[Foundation-l] GFDL and relicensing

[Mike Godwin]

Thomas Dalton writes:

> If the contributions in question are extensive, that involves
> rewriting whole articles - ie. we lose enormous amounts of content.

I think this problem is overstated.  Not all edits are additions of  
content.

> Like I've said before, it only takes one.

I think running a project in fear of the one case where someone  
decides to impose massive litigation costs on us is probably not  
optimal decision-making strategy.  There is so much we already do that  
poses greater risks of litigation that the migration would that I  
can't take seriously the proposition that a migration to new GFDL  
significant new problems.

> So we can be reasonably confident about winning any such cases. Are
> you equally confident about being able to win full legal costs?

That's not how legal risk assessment works.

> An American court would enforce a foreign law that doesn't exist in
> the US? Maybe. I have very little experience of the American legal
> system, however my experience of the US in general would suggest that
> they wouldn't give a damn about foreign laws...

Yes, an American court might enforce a foreign judgment that would  
have led to a different result if brought initially in an American  
court.  That's first-year civil procedure (i.e., an early lesson in  
the basic training of every American law student).


--Mike