Re: [dvd-discuss] Re: Another Poster Child for DeCSS?

["John Zulauf" <johnzu(at)ia.nsc.com>]

microlenz@earthlink.net wrote:

> 
> Shrinkwrap?....and how can a legal contract be made involving illegal acts.
> Works in the PD are everyones. DRM removes this work from those purchasing it
> now and in resale. As PD "I" own the work. The have reformated it and I have
> paid for that. They deserve nothing more. Now I attempt to reclaim my work and
> cannot. This is fraud. Although only a tortured sado-masochistic contracts
> expert might revel in the nuances here regarding "OH...they signed away their
> rights...rights which can never be signed away" PD is PUBLIC DOMAIN.
> 

I spoke to one our company lawyers. What he said was "lawyers get to
lie" -- if they can find an *arguement* (valid or not) to defend their
position, they can assert any rights they want.  The *purchaser* then
would have to show in court that the claims are invalid.  But, since it
takes a court to determine the validity of the claim, the lawyer can
state almost anything, because until the court rules, the law is just
"Schroedinger's cat" -- and any claim about it's quantum state is
equally valid.

My follow-up was what about areas that have been litigated.  The seller
can always claim that they *could* possibly win (overturning precedent
is possible) and thus the shrink-wrap claims go back in the box with
Schroedinger's cat.

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