Comments on: A Small, Grudging Advance for Contract Law http://techliberation.com/2004/12/21/a-small-grudging-advance-for-contract-law/ Keeping politicians' hands off the Net & everything else related to technology Tue, 14 Feb 2012 19:26:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Jim Harper http://techliberation.com/2004/12/21/a-small-grudging-advance-for-contract-law/comment-page-1/#comment-30866 Jim Harper Wed, 22 Dec 2004 15:26:08 +0000 http://techliberation.com/2004/12/21/a-small-grudging-advance-for-contract-law/#comment-30866 <p>I'm not in a position to advise you on whether building a EULA interpreter would constitute the practice of law. Send big $$ and I'll think about it.</p> <p>In the absence of a EULA interpreter, you should be able to rely on the adhesion doctrine to avoid really weird, unilateral contract terms. (Of course, no one wants to be the one to bring that case. You might prefer giving up your kid.)</p> <p>There's lots to do in this area before the law is settled and we've only seen the first stages of what software contracts should look like. Ultimately, will we buy software or license it? Will software producers warrant its fitness for particular purposes? The list goes on and on.</p> I’m not in a position to advise you on whether building a EULA interpreter would constitute the practice of law. Send big $$ and I’ll think about it.

In the absence of a EULA interpreter, you should be able to rely on the adhesion doctrine to avoid really weird, unilateral contract terms. (Of course, no one wants to be the one to bring that case. You might prefer giving up your kid.)

There’s lots to do in this area before the law is settled and we’ve only seen the first stages of what software contracts should look like. Ultimately, will we buy software or license it? Will software producers warrant its fitness for particular purposes? The list goes on and on.

]]> By: Jim Harper http://techliberation.com/2004/12/21/a-small-grudging-advance-for-contract-law/comment-page-1/#comment-49156 Jim Harper Wed, 22 Dec 2004 15:26:08 +0000 http://techliberation.com/2004/12/21/a-small-grudging-advance-for-contract-law/#comment-49156 <p>I'm not in a position to advise you on whether building a EULA interpreter would constitute the practice of law. Send big $$ and I'll think about it.<br><br>In the absence of a EULA interpreter, you should be able to rely on the adhesion doctrine to avoid really weird, unilateral contract terms. (Of course, no one wants to be the one to bring that case. You might prefer giving up your kid.)<br><br>There's lots to do in this area before the law is settled and we've only seen the first stages of what software contracts should look like. Ultimately, will we buy software or license it? Will software producers warrant its fitness for particular purposes? The list goes on and on.</p> I’m not in a position to advise you on whether building a EULA interpreter would constitute the practice of law. Send big $$ and I’ll think about it.

In the absence of a EULA interpreter, you should be able to rely on the adhesion doctrine to avoid really weird, unilateral contract terms. (Of course, no one wants to be the one to bring that case. You might prefer giving up your kid.)

There’s lots to do in this area before the law is settled and we’ve only seen the first stages of what software contracts should look like. Ultimately, will we buy software or license it? Will software producers warrant its fitness for particular purposes? The list goes on and on.

]]> By: Grant Gould http://techliberation.com/2004/12/21/a-small-grudging-advance-for-contract-law/comment-page-1/#comment-30865 Grant Gould Tue, 21 Dec 2004 17:48:15 +0000 http://techliberation.com/2004/12/21/a-small-grudging-advance-for-contract-law/#comment-30865 <p>In the absence of some future utopia in which putting up a contract written by a lawyer is rightly regarded as prima facie evidence of intent to defraud, what these EULAs really need is some sort of translator. Given that they're mostly a cobbling-together of stock phrases, with no more than a sentence or two of original content, it should be quite simple to build a program to find the "and your soul and firstborn child" clauses hiding in them and flag them for actual human attention. But I'm concerned that writing such a program would run afoul of the unlicensed practice of law regs. Any advice?</p> In the absence of some future utopia in which putting up a contract written by a lawyer is rightly regarded as prima facie evidence of intent to defraud, what these EULAs really need is some sort of translator. Given that they’re mostly a cobbling-together of stock phrases, with no more than a sentence or two of original content, it should be quite simple to build a program to find the “and your soul and firstborn child” clauses hiding in them and flag them for actual human attention. But I’m concerned that writing such a program would run afoul of the unlicensed practice of law regs. Any advice?

]]> By: Grant Gould http://techliberation.com/2004/12/21/a-small-grudging-advance-for-contract-law/comment-page-1/#comment-49155 Grant Gould Tue, 21 Dec 2004 17:48:15 +0000 http://techliberation.com/2004/12/21/a-small-grudging-advance-for-contract-law/#comment-49155 <p>In the absence of some future utopia in which putting up a contract written by a lawyer is rightly regarded as prima facie evidence of intent to defraud, what these EULAs really need is some sort of translator. Given that they're mostly a cobbling-together of stock phrases, with no more than a sentence or two of original content, it should be quite simple to build a program to find the "and your soul and firstborn child" clauses hiding in them and flag them for actual human attention. But I'm concerned that writing such a program would run afoul of the unlicensed practice of law regs. Any advice?</p> In the absence of some future utopia in which putting up a contract written by a lawyer is rightly regarded as prima facie evidence of intent to defraud, what these EULAs really need is some sort of translator. Given that they’re mostly a cobbling-together of stock phrases, with no more than a sentence or two of original content, it should be quite simple to build a program to find the “and your soul and firstborn child” clauses hiding in them and flag them for actual human attention. But I’m concerned that writing such a program would run afoul of the unlicensed practice of law regs. Any advice?

]]> By: Jim Harper http://techliberation.com/2004/12/21/a-small-grudging-advance-for-contract-law/comment-page-1/#comment-30864 Jim Harper Tue, 21 Dec 2004 15:52:16 +0000 http://techliberation.com/2004/12/21/a-small-grudging-advance-for-contract-law/#comment-30864 <p>ComScore, for example, <a href="http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20041220/0953212_F.shtml" rel="nofollow">may or may not be fully and adequately disclosing</a> what they do with their MarketScore research tool. It's tough when so much of this is new to consumers and difficult to understand. But they've gotta do it in order to form an adequate, enforceable contract.</p> ComScore, for example, may or may not be fully and adequately disclosing what they do with their MarketScore research tool. It’s tough when so much of this is new to consumers and difficult to understand. But they’ve gotta do it in order to form an adequate, enforceable contract.

]]> By: Jim Harper http://techliberation.com/2004/12/21/a-small-grudging-advance-for-contract-law/comment-page-1/#comment-49154 Jim Harper Tue, 21 Dec 2004 15:52:16 +0000 http://techliberation.com/2004/12/21/a-small-grudging-advance-for-contract-law/#comment-49154 <p>ComScore, for example, <a href="http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20041220/0953212_F.shtml" rel="nofollow">may or may not be fully and adequately disclosing</a> what they do with their MarketScore research tool. It's tough when so much of this is new to consumers and difficult to understand. But they've gotta do it in order to form an adequate, enforceable contract.</p> ComScore, for example, may or may not be fully and adequately disclosing what they do with their MarketScore research tool. It’s tough when so much of this is new to consumers and difficult to understand. But they’ve gotta do it in order to form an adequate, enforceable contract.

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