CASL is a new federal law aimed at eliminating unsolicited and malicious electronic communications. Originally introduced in December 2010, the majority of CASL's provisions will come into force on July 1, 2014. Once in effect, organizations will have to comply with specific consent, disclosure and unsubscribe requirements when sending out electronic communications.

CASL is accompanied by two sets of regulations from the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC Regs) and from Industry Canada (IC Regs). The CRTC has also issued two interpretative guidelines (referred to as Compliance and Enforcement Information Bulletins CRTC 2012-548 and 2012-549), but these guidelines do not have the force of law.

This guide provides basic information on CASL to help understand how it will impact electronic communication practices and will focus on CASL's prohibition on "spam".

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