Thank you, Mike. :-)
In a message dated 4/7/2008 2:13:44 PM Eastern Daylight Time, mgodwin@wikimedia.org writes:
First, please don't call me "Mr. Godwin" -- makes me feel like I'm in court.
Second, my response is also speculation, although it's legally well- informed, I think.
A plaintiff looking for someone to sue might well decide upon the Project Council as a defendant. Suing the Council would be hard if it's not a formal entity, but easy if it is one (e.g., if it's formally connected to the Foundation or independently incorporated). In all cases, individual members of the Project Council, whether it's an informal or formal entity, might be sued.
Would such a lawsuit succeed? I can't tell on the basis of what I know now. But I prefer a world in which it's both difficult to sue the Foundation and difficult (or unprofitable) to sue individual editors and contributors. Depending on how you define a "Program Council," the new entity might change that a bit.
--Mike
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