(1) Except as otherwise provided under subsection (2), a person who violates this act is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more than 1 year or a fine of not more than $10,000.00, or both.
  (2) A person who violates section 4 or violates this act in the furtherance of another crime is guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than 4 years or a fine of not more than $25,000.00, or both.

Attorney's Note

Under the Michigan Laws, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:
ClassPrisonFine
Fup to 4 years
For details, see Mich. Comp. Laws ch. 777 pt. 2

Terms Used In Michigan Laws 445.2507

  • Commercial e-mail: means an electronic message, file, data, or other information promoting the sale, lease, or exchange of goods, services, real property, or any other thing of value that is transmitted between 2 or more computers, computer networks, or electronic terminals or within a computer network. See Michigan Laws 445.2502
  • E-mail address: means a destination, commonly expressed as a string of characters, to which e-mail may be sent or delivered. See Michigan Laws 445.2502
  • E-mail service provider: means a person that is an intermediary in the transmission of e-mail or provides to end users of e-mail service the ability to send and receive e-mail. See Michigan Laws 445.2502
  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • Person: means an individual, corporation, partnership, association, governmental entity, or any other legal entity. See Michigan Laws 445.2502
  • Preexisting business relationship: means a relationship existing before the receipt of an e-mail formed voluntarily by the recipient with another person by means of an inquiry, application, purchase, or use of a product or service of the person sending the e-mail. See Michigan Laws 445.2502
  • Unsolicited: means without the recipient's express permission. See Michigan Laws 445.2502
  (3) Each commercial e-mail sent in violation of this act is a separate violation under this section.
  (4) An e-mail service provider does not violate this act as a result of either of the following:
  (a) Being an intermediary between the sender and recipient in the transmission of an unsolicited commercial e-mail that violates this act.
  (b) Provides transmission of unsolicited commercial e-mail over the provider’s network or facilities.
  (5) It is prima facie evidence that the sender is in violation of this section if the recipient is unable to contact the sender through the return e-mail address provided by the sender under section 3.
  (6) It is a defense to a case brought under this section or an action under section 8 that the unsolicited commercial e-mail was transmitted accidentally or as a result of a preexisting business relationship. The burden of proving that the commercial e-mail was transmitted accidentally or as a result of a preexisting business relationship is on the sender.