I watched the Inside Edition Terms and Conditions Social Experiment but, I found myself not believing the central point, that Terms and Conditions could be used a contract, requiring you to fulfill your end of the contract even if what you’re signing up for is worth much less (Inside Edition). For instance, to enter a free Ipad give away, you will be legally forced to adopt a shelter dog or foster a child (Inside Edition). Because of this, I researched how Terms and Conditions hold up in court and found that Terms and Conditions are legally binding and that clicking “I agree” has the same legal weight as signing a contract (American Bar Association).
However, there are limits to this. For example, “Illegal provisions, such as usurious finance charges, are void as public policy” (American Bar Association). Translation: A Terms and Condition Contract can’t force you to pay a million dollars for something worth 100 dollars. Additionally, the submission of the Contract has to be unambiguous, requiring the user to click “I Agree” or “Yes”, instead of “Submit” or “Continue” (American Bar Association).
It depends on the case whether Terms and Conditions that your users never officially signed or clicked, can be enforced (American Bar Association). For example, when creating an account on Medium, the website never required the user, to read and agree to the Terms and Conditions. While it may stipulate that the use of the service is agreeing to the Terms and Conditions, “There is no guarantee, at this point in the evolution of the law, that terms and conditions which are simply posted on the site will create a valid contract” (American Bar Association).
In Conclusion, the video is accurate in that the Terms and Conditions are a legally binding contract (American Bar Association and Inside Edition). But, they can’t force the signer to do something that is clearly unreasonable or illegal (American Bar Association). Terms and Conditions also need to be very clear about whether the user knows what they are agreeing to. So, be sure to read your Terms and Conditions carefully, but you’re not going to have to give up your first-born child as in the Terms and Conditions featured in the NPR interview (Shankar Vedantam).
Citations
American Bar Association, Terms and Conditions, Washington DC URL: https://www.americanbar.org/groups/business_law/safeselling/terms/ Date Accessed March 10th 2021
Inside Edition, Social Experiment Proves No One Really Read Terms and Conditions, New York URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTbqNkjGg00 Accessed March 10th 2021
Vedantam, Shankar Do You Read Terms of Service Contracts? Not Many Do, Research Shows, Washington DC URL: https://www.npr.org/2016/08/23/491024846/do-you-read-terms-of-service-contracts-not-many-do-research-shows Accessed: March 10th 2021
