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Full-Text Articles in Law

It's Just Another Little Bit Of History Repeating: Ucita In The Evolving Age Of Information, Thomas J. Murphy Sep 2010

It's Just Another Little Bit Of History Repeating: Ucita In The Evolving Age Of Information, Thomas J. Murphy

Golden Gate University Law Review

This article will address the procedural and substantive reasons why UCITA is, in fact, overly ambitious. With regard to procedure, Part II.A of this comment will outline the historical naissance and development of the highly successful Uniform Commercial Code and contrast that with the development of UCITA. With regard to substance, Part II.B will address what many practitioners have cited as key objections to UCITA. Further, Part II.B discusses examples of terms used in UCITA and compares them to those of common, established practice. Differentiating UCITA from the UCC in these ways will illustrate how UCITA misses the mark it …


Electronic Data: A Commentary On The Law In Virginia In 2007, Hon. Thomas D. Horne Nov 2007

Electronic Data: A Commentary On The Law In Virginia In 2007, Hon. Thomas D. Horne

University of Richmond Law Review

No abstract provided.


The Secret Is Out: Patent Law Preempts Mass Market License Terms Barring Reverse Engineering For Interoperability Purposes, Daniel Laster Feb 2006

The Secret Is Out: Patent Law Preempts Mass Market License Terms Barring Reverse Engineering For Interoperability Purposes, Daniel Laster

ExpressO

As patent protection has emerged to protect software, courts and commentators have mistakenly focused on copyright law and overlooked the centrality of patent preemption to limit contract law where a mass market license which prohibits reverse engineering (RE) for purposes of developing interoperable products leads to patent-like protection. Review of copyright fair use cases on RE and Congress’s policy favoring RE for interoperability purposes in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act reinforce the case for patent preemption. Also, the fundamental freedom to RE embodied in state trade secret law, coupled with federal patent and copyright law and policies, cumulatively should override …


The Future Of Electronic Contracts In International Sales: Gaps And Natural Remedies Under The United Nations Convention On Contracts For The International Sale Of Goods, Jennifer E. Hill Jan 2003

The Future Of Electronic Contracts In International Sales: Gaps And Natural Remedies Under The United Nations Convention On Contracts For The International Sale Of Goods, Jennifer E. Hill

Northwestern Journal of Technology and Intellectual Property

No abstract provided.


Comparative Study Of The Formation Of Electronic Contracts In American Law With References To International And Mexican Law, Roberto Rosas Jan 2003

Comparative Study Of The Formation Of Electronic Contracts In American Law With References To International And Mexican Law, Roberto Rosas

Faculty Articles

A comparative analysis of electronic contract formation law in the United States, Mexico, and the international arena is necessary to understand the evolution and future of electronic contracting. Using new communication technologies, such as developmental instruments of electronic commerce, has clear benefits, but also brings risks and uncertainties to electronic contracting. Although modern laws tend toward uniformity in modern transactions, certain aspects may still cause controversy. In purely electronic transactions, the most important legal determination concerns the establishment of an offer and an acceptance, memorialized through electronic messages absent written documentation and the human intervention of an automatic exchange. Consequently, …


Technology Law, J. Douglas Cuthbertson, Glen L. Gross Nov 2002

Technology Law, J. Douglas Cuthbertson, Glen L. Gross

University of Richmond Law Review

No abstract provided.


Digital Handshakes In Cyberspace Under E-Sign: "There's A New Sheriff In Town!", Michael H. Dessent Jan 2002

Digital Handshakes In Cyberspace Under E-Sign: "There's A New Sheriff In Town!", Michael H. Dessent

University of Richmond Law Review

Without doubt, electronic commerce has increased the efficiency of businesses and consumers seeking to purchase goods, services, or intangibles by placing these objects just a keystroke away. If you already enjoy buying lingerie and foie gras over the Internet, you will love the new Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act ("E-SIGN") Want to borrow $10,000 at four in the morning over the Internet to buy a car? E-SIGN allows it. Or how about entering a "cybersigning chat room," extending a "digital handshake," and then buying that cherished wedding gown? E-SIGN allows this to happen. In this era of …


Default Rules In Sales And The Myth Of Contracting Out, James J. White Jan 2002

Default Rules In Sales And The Myth Of Contracting Out, James J. White

Articles

In this article, I trace the dispute in the courts and before the ALI and NCCUSL over the proper contract formation and interpretation default rules. In Part II, I consider the Gateway litigation. In Part III, I deal with UCITA and the revision to Article 2. In Part IV, I consider the merits of the competing default rules.


