Promotional Contests

Promotional contests (i.e., sweepstakes) in Canada are primarily governed by the Competition Act and the federal Criminal Code (“Code”). Other laws that frequently apply to the operation of contests in Canada include CASL (Canadian anti-spam law) (if entrant information will be used for electronic marketing), intellectual property law (e.g., if entrants will submit original material as part of participating or a sponsor uses third party IP) and privacy law (relating to the collection and use of entrants’ personal information).

If a contest will be open to Quebec residents, there are separate requirements including filing requirements, translation of rules and advertising, the payment of a duty and in some cases bonding.

The main elements of a Canadian contest are generally short and long contest rules setting out the rules for the contest, a winner release form (which is particularly important in higher risk promotions, such as trip contests), review of draft creative materials before the contest is launched to ensure that they are not false or misleading and, if the sponsor wants to use entrant information for e-mail or other electronic marketing, complying with the consent and other requirements of CASL (Canadian anti-spam law).

Canadian Contest/Sweepstakes
Legal Services

Our Canadian contest law services include advice in relation to the application of the Competition Act and Criminal Code to promotional contests; CASL (anti-spam law) advice where electronic marketing will be used (e.g., entrant e-mails collected for later marketing); drafting short and long contest rules and statutory disclosures; reviewing draft contest marketing and advertising materials for advertising law compliance; drafting winner releases; compliance with the misleading advertising provisions of the Competition Act; compliance with social media platforms’ terms of use; and drafting co-sponsor or influencer agreements (e.g., where there are multiple sponsors or prize sponsors or influencers or other third parties are involved in the marketing or administration of the promotion).

For more information see: Contests, Contests & CASL, Contest/Sweepstakes FAQs, Canadian Contest Forms, Contests & Social Media and Canadian Contest Law Tips.

Representative Work

Some representative examples of our Canadian contest/sweepstakes law work includes drafting short rules, long rules and winner releases for numerous companies, associations and governments, providing Canadian advertising law advice on draft contest creative/advertising materials, helping clients structure contests to comply with the Competition ActCriminal Code and CASL (Canadian anti-spam law), reviewing draft consent requests for later marketing to contest entrants, drafting contest related agreements (e.g., influencer, co-sponsor and contest indemnity agreements), advice relating to social media platform contest and promotion related terms of use, helping clients translate contest rules and comply with Quebec contest law (with the assistance of translators and local counsel) and working with U.S. sweepstakes counsel for Canada/U.S. contests.

CONTEST RULES/PRECEDENTS

Do you need contest rules/precedents
for a Canadian contest?

We offer many types of Canadian contest/sweepstakes law precedents and forms (i.e., Canadian contest/sweepstakes law precedents to run common types of contests in Canada).  These include legal precedents for random draw contests (i.e., where winners are chosen by random draw), skill contests (e.g., essay, photo or other types of contests where entrants submit content that is judged to enter the contest or for additional entries), trip contests and more.

Also available are individual Canadian contest/sweepstakes precedents, including short rules (“mini-rules”), long rules, winner releases and a Canadian contest law checklist.

The following are the Canadian contest/sweepstakes precedents, forms and checklists that we offer:

  • Canadian Random Draw Contest Package
  • Canadian Skill Contest Package
  • Short Rules (Random Draw Contest)
  • Short Rules (Skill Contest)
  • Long Rules (Random Draw Contest)
  • Long Rules (Skill Contest)
  • Winner Release Form
  • Canadian Contest Law Checklist
  • Facebook “Like” Random Draw Contest Package
  • Trip Contest: Random Draw Contest Package
  • Trip Contest: Skill Contest Package
  • Winner Releases For Trip Contests (Winner & Guest Release)
  • Guidelines For Consumer Generated Content Contests
  • Canadian Random Draw Contest Package (Including Quebec)
  • Contest Indemnification/Influencer Agreement
  • Facebook and Instagram Language for Canadian Contest Rules

For more information and to order, see: Contest Forms/Precedents and Contest Forms/Precedents II.