4 ms·

I don’t think that’s how media embargos work, meaning no signed NDAs. It’s usually just a journalist telling a company rep a verbal “yes I agree to the embargo”

by tempsy 7y ago

I don’t think that’s how media embargos work, meaning no signed NDAs. It’s usually just a journalist telling a company rep a verbal “yes I agree to the embargo”.

dannyw 7y ago
Verbal agreements are very much legally binding, especially if it is in writing (e.g. over email).
- insulfrable 7y ago
  Did you seriously write this?
  - nothal 7y ago
    This doesn't contribute to conversation at all and seems to be implying something that's incorrect. Verbal agreement (e.g. even telling someone out loud "I agree to do this for you for $10") is a form of legal contract. Enforceability/provability is a different story but legally that's a contract.
    - badfrog 7y ago
      > seems to be implying something that's incorrect I think they were referring to the contradiction of "verbal agreement... especially if it's in writing." But yeah, the snarky comment does not help anybody with anything.
      - dmurray 7y ago
        An agreement in writing is usually a verbal agreement, so it's not even wrong. Perhaps someone meant to contrast an oral agreement with a written one.
        tomnipotent 7y ago
        > An agreement in writing is usually a verbal agreement A verbal agreement inherently means there's no written agreement. Also, oral = verbal.
        manigandham 7y ago
        That's incorrect. Legally, verbal primarily means using words. The technical difference is whether an agreement is written or spoken/oral.
        deleted 7y ago
        [deleted]
        deleted 7y ago
        [deleted]
- ajdlinux 7y ago
  Not a lawyer, but I thought that one element of a binding contract (at least in the common law Anglosphere) is that the parties must intend to create a legally binding relationship - i.e. if two friends agree to each do a favour for each other, and one of them reneges on their promise, the courts won't hold that it's a contract because in general if you ask a friend to do a favour for you, it's not understood to be a formal legal relationship. I wonder how that applies to embargoes that don't come with formal NDAs or whatever.
  - was_boring 7y ago
    I worked for lawyers that did a lot of contract law. It can vary from state to state (in the U.S.) but the state I worked in a verbal agreement -- not even written down -- is legally binding. Proving a non-written agreement can be hard in court but that is a different issue.
    - ajdlinux 7y ago
      Not disagreeing - I didn't say a verbal agreement isn't binding. What I'm saying is that a verbal agreement is binding if there's an intention to create binding relations, and not binding if there is not that intention.
  - rtkwe 7y ago
    There is a relationship formed though, 'we will provide you this information early on the condition that you release not before a date and time we specify.' They both get something valuable from each other, the outlet access to write a better article and to publish sooner when it will get more traffic and the company gets their earning in front of more people.
manigandham 7y ago
FYI = Agreements are either written or oral (spoken). Verbal just means using words.
- NeedMoreTea 7y ago
  A verbal agreement in law is almost always a spoken one. https://thelawdictionary.org/article/the-law-of-verbal-agreements/ https://thelawdictionary.org/article/the-law-of-verbal-agree...
  - manigandham 7y ago
    That site can't even render HTML properly, and verbal means using words. That's the primary definition: https://www.dictionary.com/browse/verbal https://www.dictionary.com/browse/verbal Of course agreements are using words. How they express those words (orally or written) is the difference. Here's are better answers from actual lawyers: https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-difference-between-oral-and-verbal-in-contract-law-in-the-USA/answer/Adam-Nyhan https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-difference-between-oral-an... and https://www.quora.com/Is-there-any-difference-between-an-oral-agreement-and-a-verbal-agreement/answer/Dana-H-Shultz https://www.quora.com/Is-there-any-difference-between-an-ora...
    - vageli 7y ago
      > That site can't even render HTML properly, and verbal means using words. That's the primary definition: https://www.dictionary.com/browse/verbal https://www.dictionary.com/browse/verbal There exists separate legal dictionaries precisely because words take on new meanings in a legal context. Searching "verbal agreement" brings up numerous legal blogs and sites discussing what you are calling "oral agreements". They are likely interchangeable in a legal context.