The Rise And Fall Of Article 2, Robert E. Scott Jan 2002

The Rise And Fall Of Article 2, Robert E. Scott

Faculty Scholarship

In August 13,2001 the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws voted eighty-nine to fifty-three to reject the Amendments to Article 2 of the Uniform Commercial Code that had just been approved in May by the American Law Institute. The vote followed a last minute effort by the Article 2 drafting committee to amend the scope provisions of Article 2 in response to continuing criticism from representatives of the software and information industries. Several months later, at the request of the NCCUSL leadership, amended Article 2 with its revised scope provision was withdrawn from the agenda of the ALI …


Performance Risk, Form Contracts And Ucita, Leo L. Clarke Jan 2001

Performance Risk, Form Contracts And Ucita, Leo L. Clarke

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

No scholarly commentator has suggested that the form contract rules provide a satisfactory answer to the commercial problem of performance risk. So, one might think that the dawn of the "information economy" would be a propitious time to implement a new doctrinal approach. Apparently not: the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws (the "Conference") has promulgated a comprehensive commercial statute that fails to remedy or even modify the law of form contracts in purely commercial transactions. The Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act ("UCITA")--drafted to provide the background law for many of the most significant transactions in the information …


Remarks On Ucita In Practice: Attorney Views, Richard Grier Jan 2001

Remarks On Ucita In Practice: Attorney Views, Richard Grier

Richmond Journal of Law & Technology

I agreed to talk about the default sections, which I'm going to talk about in just a minute. I learned this morning by listening to Mr. Ring, the default sections take up two-thirds of the Act. And I didn't realize that when I agreed to take up the default sections, but actually that's okay because the other thing I found during the day is that practically every other speaker you have heard has talked about default sections. Most of what I have to tell you, you've heard a little piece of already. What's different, though, is that I want to …


Ucita: Uniformity At The Price Of Fairness, Ajay Ayyappan Jan 2001

Ucita: Uniformity At The Price Of Fairness, Ajay Ayyappan

Fordham Law Review

"At the development's start, both the insight and experience necessary to create a statute are lacking. A statute passed under such circumstances is a far greater misfortune than any misstep taken by a case law court."


The Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act: A Well Built Fence Or Barbed Wire Around The Intellectual Commons, Warigia M. Bowman Jan 2001

The Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act: A Well Built Fence Or Barbed Wire Around The Intellectual Commons, Warigia M. Bowman

Articles, Chapters in Books and Other Contributions to Scholarly Works

The Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act (UCITA) is a proposed state contract law developed to regulate transactions in intangible goods such as computer software, online databases and other digital products.' UCITA was intended to act as Article 2B of the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC). Article 2 comprises the law governing commercial transactions in the sale of goods and ensures consistent contract laws from state to state. The stated goal of UCITA is to provide clarity regarding computer information transactions.


Ucita: Still Crazy After All These Years, And Still Not Ready For Prime Time, James S. Heller Jan 2001

Ucita: Still Crazy After All These Years, And Still Not Ready For Prime Time, James S. Heller

Richmond Journal of Law & Technology

In July, 1999, the General Counsels, Vice Presidents, and other senior officers of major information industry technology companies (including Adobe Systems, Intuit, SilverPlatter, Lotus, Novell, and Microsoft), wrote to the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws (NCCUSL) urging adoption of the Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act (UCITA) at the then imminent NCCUSL meeting in Denver. The executives wrote that they supported UCITA because "it is true to three commercial principles: commerce should be free to flourish in the electronic age; rules should support use of new (in this case electronic) technologies; marketplace forces should determine the form of …


Remarks On Technology Growth In Virginia: How Ucita Will Help, Terry Riley Jan 2001

Remarks On Technology Growth In Virginia: How Ucita Will Help, Terry Riley

Richmond Journal of Law & Technology

I'm Terry Riley from the Hampton Roads Technology Council, and technology councils represent business. But predominantly we represent small business, and predominantly we represent users of software, not developers and sellers of software. In the case of my own technology council down [in the] southeastern part of the state, 85 percent of our members have 25 or fewer employees. Less than 5 percent of our members are developers, sellers, or licensors of software. So to a very substantial extent my views and my representations of the interests of my membership have to do with their concerns or their rights as …


Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act: Bringing Commercial Law Into The 21st Century, Richard L. Grier, Nancyellen Keane, Peter A. Gilbert Jan 2001

Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act: Bringing Commercial Law Into The 21st Century, Richard L. Grier, Nancyellen Keane, Peter A. Gilbert

