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The problem with this "inviolable rule" is that it's circular: if you have a legal question, you should ask a lawyer, and only a lawyer I agree, but what is a

The problem with this "inviolable rule" is that it's circular: if you have a legal question, you should ask a lawyer, and only a lawyer I agree, but what is a "legal question"? Only lawyers are qualified to answer that! Many of those who pose legal questions to the web, rather than to a lawyer, do so because they don't recognize that their question crosses the boundary where they need a lawyer. It's not as if such edge cases are particularly rare, nor are they easy to resolve. Every post that I make to news.YC is a potential libel action; every quote that I cut and paste could be the subject of a copyright suit. (Just ask the folks who post about Scientology... and note that I just substantially increased my legal risk, and YCs, by using the word 'Scientology' in this context. Perhaps my lawyer would have suggested a different example...) Everyone who writes software tiptoes around legal issues of patent and copyright. Should I consult lawyers every time I use Pastie? Everyone who downloads a piece of software risks a lawsuit. Click a link that installs Firefox: legal. Click a link that installs a P2P client? Depends on what you do with it. What about HD-DVD ripping software? If I install it, am I committing a crime? Yes, the ultimate arbiter of all of these issues should be a lawyer. I'm certainly not qualified. But we can't afford to pay lawyers every single day. In the end, we all have to develop our own sense of when we need professional legal advice and when we don't -- and the web is helpful for that, even though any individual anecdote (even the ones told by bona fide lawyers!) may be unreliable or inapplicable to your individual situation.

mattmaroon 18y ago
"I agree, but what is a "legal question"? Only lawyers are qualified to answer that!" I don't think you need a lawyer to know what's a legal question. Should I incorporate and if so, what type of entity is obviously one. What should be in my terms and conditions? Etc.
- river_styx 18y ago
  How can you be sure that any question related to your business doesn't have legal implications before first talking to a lawyer? You just gave examples of questions which obviously do require legal counsel, but what about examples of those which obviously don't?
  - mattmaroon 18y ago
    You can't, and it's clearly a judgment call on your part. I was referring more to the obvious legal questions, which are the ones I generally see here.
- mechanical_fish 18y ago
  Should I incorporate and if so, what type of entity is obviously one. Well, yes, once you've decided to ask that question it's obviously a question for a lawyer. But who should ask the question? Should your personal blog be incorporated? Is that question worth asking a lawyer about? What if your personal blog is Boing Boing? What if you're Michael Arrington? What if you're Craig Newmark? The point where you decide to seek investors is a pretty clear boundary: You need to talk to a lawyer. But if you're self-funding, and you're planning on releasing a free iPhone app for kicks, do you need a lawyer or not? I don't think it's all that obvious.
  - mattmaroon 18y ago
    Maybe not, so ask a lawyer if/why you need one. I've had ones tell me before that I didn't.

mattmaroon 18y ago

"I agree, but what is a "legal question"? Only lawyers are qualified to answer that!" I don't think you need a lawyer to know what's a legal question. Should I incorporate and if so, what type of entity is obviously one. What should be in my terms and conditions? Etc.

river_styx 18y ago
How can you be sure that any question related to your business doesn't have legal implications before first talking to a lawyer? You just gave examples of questions which obviously do require legal counsel, but what about examples of those which obviously don't?
- mattmaroon 18y ago
  You can't, and it's clearly a judgment call on your part. I was referring more to the obvious legal questions, which are the ones I generally see here.
mechanical_fish 18y ago
Should I incorporate and if so, what type of entity is obviously one. Well, yes, once you've decided to ask that question it's obviously a question for a lawyer. But who should ask the question? Should your personal blog be incorporated? Is that question worth asking a lawyer about? What if your personal blog is Boing Boing? What if you're Michael Arrington? What if you're Craig Newmark? The point where you decide to seek investors is a pretty clear boundary: You need to talk to a lawyer. But if you're self-funding, and you're planning on releasing a free iPhone app for kicks, do you need a lawyer or not? I don't think it's all that obvious.
- mattmaroon 18y ago
  Maybe not, so ask a lawyer if/why you need one. I've had ones tell me before that I didn't.