MSCD 12.349 notes that in contracts not only is such is used to mean “of this/that kind” (its meaning in standard English), it’s also used instead of the “pointing words” this, that, these, and those. The latter use is unhelpful, in that it goes against the basic principle that in drafting you don’t want to use one word to convey … Read More
In this recent blog post I said that usually in contracts the verb guarantee is followed by a noun rather than a that-clause. But I’m not sure I can explain the aversion to guarantees plus that-clause. I think it’s safe to say that “Acme guarantees that Widgetco will comply with its obligations under this agreement” conveys the same meaning as … Read More
“Procurement” is a standard business term. I refers to a company’s acquisition of goods or services, and the department that handles such matters is commonly referred to simply as “Procurement.” But the verb procure is a slightly different matter. It’s a formal word for get. As noted in Garner’s Dictionary of Legal Usage, it’s even more formal than obtain. I suspect that … Read More
Yes, giving seminars in Australia, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, and Geneva is exotic and all, but I spend most of my time in the U.S. and Canada. With that in mind, allow me to mention the following seminars: February 23, Vancouver, BC (for more information, go here) March 6, Dallas, TX (for more information, go here) I hope to see some … Read More
Last September I made available in this blog post a hyperlinked list of all my posts, on this blog and the mothballed AdamsDrafting blog, relating to the contract process. Well, I’ve now reorganized, expanded, and updated that list; for a copy, go here.
A hot-off-the-presses opinion of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, Tec Rep Servs. v. Dearborn Tool & Mfg., 2012 WL 171372 (W.D.N.C. Jan. 20, 2012), provides a useful opportunity to consider nuances in how you refer to termination. Dearborn , the defendant, is in the machined-parts business. Tec Rep, the plaintiff, is an agency that … Read More
Reader D.C. Toedt let me know about the recent opinion of the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals in Camelot LLC v. AMC ShowPalace Theatres, Inc., and he wrote about it himself here. But I take away from it a slightly different lesson than does D.C., in that I think it provides a useful reminder to practitioners that what matters is … Read More
I’m pleased to announce that West LegalEdcenter is now offering a new Koncision webcast, “Drafting and Reviewing Confidentiality Agreements.” It weighs in at 1 hour and 13 minutes and comes with CLE credit. Go here for more information. Joining me as co-presenters on the webcast are two of my favorite people, Chris Lemens and Glenn West. Both will be familiar … Read More
As reader Andrew Mitton noted recently on the blogosphere, “The only drawback to Koncision is that it only has one document.” Indeed. Having just one product has taken the pressure off—it sends a signal that we’re in proof-of-concept mode. Real scaling up won’t happen until some deep pockets arrive on the scene, but it’s time to move beyond the confidentiality-agreement … Read More
I just uploaded a new version of Koncision’s confidentiality-agreement template. It reflects the following changes: I added “no reliance” language of the sort discussed in this blog post. It uses different wording, or is omitted, depending on how you complete the questionnaire. I further revised in the manner discussed in this blog post the provision stating how long information has … Read More
