Cyberimpact received news today that the Canadian government has postponed the addition of a new provision to Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation, which governs, among other things, sending commercial emails.
The purpose of this now deferred provision was to add a private right of action to CASL; which means that individuals and organizations would have the right to bring non-compliant email senders to court.
This provision was due to make its appearance on 1 July, 2017. It is now postponed indefinitely.
“Even if the addition of the private right of action provision is delayed, Canadian SMEs still have an obligation to comply with CASL, and are still subject to fines. We hope that this news will serve as an important reminder. ”
– Jean-Francis Lalonde Partner at Cyberimpact
Class action lawyers will have the most to lose from this deferral, as for email distribution companies such as Cyberimpact, the impact will be less severe.
Key points of this deferral:
1. Private proceedings before the court and class action lawsuits are deferred, and only the CRTC can issue fines;
2. Canadian companies are still required to obtain consent before sending emails;
3. CASL is still in effect, only the provision in question is postponed for the time being;
4. The three-year transition period to obtain consent from contacts you had existing relationships with before CASL came into effect ends on July 1, 2017. All consents must be obtained before that date (you will need to have an express consent, or a valid implied consent).
Cyberimpact makes complying with Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation easy! You can even automate your consent management through our marketing automation module.
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