Legal Tips - Websites

Websites are accessible from anywhere on the planet.  Hence, your legal exposure is significantly greater than from a local marketing initiative. In addition to thinking through your marketing objectives for the Website, you need to cover the legal bases.  For example:

Copyright?

To reduce the risk that your content will be copied, put a copyright notice on your site. The Copyright notice on my Website reads: Copyright (c) 2006 Jean D. Sifleet, Esq. All rights reserved. The Copyright notice is not legally required but it puts people on notice that you are claiming ownership of the content. More important than the Copyright notice, is registering the Copyright.  To enforce your rights, you need to register your work with the Copyright office.  The content of Websites can be registered by filing Form TX, paying a filing fee of $30 and including a "deposit" of two CDs that include the content of the Website, as well as a hardcopy printout of the first page of the Website.  The Copyright Act provides for damages of "not less than $750 or more than $30,000" per infringement.  If the court finds that the infringer's behavior was "willful," the court has discretion "to increase the award of statutory damages to a sum of not more than $150,000" per infringement.

Work for Hire?

To make sure that you own the Copyright to the content of your Website, you'll need to have "work for hire" agreements from the people you hire to assist you in creating the content of your Website (designers, graphic artists, writers).

Jurisdiction Statement?

To reduce the risk that you'll be sued someplace far away, put a jurisdiction statement on your site.  The Jurisdiction statement on my Website reads: "This Website shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Massachusetts, USA, without regard to its choice of law rules."

Disclaimer?

To reduce the risk that the content of your site will be used inappropriately, put a disclaimer.  The disclaimer on my Website reads:  "The information provided on this Website is intended as a broad general overview and should not be construed as legal advice..."

Privacy?

Be clear about how you will use the information collected on the Website. The following is an example of a privacy statement: "This Website has a firm commitment to protecting the privacy of the information collected on the Website. The information collected on the site is not shared with or available for use by the Website host and the site has security measures in place to protect the loss, misuse and alteration of the information under its control.  We do not disclose information that you may give us to any outside parties, unless required by law."

Terms of Use?

If you are conducting business over your Website, you need to be clear about the terms.  So, in addition to the items mentioned above, you need an online agreement that requires "acceptance" by your customer. Just as you would in a hardcopy contract, your online Terms of Use address the key elements of the transaction. "To use this website, you need to agree to the following terms.  Please read them carefully and confirm your acceptance before proceeding." Terms of Use have to be tailored to each specific business.  The following is intended as an example of some key terms.

1. Products or Services - describe what products or services are being provided.
2. Eligibility - specify who is authorized to use the site.  Do they need to be over the age of 18 and capable of forming legally binding contracts?
3. Authorized Uses -- Prohibited Uses.
4. Payment terms - Refund Policy.
5. Fulfillment - clarify the schedule, form of delivery of the product or service.
6. Warranty - Disclaimer of Warranties. 
7. Indemnification - "Hold Harmless"  or limitation of liability.
8. Intellectual Property Rights.
9. Modification of the Terms.
10. Dispute Resolution.
    
    "Thank you.  Click here to confirm your acceptance of these terms."
    
    
    This article is excerpted from my new book, Advantage IP - Profit from Your Great Ideas (Infinity 2005).