This is referred to as the “soft opt-in” rule which is currently relied on by many commercial businesses and will be amended to broaden the scope to charities.
Charities can send electronic marketing such as, emails or text messages or direct messages on social media, without the consent of a person, providing:
The UK’s data protection regulator, the Information Commissioner, has stated that this change allowing charities to rely on the “soft opt-in” rule is planned to commence from January 2026.
The Information Commissioner has produced draft guidance and launched a consultation on the new rules aiming to gather feedback from charities. The consultation runs from 16 October to 27 November 2025 and details can be found here.
Sacha advises clients from a variety of sectors, including some of the world’s best known brands, agencies and platforms. He is ranked for advertising and digital media in both The Legal 500 and Chambers and Partners and is recognised as one of the UK’s leading advertising lawyers.
Sacha advises on a range of commercial transactions and has particular expertise in advertising-related agreements (such as creative agency, media planning and buying, production and brand partnerships). He is particularly well known for his expertise in digital marketing and adtech.
Sacha also has expertise in general advertising compliance (including prize promotions, native advertising and influencer marketing) as well as ecommerce and online consumer regulations.
Sacha also works within the firm’s retail and technology practices and regularly advises well-known retail brands on a range of retail-focused commercial agreements including distribution, licensing, and franchise agreements, as well as clients across a range of industries on tech focused agreements such as software development, SaaS, and IT services contracts.
In relation to data privacy, Sacha has advised on all the key compliance areas, and has worked with a large number of clients on their data protection compliance programmes. He has particular expertise in the data privacy aspects of marketing, adtech and digital media. He frequently advises on the compliance aspects of adtech vendor arrangements, programmatic advertising, and mobile apps.
Sacha also has expertise in the legal issues associated with AI, particularly in the context of advertising and marketing. He regularly advises clients on the privacy, IP, contractual and regulatory issues associated with the use and deployment of AI for a range of purposes in the advertising and marketing industries.
She advises on compliance with data protection laws and information laws, including the UK and EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the Data Protection Act 2018, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and codes of practice issued by the ICO and other data protection regulators.
She assist clients with data protection agreements/addendums (DPA), data protection impact assessments (DPIA), drafting and reviewing privacy policies and cookies policies and cookie banners. Nadia handles contentious data protection matters too such as communications with the ICO, personal data breaches and data subject requests such as data subject access requests (DSAR). She keep clients informed of any changes to data protection laws and updated guidance from data protection regulators, and provides training to legal teams and employees on data protection best practices. Nadia has also been seconded to help ensure compliance with GDPR and information law procedures are effective and meet the necessary standards.
Nadia works with a wide range of clients, from small businesses to large corporations, to help them understand their legal obligations and develop data protection strategies and programmes for compliance with data protection laws. Such clients include those in the fashion and retail sector, streaming services, gaming, technology and more.
Nadia has completed the Certified Information Privacy Professionals/Europe (CIPP/E) by IAPP and is a member of the Society for Computers and Law.
She has experience in advising on mergers and acquisitions, shareholder arrangements, early-stage fundraisings, share incentive schemes and joint ventures, with particular expertise in the media, entertainment and technology sectors and the wider creative industries.
She also has a particular interest in working with charities, social enterprises and philanthropic individuals and organisations and has extensive experience advising on charity formation, governance, regulatory compliance and corporate transactions involving charities and not-for-profit entities.
Katerina is recognised as a "Leading Associate" for M&A in The Legal 500 2025 as well as a "Key Lawyer" (The Legal 500 2025) and "Associate to Watch" (Chambers UK 2025) for her charities and not-for-profit work. She has been described as having “fierce attention to detail and vast knowledge, combined with a good dose of pragmatism.”
She is a member of the Charity Law Association.
May advises UK and international individuals and families on structuring, succession planning and capital taxes. May has particular expertise acting for entrepreneurs, business owners and entertainment clients on their wills, trusts and wider estate plans. An increasing part of May’s practice focuses on working with clients on their philanthropy and charitable giving, as an integral part of their planning, and May is a true expert in this area.
May trained at Harbottle & Lewis, qualifying in 2017.
May has been named as one of the Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch for the past three years. May has been named as a "Rising Star" by The Legal 500 in 2023, 2024, and 2025.