Terms of Service, “click consent,” and other types of standard form contracts are ubiquitous features of the digital marketplace. Hardly a day goes by that consumers in Ontario are not asked to click, tap, scan, or otherwise confirm “I ACCEPT” when presented with a contract for an online product, transaction, or service.

Ryan Fritsch, legal counsel at the Law Commission of Ontario, will discuss their implications in a free public talk Friday, Feb. 7, “Consumer Protection and the Digital Marketplace.”

Terms of Service contracts have many advantages: they are often fast, consistent, efficient, and transparent. These attributes make them ideal for high-volume, routine consumer transactions of many kinds. In recent years, however, many such contracts have been criticized by consumers, businesses, courts, and governments due to their length, complexity, opacity, and inclusion of terms which may be confusing, deceptive, misleading, unfair, or contrary to Ontario law.

In May 2024, the Law Commission of Ontario released the final report of its project Improving Consumer Protection in the Digital Marketplace. It considered how to update traditional consumer protections such as notice and disclosure requirements, deception and unconscionability rules, and consumer enforcement in light of the new, complex, and expansive range of consumer risks in the digital economy.

Fritsch will discuss the major findings of the report and recent legislative reform on consumer protection in Ontario.

Part of the LTEC Lab seminar series, his talk is set for 11:30 a.m. Feb. 7 in the law building’s Moot Court. Admission is free and lunch will be provided, but registration to indicate attendance is required.