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Topic: Article acceptance email -- legally binding?
| Author | Message |
| abel tasman | Posted – 10/18/2006 3:48:49 PM | show profile | email poster Hi folks, I freelance for a newspaper whose S.O.P. with freelancers is a one-time contract and then individual articles handled without individual contracts. In the cases of assignments, I understand an email an editor sends me asking me to do an article, giving a deadline, fee, etc, to be a legally binding contract for that article. I haven't had to test that supposition in court, but based on the information I've seen on these boards from folks like Erik Sherman and others, I believe it to be correct. But I don't know whether that holds true for an acceptance email. In this case, because of special circumstances, I wound up doing an article for them on spec. They've recently accepted the article, in an email, but they're going to hold it for a few months. It's P.O.P., and what I want to know is, does that acceptance email, which is effectively just "we're accepting the piece," hold the same legal force as an assignment email? I trust the outlet and my editor there, so it's more that the case brought up a situation on which I'm fuzzy than that I'm worried about being taken advantage of. But I would like to know the legal standing of such an email. Thanks in advance for your replies. |
| abel tasman | Posted – 10/22/2006 10:28:18 PM | show profile Bump. Nobody has any experience or thoughts on this one? |
| writesonwater | Posted – 10/22/2006 11:34:58 PM | show profile | email poster Good question. I've never run into a problem with this -- never had a contract issue, or anything. Almost always I work with contract. Smaller jobs I go with an email agreement with a standing contract -- a big daily paper I do a lot for is this way. However, I recently encountered an issue with a publication that's teetering on the edge of going out of business, and got stuck with not quite complete contracts because the editor I was working with (who was incompetent and got the ax) was very slapadaisical, to coin a new word, about getting me contracts, etc. (I'd get one with someone else's assignments on it, or two -- both listing the same story, but for a different amount) WHy should I be surprised they can't cut it in business??? So I'm older and wiser, and only guessing that an email from someone saying "Here's what I want you to do, by when and how much" constitutes a contract. What say anyone else? |
| dribbledrive1 | Posted – 10/23/2006 12:06:53 AM | show profile Just a layman's opinion, but I imagine if an editor sends an email saying, "We official accept your piece," that would qualify as an official acceptance. |
| bjoconnorfla | Posted – 10/23/2006 1:00:29 PM | show profile You should respond with an email that clarifies the understanding: "Hey, editor, I am not shopping this story around to others since you have agreed to print it and pay me $xxx. Please let me know when you think it will run. If for any reason you think it won't run, let me know now so I can sell it somewhere else pronto." Basically, you want to make sure that he isn't holding on to the story because he's *thinking* about running it and may pass and leave you stuck with having kept the thing off the market. In my experience, stories that hang around before they run tend to fall out of favor and editor become less interested. If he's having it illustrated or is timing it to some event, or just budgets some stories way in advance, you're OK. But if he's holding on to it "as a backup," etc., it might never run. Good luck |
| dribbledrive1 | Posted – 10/23/2006 1:56:49 PM | show profile Personally, I wouldn't take this tact with an ongoing client. It's way too confrontational and accusatory. It's the type of approach you take as a last resort. --You should respond with an email that clarifies the understanding: "Hey, editor, I am not shopping this story around to others since you have agreed to print it and pay me $xxx. Please let me know when you think it will run. If for any reason you think it won't run, let me know now so I can sell it somewhere else pronto." Basically, you want to make sure that he isn't holding on to the story because he's *thinking* about running it and may pass and leave you stuck with having kept the thing off the market. __ |
