#759: “Tokyo Legal”

*** Now talking in #suburbansenshi
Topic is -= If it's boring scroll to the third hyperlink for joke. =-

[06:11] <--=[ SpeedRcrX ]=--> OMG Damn I found out that a contract has been signed for DRagonball AF to come to the states!
[06:11] <C'est_la_V> Uso.
[06:12] <--=[ SpeedRcrX ]=--> Well that's what I *would* be saying if I Was f[BLEEP]king drunk.
[06:12] <--=[ SpeedRcrX ]=--> Check this out, My man Saiyajedi pointed it out to me:
[06:12] <--=[ SpeedRcrX ]=--> --> https://www.ingenco.20megsfree.com/contact.html
[06:13] * FireFly_9 loads it.
[06:13] <FireFly_9> My eyes.... they bleed.
[06:13] <--=[ SpeedRcrX ]=--> You just KNOW somebody's gonna think this is real.
[06:13] <C'est_la_V> What if we got a real lawyer to deflower it??
[06:14] <FireFly_9> ...I Think you mean "debunk" it, Minako-sempai.
[06:14] <C'est_la_V> Sorry, my mind's in the trash right now ^_^ ♡
[06:14] <FireFly_9> "Gutter", and never mind.
[06:15] <--=[ SpeedRcrX ]=--> Man real lawyers cost money.
[06:16] <--=[ SpeedRcrX ]=--> And Michiru cut me off again... man, I'm glad I'm a woman, I think she'd have gone all Bobbit on me by now if not....
[06:16] * C'est_la_V knows a lawyer she can get to do it for free ^_^
[06:17] <--=[ SpeedRcrX ]=--> Well aren't you lucky, miss "My biggest fan on the planet is a real live actual lawyer." :P
[06:17] <FireFly_9> Didn't you set him on fire the other day? Again?
[06:17] <C'est_la_V> We burned that bride after we crossed her.
[06:18] <FireFly_9> "Bridge... crossed it." And the metaphor is completely useless in that context. Well, it is something of a pun.
[06:18] <--=[ SpeedRcrX ]=--> Man I want to MiST this.
[06:19] <C'est_la_V> Let's let X-chan debunk it for real, and then we can MiST it, ne?
[06:19] <--=[ SpeedRcrX ]=--> (Mr Burns) EXcellent.
[06:19] * C'est_la_V calls X-chan over.
[06:19] *** Dr_Xadium [user-19fasjd.TARDIS14356.panopticon.gallifrey.sen] has joined #suburbansenshi
[06:19] *** spiritflame sets mode +o Dr_Xadium

