Quebec parents demand $1.4-million from teacher, school board for stolen intellectual property

FRÉDÉRIK-XAVIER DUHAMEL, Staff reporter

A group of parents is threatening to sue a junior high school art teacher and his Montreal-area school board for $1.4-million in damages, after students found thousands of items for sale online bearing their classroom artwork.
The parents’ lawyer, Martin DeBellefeuille, outlined the allegations in a legal notice sent Tuesday to the Lester B. Pearson School Board and the teacher, Mario Perron. The complaint was initially made on behalf of two parents, but that has since increased to eight.
The notice says the parents’ children, who are Mr. Perron’s students at Westwood Junior High, located west of Montreal in Saint-Lazare, found an online profile under Mr. Perron’s name on a website called fineartamerica.com last week. They saw “several thousand items, including mugs, canvases, cushions, decorations, and bags featuring work created by the students as part of their art class” listed for sale on the site, with prices between US$30 and US$120, the parents allege.
The parents are accusing Mr. Perron of stealing their children’s intellectual property. Their $1.4-million claim, made in a subsequent letter on Friday, is an increase from an initial claim of $350,000, and could grow further as more parents join the action.
Mr. Perron did not respond to an e-mail seeking comment, and has not spoken publicly about the allegations, which have made headlines around the world. The school board said in a statement to parents this week that it is investigating, though it added that it didn’t believe any of the items had actually been sold.
“I’ve never seen anything like that,” Mr. DeBellefeuille said in an interview Friday. “It’s a first.”
The items were decorated with images described on the website as “creepy portraits” students had made of their classmates. The colourful images often included gory or fantastical elements.
The parents allege Mr. Perron used images from 96 students on 31 different products, for a total of nearly 3,000 unique items.
The legal notice says the artwork was “used without the consent of their creators, in bad faith, and in violation of all laws related to the intellectual property of an artist.”
“This act is even more egregious, as it stems from the use of material created by students in a school setting, under authority, and sold with impunity at high prices,” it adds.
Joel DeBellefeuille, one of the two parents who initially launched the legal action, said in an interview that he was still in disbelief. (Joel DeBellefeuille and Martin DeBellefeuille are stepbrothers.)
“It’s one of the craziest, craziest things I’ve ever heard,” he said.
The parents are asking that the artwork be removed from the online platform, and that the school board “take serious measures against Mr. Perron to cease the usurpation.” They are also asking that the board suspend him “temporarily or permanently” from teaching their children. And they want a letter of apology from Mr. Perron.
Friday’s letter warns that more applicants will move forward with similar grievances next week.
Mr. DeBellefeuille, the lawyer, said Friday that two more parents have confirmed they intend to join.
Darren Becker, a spokesperson for the school board, said in an e-mail on Friday that the board had no additional comments.