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1. If someone breached an NDA and you helped/instigated them in doing so, you will be held jointly liable in civil damages. First amendment will not protect you

by DenisM 16y ago

1. If someone breached an NDA and you helped/instigated them in doing so, you will be held jointly liable in civil damages. First amendment will not protect you against that, and there is ample case law in this area. Sony might lose the case, but not for the 1st amendment reasons. 2. Kindly avoid the condescending tone.

benreesman 16y ago
incorrect.
- DenisM 16y ago
  Just because you don't like it, doesn't mean it's not true.
  - benreesman 16y ago
    correct. it's because it's not true that I don't like it.
mlinsey 16y ago
1. My understanding was the same as benreesman's: breach of an NDA only makes the person who agreed to it liable. IANAL but I did some searching around for the precedents you mentioned, and I found a few that back up what you say, but they all seem to set a fairly high bar for "helping/instigating" someone breach their NDA; for example knowing about the terms of the NDA. It seems unlikely the professor, who simply mirrored the code, would fall under those precedents. 2. Right on here, actually. Last night I was particularly annoyed at dangrossman's tone elsewhere (eg "So you've never heard of an NDA?") hence the snark in my original post, but after sleeping on it I'm sort of embarrassed it got to me that way.
- DenisM 16y ago
  Honestly, I was going to reply in kind at the time, but then decided to do my part in keeping HN civil. :) This prof will likely not get in trouble, however my comment was regarding the general sentiment - the claim that you cannot get in trouble for helping to violate someone else's contract is dangerously incorrect. The bar might be high, I don't know enough about that, but in general you most certainly can get in trouble that way. I was thinking about the case where Kai-Fu Lee breached his contract with Microsoft by joining Google, and Google ended up sued and paying a settlement for the instigation.

by DenisM 16y ago

benreesman 16y ago

incorrect.

DenisM 16y ago
Just because you don't like it, doesn't mean it's not true.
- benreesman 16y ago
  correct. it's because it's not true that I don't like it.

mlinsey 16y ago

1. My understanding was the same as benreesman's: breach of an NDA only makes the person who agreed to it liable. IANAL but I did some searching around for the precedents you mentioned, and I found a few that back up what you say, but they all seem to set a fairly high bar for "helping/instigating" someone breach their NDA; for example knowing about the terms of the NDA. It seems unlikely the professor, who simply mirrored the code, would fall under those precedents. 2. Right on here, actually. Last night I was particularly annoyed at dangrossman's tone elsewhere (eg "So you've never heard of an NDA?") hence the snark in my original post, but after sleeping on it I'm sort of embarrassed it got to me that way.

DenisM 16y ago
Honestly, I was going to reply in kind at the time, but then decided to do my part in keeping HN civil. :) This prof will likely not get in trouble, however my comment was regarding the general sentiment - the claim that you cannot get in trouble for helping to violate someone else's contract is dangerously incorrect. The bar might be high, I don't know enough about that, but in general you most certainly can get in trouble that way. I was thinking about the case where Kai-Fu Lee breached his contract with Microsoft by joining Google, and Google ended up sued and paying a settlement for the instigation.