Richmond Journal of Law & Technology

The e-commerce revolution has redefined the way business is transacted everywhere. Meanwhile, the body of commercial law lags behind the fast pace of technological changes and has yet to effectively address the numerous issues presented by radical changes in the world of commerce such as electronic contracts, electronic signatures, shrinkwrap agreements, and click-wrap agreements. In an effort to establish the Commonwealth of Virginia as a national leader on this subject, in 2000 the Virginia General Assembly passed the Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act ("UCITA"). UCITA legislation has been introduced in a handful of other states but the only other state …


Remarks On Ucita In Practice: Attorney Views, Carla Stone Witzel Jan 2001

Remarks On Ucita In Practice: Attorney Views, Carla Stone Witzel

Richmond Journal of Law & Technology

Well, UCITA has been in effect since October 1, 2000, and I am here today telling you about it in Maryland. Maryland adopted it after Virginia, but [Virginia] has a delayed effective date. The law has been effective, and in fact we are busy fixing it or changing it at this moment in the Maryland legislature. We had the privilege to work for a coalition of software companies lobbying this legislation through the Maryland legislature. We were assisted just a little bit by the Governor and the Speaker of the House. So we've been working with the law probably longer …


The Validation Of Shrink-Wrap And Click-Wrap Licenses By Virginia's Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act, Scott J. Spooner Jan 2001

The Validation Of Shrink-Wrap And Click-Wrap Licenses By Virginia's Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act, Scott J. Spooner

Richmond Journal of Law & Technology

Shrink-wrap and click-wrap licenses play a vital role in enabling businesses and consumers to gain access to and use a variety of computer hardware and software. Such licenses effectively transfer computer-related technology to customers, vendors, and consumers by defining the terms of use of the software without implicating the "first sale doctrine" of the Copyright Act. While shrink-wrap and click-wrap licenses have become essential to the software industry and the new economy as a whole, the law applicable to such licenses has been unclear and unsettled. Courts have struggled to develop a coherent framework governing the validity and enforceability of …


Letter From The Editor, Dharmesh Vashee Jan 2001

Letter From The Editor, Dharmesh Vashee

Richmond Journal of Law & Technology

Welcome to the third issue of The Richmond Journal of Law and Technology's seventh publication term! The 2000-2001 academic year has proved to be one of the most productive and exciting in the Journal's decorated history. Our Editorial Board and staff have done a phenomenal job on the Journal's seventh volume and we are very proud of the issue we have worked to prepare for you today.


Letter From The Editor, Paul A. Fritzinger Jan 2001

Letter From The Editor, Paul A. Fritzinger

Richmond Journal of Law & Technology

Over the last few years, the problems attendant to software licensing regulation have occupied an important position in the minds of legislators at the federal, state and local levels. In the early nineties, the National Conference of Commissioners for Uniform State Laws (NCCUSL) recognized the potential for licensing problems presented by the use of computer software in the national arena as well as on the Internet and saw a clear need for regulations that would transcend state boundaries. In 1999, as a result of years of planning and careful drafting, NCCUSL promulgated the Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act (UCITA) in …


Ucita And The Virginia General Assembly, Joe T. May Jan 2001

Ucita And The Virginia General Assembly, Joe T. May

Richmond Journal of Law & Technology

The outline for Joe T. May's speech.


Remarks On The Background And Development Of Ucita, Joe T. May Jan 2001

Remarks On The Background And Development Of Ucita, Joe T. May

Richmond Journal of Law & Technology

I'm Delegate Joe May, and I represent the 33rd House of Delegates District which is far Northern Virginia. I should tell you before we start I'm not an attorney by profession. I'm an electrical engineer with grease under the fingernails to prove it. In fact, I own an electronic manufacturing and engineering firm. And to paraphrase Polonius, I am neither a borrower nor lender of software. I do purchase some, we do sell some. So hopefully my perspective is a little more balanced than it might first appear. I'm going to talk today about the chronology of events that led …


An Overview Of The Virginia Ucita, Carlyle C. Ring Jr. Jan 2001

An Overview Of The Virginia Ucita, Carlyle C. Ring Jr.

Richmond Journal of Law & Technology

Virginia has taken a strong and important leadership in establishing rules for the Information Highway through the Joint Committee on Technology and Science (JCOTS) and Delegate Joe T. May. Without the Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act (UCITA) no established rules exist in common law for the Information Highway, which means that each judge must create the rules in each case as it arises. Every judge will make his own rules for the particular case. This results in great inconsistency and uncertainty adversely affecting the realization of the full potential of the Information Age economy. Governor Gilmore states: In 2000, Virginia …


Remarks On The Background And Development Of Ucita, Carlyle Ring Jan 2001

Remarks On The Background And Development Of Ucita, Carlyle Ring

Richmond Journal of Law & Technology

It's a real pleasure to be here. My formal name as introduced is Carlyle Ring, but as Barbara Beach who was assistant city attorney when I sat on the City Council for Alexandria, knows well, everybody calls me Connie. And so please address me by my nickname: Connie.


