A recent ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit affirming a decision compelling arbitration provides a “how to” guideline for using online terms and conditions to form a binding agreement....more
As reported in Public Citizen’s Consumer Law & Policy Blog, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court recently agreed to review Chilutti v. Uber Technologies, Inc., in which a divided panel of the Pennsylvania Superior Court (and later...more
In Parker-Grennan v. Camelot UK Lotteries Limited1, the Court of Appeal considered, for the first time, what needs to be done to incorporate standard terms for goods or services into a contract which is made online....more
Online terms and conditions have long been a challenge for businesses. How can you simultaneously ensure a consumer is made aware of the key terms of an online contract (so they are incorporated into the contract) whilst also...more
To help organizations stay on top of the main developments in European digital compliance, Morrison Foerster’s European Digital Regulatory Compliance team reports on some of the main digital regulatory and compliance...more
Professor Jeff Sovern, who recently joined the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law faculty, has recently blogged about a forthcoming Study by academicians at other institutions that will be published in...more
The recent suit filed by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) represents the latest guidance in the rapidly evolving patchwork of federal and state laws that govern online subscription models. Any company offering subscription...more
While unfair practices trapping consumers in unwanted subscriptions have been addressed under existing consumer law, the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill introduces a new set of requirements which are specific...more
On 25 April 2023, the United Kingdom (UK) government introduced the long-awaited Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill (Bill) into Parliament. Along with some significant changes to the enforcement powers of the UK...more
The draft of the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill (the “Bill”) was published last week, and among the many objectives, it aims to drive high standards of consumer protection. One area which has attracted much...more
Want to learn more about drafting, negotiating, and understanding intellectual property and technology contracts and have 10 minutes to spare? Grab your morning coffee or afternoon tea and dig into our Tech Contract Quick...more
As discussed in a blog post last year, Uber learned the hard way that with online agreements, it can take more than a simple provision stating “all disputes must be arbitrated” to ensure that your customers cannot sue you in...more
The Pennsylvania Superior Court recently invalidated Uber’s use of a mandatory arbitration clause in an online registration page for customers, ruling that the arbitration clause was unenforceable because it did not clearly...more
Online agreements are often favored by providers for their flexibility and for reducing friction in the customer contracting process. A particular benefit is the ability to update these agreements by providing notice to...more
A recent Law360 article notes that “a growing number of state court rulings” have invalidated arbitration agreements in online contracts. As an example of this “trending pushback” by state courts, the article discusses...more
A number of U.S. state and federal courts have recently considered whether the manner in which companies presented to their users a variety of electronic contracts (e.g., terms of service) was sufficient to form an...more
Our Consumer Finance Monitor podcast continues to cover the most important industry issues. In anticipation of the American Law Institute (“ALI”) considering the Restatement of the Law, Consumer Contracts (the “Restatement”)...more
Takeaway: Technology advances. Business processes evolve. Internet transactions become increasingly ubiquitous. Contract formation, however, remains an old-fashioned concept. An internet consumer must, at a minimum, be...more
The Law Court recently weighed in on a matter of critical importance – the enforceability of online consumer contracts. Confronting the issue in a case involving ride-sharing giant Uber’s efforts to enforce an arbitration...more
In a case of first impression, the California Court of Appeal, Fourth District (San Diego), considered "under what circumstances a 'sign-in wrap' agreement … is valid and enforceable" between consumers and online companies...more
Resources - South Carolina Business License Reforms Go Into Effect January 1, 2022 - South Carolina businesses have historically been subject to business license taxes on their gross income that vary widely from...more
Businesses expect to rely on the electronic contracts that consumers enter into through online transactions, including arbitration agreements and other terms of use. But, businesses are not always successful in doing so. This...more
Welcome to the third post in our Spotlight series, where we talk with a leader in a particular field or emerging area of interest to technology and sourcing lawyers and professionals. Kristin Hadgis is a partner in Morgan...more
The use of email has become common in the contracting process and received an additional boost from the COVID-19 pandemic, which made electronic communications the preference for most businesses. ...more
As an ever-increasing amount of contract negotiation and execution is done online, new legal issues have arisen from such transactions. Consider the following scenario: You are a general/prime contractor. You have a...more