A controversial piece of legislation which would extend the rights of Canadian copyright holders well into the 21st century has passed a vote in the House of Commons. Until the late 1990s, Canadian copyrights had no expiration date, but a 1997 overhaul allowed thousands of old documents and images to enter the public domain. The new bill is a partial rollback of that 1997 legislation, and is also being carefully watched by observers on all sides of the ongoing evolution of copyright law.