ph.D. in Comparative Literature, University of California, San Diego, 1995.
Career
Ontario Tech University, Faculty of Social Science and Humanities: Professor (2020-present); Associate Professor (2009-2020)
University of Toronto, Faculty of Law, Centre for Innovation Law and Policy: Executive Director (2006-2009)
Osler, Hoskin and Harcourt LLP, Toronto: Associate Lawyer (2004-2006); Articling Student (2003-2004).
Old Dominion University, Department of English: Assistant Professor (1995-2000).
Selected Publications
Andrea Slane, “Privacy Protective Roadblocks and Speedbumps Restraining Law Enforcement Use of Facial Recognition Software in Canada”, Criminal Law Quarterly (forthcoming, 2021).
Andrea Slane, “Establishing and Adapting a Federal Data Protection Authority in a Continually Changing Information Environment: The Canadian Experience” in Cíntia Rosa Pereira de Lima, ed. Proceedings from the Congresso Internacional “Desafios e perspectivas das Autoridades de Proteção de Dados Pessoais e Privacidade” (forthcoming, 2021)
Andrea Slane, “Reconciling Privacy and Expression Rights By Regulating Profile Compilation Services”, in Ignacio N. Cofone, ed., The Right to be Forgotten: A Canadian & Comparative Perspective (Routledge, 2020): 40-54.
Andrea Slane, “There Is a There There: Forum Selection Clauses, Consumer Protection and the Quasi-Constitutional Right to Privacy in Douez v Facebook” (2019) 88 Supreme Court Law Review 87-104.
Andrea Slane, “Mixed Means for Mixed Motives: The Role of Unfair Profit in Cases involving Privacy Invasion and Identity Misuse”, in Mistrale Goudreau and Margaret Ann Wilkinson, eds., Nouveaux paradigmes dans la protection des inventions, données et signes : actes de la conférence académique pancanadienne de propriété intellectuelle de 2017 (Éditions Yvon Blais, 2019).
Andrea Slane, “Search Engines and the Right to Be Forgotten: Squaring the Remedy with Canadian Values on Personal Information Flow” (2018) 55:2 Osgoode Hall Law Journal 349-397.
Andrea Slane, “Information Brokers, Fairness, and Privacy in Publicly Accessible Information”, (2018) 4:1 Canadian Journal of Contemporary and Comparative Law 249-292.
Andrea Slane and Ganaele Langlois, “Debunking the Myth of “Not My Bad”: Sexual Images, Consent and Online Host Responsibilities in Canada” (2018) 30:1 Canadian Journal of Women and the Law 42-81.
Policy Work
Lisa Austin and Andrea Slane, written submissions responding to the Department of Justice discussion paper “Modernizing Canada’s Privacy Act: Online Public Consultation”, submitted to Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, February 14, 2021.
Lisa Austin, Vincent Chiao, Beth Coleman, David Lie, Martha Shaffer, Andrea Slane, François Tanguay-Renaud, “Test, Trace, and Isolate: Covid-19 and the Canadian Constitution” (May 22, 2020). Osgoode Legal Studies Research Paper, Available at SSRN. Prepared for immediate public dissemination.
Jennifer Martin and Andrea Slane, “Gap Analysis of Services for Victims and Survivors of Online Child Sexual Exploitation in Canada”, funded by and to be submitted to Department of Justice, Canada. Final report submitted September, 2019.
Selected Conference Papers – Manuscripts in Preparation
Andrea Slane, “Backcasting Trustworthy Social Support Technologies for Seniors”, Beyond Disinformation: Authenticity and Trust in the Online World, Social Science Research Council, Brooklyn New York, held virtually October 22-23, 2020.
Andrea Slane, Isabel Pedersen, Patrick Hung, “Involving Seniors in Developing Privacy Best Practices: Toward Responsible Development of Anthropomorphic Social Support Technologies for Seniors” We Robot 2020, University of Ottawa, Canada, planned for April 2–4, 2020, conducted virtually September 22-25, 2020, https://techlaw.uottawa.ca/werobot/virtual.