by tempsy 7y ago

I don’t think that’s how media embargos work, meaning no signed NDAs. It’s usually just a journalist telling a company rep a verbal “yes I agree to the embargo”.

dannyw 7y ago

Verbal agreements are very much legally binding, especially if it is in writing (e.g. over email).

insulfrable 7y ago
Did you seriously write this?
- nothal 7y ago
  This doesn't contribute to conversation at all and seems to be implying something that's incorrect. Verbal agreement (e.g. even telling someone out loud "I agree to do this for you for $10") is a form of legal contract. Enforceability/provability is a different story but legally that's a contract.
  - badfrog 7y ago
    > seems to be implying something that's incorrect I think they were referring to the contradiction of "verbal agreement... especially if it's in writing." But yeah, the snarky comment does not help anybody with anything.
    - dmurray 7y ago
      An agreement in writing is usually a verbal agreement, so it's not even wrong. Perhaps someone meant to contrast an oral agreement with a written one.
      - tomnipotent 7y ago
        > An agreement in writing is usually a verbal agreement A verbal agreement inherently means there's no written agreement. Also, oral = verbal.
        manigandham 7y ago
        That's incorrect. Legally, verbal primarily means using words. The technical difference is whether an agreement is written or spoken/oral.
        deleted 7y ago
        [deleted]
        deleted 7y ago
        [deleted]
ajdlinux 7y ago
Not a lawyer, but I thought that one element of a binding contract (at least in the common law Anglosphere) is that the parties must intend to create a legally binding relationship - i.e. if two friends agree to each do a favour for each other, and one of them reneges on their promise, the courts won't hold that it's a contract because in general if you ask a friend to do a favour for you, it's not understood to be a formal legal relationship. I wonder how that applies to embargoes that don't come with formal NDAs or whatever.
- was_boring 7y ago
  I worked for lawyers that did a lot of contract law. It can vary from state to state (in the U.S.) but the state I worked in a verbal agreement -- not even written down -- is legally binding. Proving a non-written agreement can be hard in court but that is a different issue.
  - ajdlinux 7y ago
    Not disagreeing - I didn't say a verbal agreement isn't binding. What I'm saying is that a verbal agreement is binding if there's an intention to create binding relations, and not binding if there is not that intention.
- rtkwe 7y ago
  There is a relationship formed though, 'we will provide you this information early on the condition that you release not before a date and time we specify.' They both get something valuable from each other, the outlet access to write a better article and to publish sooner when it will get more traffic and the company gets their earning in front of more people.

manigandham 7y ago

FYI = Agreements are either written or oral (spoken). Verbal just means using words.

NeedMoreTea 7y ago
A verbal agreement in law is almost always a spoken one. https://thelawdictionary.org/article/the-law-of-verbal-agreements/ https://thelawdictionary.org/article/the-law-of-verbal-agree...
- manigandham 7y ago
  That site can't even render HTML properly, and verbal means using words. That's the primary definition: https://www.dictionary.com/browse/verbal https://www.dictionary.com/browse/verbal Of course agreements are using words. How they express those words (orally or written) is the difference. Here's are better answers from actual lawyers: https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-difference-between-oral-and-verbal-in-contract-law-in-the-USA/answer/Adam-Nyhan https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-difference-between-oral-an... and https://www.quora.com/Is-there-any-difference-between-an-oral-agreement-and-a-verbal-agreement/answer/Dana-H-Shultz https://www.quora.com/Is-there-any-difference-between-an-ora...
  - vageli 7y ago
    > That site can't even render HTML properly, and verbal means using words. That's the primary definition: https://www.dictionary.com/browse/verbal https://www.dictionary.com/browse/verbal There exists separate legal dictionaries precisely because words take on new meanings in a legal context. Searching "verbal agreement" brings up numerous legal blogs and sites discussing what you are calling "oral agreements". They are likely interchangeable in a legal context.