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Tasks of a Free Software Legal Department
H4x0r Jim Duggan writes "For anyone curious about what the legal department in a free software
organisation does, I spent some time with my co-worker in FSFE and have put a summary online with the status of the main projects: developing a legal network, producing documentation, GPL enforcement, copyright consolidation, and training courses."
lawyers always use a spell checker
love is just extroverted narcissism
GPL enforcement: This is the quietest part of FTF's work. We don't go to court, and we don't go to Slashdot.
Don't worry. Slashdot will still find you :-)
IAAL and most of the time i'm doing contracts with vendors, NDAs, drafting letters, articles of incorp amendments , etc etc. thats what most legal departments do irrespective of whether it is a free software or closed source. the work is the same and its all corporate legal work.
we dont do training courses or setting up networks. wtf does that have to do with legal work ?
I thought all they did was verify that those Linux ISOs we see on PirateBay has the source code tree included.
Trolling is a art,
OK, tell me how I As A Lawyer can make money off of GPL violators.
I didn't know that you could do that... A developer can legally supply another entity enforcement rights of their license agreement, as well as the right to modify it. I could see this being useful for a small developers supplying FLA's to the EFF for example.
Oh honey look... How cute... an angry slashdotter!
Quick, switch the spellcheckers at RIAA HQ ... would be priceless to see their letters riddled with "MAFIAA". ;-)
For FMS's sake! Enforcing GPL? Tracking offenders? What's next? FSFE busts a GPL-violator ring in a two year undercover operation!
That's true, and I'm sure there are people working on enforcing those licenses as well. I figure the reason you don't hear about it is that most of those other licenses are a lot more lenient about how you can use the code. I haven't read all of those, though, so I may be wrong.
H4x0r Jim Duggan is an awesome username.
(-1, Raw and Uncut is the only way to read)
At the Eclipse Foundation, I believe the lawyer types spend most of their time doing due-diligence on contributions coming into the project.
Can't say I've ever been curious about that.
And now, in addition, I find I'm not even the least bit interested by it.
"we dont do training courses or setting up networks. wtf does that have to do with legal work ?"
One trend I've seen recently is the move to Linux by big companies for their products. And if you're reading Slashdot, you've heard of these companies. The main reason for this move is primarily due to driver and chipset support. Previously they might have used BSD due to "protecting" their Imaginary Property, but no longer. Now they use Linux to stay competitive and decrease the time to market.
The GPL is a completely foreign concept to many, many managers in these companies. And GPL exposure is something which always comes up, and is something that they have to be concerned with.
Consequently, they bring in Lawyers for training on what the GPL means and what their legal exposure is. This is undoubtedly what "training" means in the article.
If your company isn't doing this, then you are missing out on an easy market. Once you develop the training course, you just have to give it over and over again. And of course, you get to charge the usual overpriced legal fees. It doesn't get closer to a gravy train than this.
I've seen some of the "courses" that legal firms develop, and frankly, your average Slashdotter is more aware of the real issues than what these Coporate Legal firms offer. One firm didn't even go into the grey areas. And barely touched upon the concept of a derivative work.
I haven't seen what the FSF offers in this area. But if I were going to hire a legal firm to do a presentation, I'd have the FSF do it. They are unquestionably the best experts in this area. The standard big-name firms are just putting out incomplete boilerplate presentations, and not really getting into the issues in a way which really helps the company.
Why, by the way, undoubtedly means that they don't know how to properly defend themselves should a lawsuit ensue. But I digress.
As far as setting up networks goes, this is how you increase awareness and business contacts. Which in turns increases your business.
The best way to predict the future is to create it. - Peter Drucker.
Who would you have teaching courses on legal matters if not lawyers?
College-Pages.com - Online Colleges, Degrees, and Programs
The point of the article is that FSFE's legal department, with its goal of fostering free software, doesn't spend its time doing what the average business legal department does.
To reduce GPL violations, it's much more efficient to educate lawyers and create a forum in which they can exchange best practices, than to wait until they happen and then threaten a court case.
That's training and network building, which FSFE does while you're drafting NDAs.
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