Copyright Corner: The Adoption Of Ucita In Maryland, Harvey K. Morrell Jul 2000

Copyright Corner: The Adoption Of Ucita In Maryland, Harvey K. Morrell

All Faculty Scholarship

In the December 1999 issue of AALL Spectrum, Charles Cronin provided a fine overview of the Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act (UCITA) and its potential impact on libraries. As he indicated, the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws (NCCUSL) offered UCITA to several state legislatures for consideration, with Maryland and Virginia vying to become the first state to enact it. Virginia, whose legislative session began a couple of months before Maryland’s and whose process did not allow much opposition, was first across the line. However, one amendment, included near the end of the process, delayed implementation of the …


A Leap Forward: Why States Should Ratify The Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act, David A.P. Neboyskey May 2000

A Leap Forward: Why States Should Ratify The Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act, David A.P. Neboyskey

Federal Communications Law Journal

The Uniform Computer Information Transaction Act (UCITA) has been presented to the states for their ratification. Patterned after the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC), UCITA began as an addition to the UCC, but differences between the statutes required UCITA to emerge as a separate entity. The National Conference of Commissioners of Uniform State Laws (NCCUSL) drafted UCITA and approved the Act in Summer 1999. The Act now awaits approval by state legislatures. This Comment analyzes UCITA and argues that the states should ratify the Act. The Comment favorably compares the UCC and UCITA. The UCC follows the principle of "freedom of …


Statement Of Harvey K. Morrell, University Of Baltimore Law Library, In Opposition To The Maryland Uniform Computer Information Transfer Act, Harvey K. Morrell Feb 2000

Statement Of Harvey K. Morrell, University Of Baltimore Law Library, In Opposition To The Maryland Uniform Computer Information Transfer Act, Harvey K. Morrell

All Faculty Scholarship

Testimony in opposition to the Maryland Uniform Computer Information Transfer Act, House Bill 19, Senate Bill 142, 2000.


Annual Survey Of Virginia Law: Corporate And Business Law, Peter E. Broadbent Jr., John E. Russell Jan 2000

Annual Survey Of Virginia Law: Corporate And Business Law, Peter E. Broadbent Jr., John E. Russell

University of Richmond Law Review

Virginia corporate and business law changes in the last year continue to challenge the practitioner to stay abreast of such developments in order to provide accurate advice to clients. This article summarizes the developments in the law in Virginia occurring from June 1999 through May 2000, with the legislative changes described based on Virginia General Assembly action in the 2000 session. Part II examines those legislative changes in corporate and business law (excluding public service corporation/public utility law issues). While many of the legislative changes are not significant, three new uniform laws (revised Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code …


Annual Survey Of Virginia Law: Technology Law, John S. Jung Jan 2000

Annual Survey Of Virginia Law: Technology Law, John S. Jung

University of Richmond Law Review

During the 2000 Session, the General Assembly considered eighty-one technology related bills, forty of which were enacted. This article summarizes the more significant technology bills enacted during this session. One of these bills, House Bill 719,1 enlarged the Joint Commission on Technology and Science ("JCOTS"). The 1997 Virginia General Assembly created JCOTS aas a permanent legislative agency" to "generally study all aspects of technology and science and endeavor to stimulate, encourage, promote, and assist in the development of technology and science in the Commonwealth and sound public policies related thereto." JCOTS, which originally consisted of nine legislators-five delegates and four …


The Developing Legal Infrastructure And The Globalization Of Information: Constructing A Framework For Critical Choices In The New Millennium Internet -- Character, Content And Confusion, Tomas A. Lipinski Jan 2000

The Developing Legal Infrastructure And The Globalization Of Information: Constructing A Framework For Critical Choices In The New Millennium Internet -- Character, Content And Confusion, Tomas A. Lipinski

Richmond Journal of Law & Technology

This paper reviews recent attempts to extend traditional property rights and other information controls and regulations into new media, such as cyberspace, primarily the World Wide Web. It reviews developments in copyright, trademark, trademark dilution, misappropriation, trespass, censorship, tort, privacy and other legal doctrines as they are reflected in recent United States case law and legislation, and to a lesser extent, in international agreements. Legal problems often arise because there is a conflict of viewpoints in how to best characterize space on the Internet, specifically the World Wide Web. Some argue that traditional ownership rights should apply, or perhaps a …