Canadian Anti-Spam Legislation (“CASL”) is a law regulating commercial electronic messages and is enforced by the Competition Bureau of Canada, Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, & Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (“CRTC”). As defined in CASL, spam is “any electronic commercial message sent without the express consent of the recipient(s)”. 

To meet the CASL standards, the following is required: 

1. Permission or consent is required for emails that encourage the recipient to participate in commercial activity (Fundraising emails from a registered charity are exempted for consent) 
2. Proof of consent 
3. Consent forms must be in the affirmative and not mandated 
4. A functioning Unsubscribe mechanism 
5. Unsubscribing cannot be reconfirmed (e.g. “Are you sure you want to unsubscribe?”) 
6. Accurate sender information and subject lines 
7. Inclusion of the sender’s business postal address and contact information 
8. Identification of the organization for whom the message is sent on behalf of 

CASL also defines “Express vs. Implied Consent” requirements: 

• Implied consent: there is an existing business relationship. Implied consent has a span of two years and is reset every time there is a renewed business transaction.  

• Express consent: usually comes from when people fill out a form, clearly stating they want to be sent an email. Express consent lasts forever, until they unsubscribe. 

• The OLA deems Members have implied consent for their Sector Forum and direct and group emails (e.g. AGM notice) but must express consent for any Communities of Practice or emailed newsletters.