CA Anti-Spam Bill Suspended (Yay!)

A Canadian anti-spam bill that appeared certain to pass has been indefinitely delayed after the country’s government suspended its Parliament until March, it has been reported.

This is good news—temporarily, at least—for marketing.

The suspension of Canada’s Parliament means that all bills that had not been passed into law must be restarted. Canada’s anti-spam bill, C-27, was one of those that had not passed. Before the suspension, it was just about to be reviewed by a Senate committee.

According to reports, the bill can be restarted where it left off by a unanimous vote in the House of Commons.

However, a single “no” vote will require it to be started from scratch.

Canada’s anti-spam bill is bad policy. It is opt-in based and allows private individuals to sue commercial e-mailers, a combination that has already proved to be a recipe for disaster.

For example, after Utah gave individuals the right to sue alleged spammers, Salt Lake attorneys Denver Snuffer and Jesse Riddle in 2003 filed more than 1,000 lawsuits against companies such as Verizon, eBay and Columbia House in a massive shakedown effort before the law was repealed.

Here’s to hoping at least one member of Canada’s House of Commons has the sense to see C-27 as the potential business crippler it is.