On July 1, 2017, Canada will be
“celebrating” the third anniversary
of Canada’s Anti-Spam
Legislation – generally known
as CASL (pronounced “castle”).
Whether a celebration is warranted
is questionable. While the legislation
was purportedly designed to protect
Canadians from spam, its actual effect
on what we would all term “spam” is
arguably negligible. Rather, it has created
a tremendous amount of work
for legitimate Canadian businesses
in an effort to comply with a very
difficult law.
Furthermore, with a private right of
action scheduled to become available
on July 1, 2017, contraventions of CASL
will most certainly result in businesses
(and in the case of corporations, also
their directors and officers) being sued
for damages. While CASL provides for
compensatory damages, it also provides
for statutory damages of $200 for
LEGAL
each contravention of CASL to a maximum
of $1 million per day, making
such CASL claims rife for class actions.
What is CASL?
CASL attempts to regulate the sending
of “commercial electronic messages,”
commonly known as CEMs. CEMs are
broadly defined to encompass any type
of electronic message, in any format,
that when examined, as a whole, has the
purpose of encouraging participation
Is Your Business Ready
for CASL’s Private
Right of Action?
Being unprepared or unknowledgeable
can cost your company
thousands of dollars or more
By Paul K. Grower, Fillmore Riley LLP
ALEX OAKENMAN/SHUTTERSTOCK.COM
PILING CANADA 77
/SHUTTERSTOCK.COM
/SHUTTERSTOCK.COM
