The law and campaigning

Campaigning often arises from a sense of injustice about a status quo and something that might be lawful. So, if you are campaigning against something that is lawful (even if you think it is unethical), depending on what campaign tactics you use, you might come up against the law. Just because you may have a moral justification for breaking the law, it won't mean that you can get away with it! So, you need to understand what some of the laws that your actions could potentially bring you up against.

There is also a range of ways in which the activities of campaigners may be curtailed - whether these curtailments are reasonable or not is a matter of opinion. So, this section also looks at some of the key pieces of legislation that might affect you.

However, the law can be a very important and useful ally to campaigners and we also look at what some of the key ones are.

Finally, we explore the legalities around charities undertaking campaigning. Many well known campaigns are run by charities, but it is not necessarily the right legal structure. Depending on the nature of your campaign, there might be a more appropriate legal structure for you to adopt. We also look at some of these other options.