[06:19] <@spiritflame> Irasshai @Dr_Xadium
[06:19] <FireFly_9> Hello, Xadium-san.
[06:20] <--=[ SpeedRcrX ]=--> Yo, X.
[06:20] * @Dr_Xadium would greet you but is doubled over in stitches.
[06:20] <--=[ SpeedRcrX ]=--> Did Neko drop a hot iron on your head again?
[06:20] <C'est_la_V> -_-
[06:21] <@Dr_Xadium> Stitches from the laughter.
[06:21] <@Dr_Xadium> This "contract" is abysmal.
[06:21] <C'est_la_V> Cut it like a fish, X-chan!!
[06:22] <FireFly_9> "Gut."
[06:23] <@Dr_Xadium> All right. First of all, let's set aside the typographical errors. While they are decidedly unprofessional, they don't detract from the validity of the contract (except perhaps in one instance which I will come to.) Courts would tend to overlook those where they don't materially affect the intentions of the parties.
[06:25] <@Dr_Xadium> One of the major Typos that could possibly cause problems is "Teoi." Who is "Teoi"? Now, were this contract real, (Which it isn't) if checks went to Toei and Toei did all the work, then it could be held to be valid as both parties acted on the mutual obligations set forth in the contract.
[06:28] <@Dr_Xadium> Some style defects. "Akira" is mentioned up top. Is is the Akira whose brain lives in a jar in Neo Tokyo? Is it the Akira who teaches karate in Springfield? There are *tons* of Akira in Japan. AS far as anyone would know this contract is with a one-named person named Akira, not Akira Toriyama.
[06:32] <--=[ SpeedRcrX ]=--> But his full name appears in the fourth bullet point.
[06:34] <@Dr_Xadium> No, Akira Toriyama's name does. The way one would read this contract as it stands, is that the deal was made between "Teoi" and some chap named "Akira", and Akira Toriyama would only be getting credit and a copy of the Box sets. If they were meant to be the same person, then the introductory clause would have read like this:
[06:36] <@Dr_Xadium> "This contract is between Toei Animation Studios ("Teoi") and Toriyama Akira ("Akira") ....
[06:37] <@Dr_Xadium> The parts in quotes would then be understood to be shorthand references for the parties involved.
[06:37] <FireFly_9> You just *know* some idiot is going to rewrite this now with what you've said in mind.
[06:38] <@Dr_Xadium> Well if they do, another thing to remember is not to use BULLET POINTS. Any real lawyer worth their salt would number the paragraphs, for ease of reference in discussions just like this. Now that is not to say a valid contract requires it, but it's good legal form and yet another piece of evidence to show that no legal department this side of the twlight zone generated this document.
[06:39] <@Dr_Xadium> Okay, let's tear into the meat of this contract. If it WERE real, then Toei would have the worst legal department in history.
[06:40] <@Dr_Xadium> The last bullet point: "Both Akira and te wrigter[sic] are to be given a copy of every saga box set and movie developed by the studio at no cost."
[06:43] <@Dr_Xadium> This is overly broad. On its face it looks like the writer (And by the way, who is that again? Any REAL Contract would define somewhere within it who this writer is, or at least say "the person responsible for writing the scripts for the animation" or something to that effect) would be entitled to EVERY "saga" box set and movie the studio makes.
[06:43] <--=[ SpeedRcrX ]=--> What's the problem?
[06:44] <@Dr_Xadium> It's not limited to AF... Toei is an anime studio. They must have many sagas, and we all know they have tons of movies. Theis contract one give one free copy of ALL of those to Toriyama and the writer-- moreover... there is no end date for the clause, so it would be in perpetuity. That is blatantly ridiculous. NO company would assent to that.
[06:47] <@Dr_Xadium> Bullet point 3: The Writer is to find a studio to make the anime? TOEI is the god-king of animation studios, and for Dragonball work, they would more than lilely farm it out to Bird Studios (Toriyama's shop). There's no way a WRITER would be forced to do this unless it was just some kind of a licensing deal, but there is no language in this document to support that claim at all. (There would have to be assignments of licence, and restrictions on its use, etc.)
[06:47] <@Dr_Xadium> Basically the clause SHOULD have read that Toei or BIrd would be responsible for making the anime.
[06:48] <@Dr_Xadium> The other points are fine (though I doubt Toei would take a mere 10% but that's not a material problem with the contract).
[06:50] <@Dr_Xadium> Ahh, the botton of the contract. See the words in parentheses? (Approver, Series Developer and Legal witness)?
[06:50] <FireFly_9> Yes?
[06:52] <@Dr_Xadium> They would correspond to definitions in the premable of the contract. In other words, at the top you would have "This contract is between Toei Animation ("Approver"), Broly Mal'Naur ("Series Developer").... etc.
[06:55] <@Dr_Xadium> As it stands, they mean NOTHING.
[06:57] <@Dr_Xadium> One MIGHT be able to claim it doesn't matter, because the correct parties have signed (yes I'm ignoring the cut and paste jobbie on Toriyama-sensei's signature) , this is more evidence that the contract is a scam job, as a competent lawyer would not leave such a glaring inconsistency uncorrected.
[06:58] <@Dr_Xadium> Also. Toriyama's signature is BLACK.
[06:58] <C'est_la_V> So?
[06:58] <@Dr_Xadium> Follow me here. If this were a copy of the contract, all the signatures should be one color.
[06:59] <--=[ SpeedRcrX ]=--> But it's a scan.
[06:59] <@Dr_Xadium> Yes, purportedly of the original or a legal copy, because the witness' signature is blue. But why is it blue and the others black?
[06:59] <--=[ SpeedRcrX ]=--> He used a black pen?
[07:01] <@Dr_Xadium> Never going to happen in a pro contract. We know this is an "original" because of the blue ink. For that same reason lawyers only allow originals to be signed in blue. This lets you know which copy of the document is the original. It's not something that's fatal in court, but it really points to the unprofessionalism here.
[07:01] <@Dr_Xadium> More style points: People don't Copyright notice their contracts usually. If they do, it wouldn't be at the top. The top of a contract is for the premable, where the parties are defined, and the purpose of the contract is spelled out.
[07:03] <@Dr_Xadium> Also, there is no provision in this document for the inclusion of appendixes or codicils which could concievable cure all these defects. Thus a court would look at the contract "on its face", and thus defective.
[07:04] <@Dr_Xadium> So "Broli" can't come back and say this was just a piece of the whole package.
[07:07] <--=[ SpeedRcrX ]=--> OK but being the Devil's Advocate here, let's say Toei's just had a bad day and hired a s[BLEEP]tty contract dude and agreed to stupid-ass terms. I do that when drunk. MAybe they were drunk too. I mean, looking at this thing as a whole, all it says is, "As long as you do this s[BLEEP]t we'll say DBAF is legal and we'll copyright it."
[07:09] <@Dr_Xadium> Which is RIDICULOUS. Copyrights would be handled in a separate document or in a clause. This is a contract for the production of the series, copyrights are ancilliary to that.
[07:10] <@Dr_Xadium> And it's not "recommendations are fulfilled", it's "requirements are satisfied" or "conditions are met."
[07:14] <@Dr_Xadium> The proper contract would read like this. "This Licensing agreement is made and entered into as of [ date], by and between Toei Animation ("Toei") and [whoever]. Toei hereby agrees to licence .... blah blah... , in consideration of Toei's agreement to same, [whover] agrees as follows: [clauses here, conver yoour copyright issues etc]
[07:18] <@Dr_Xadium> Any real contract of this nature would be extremely long and extremely detailed.
[07:18] * --=[ SpeedRcrX ]=-- is away: one sec
[07:21] <FireFly_9> I wonder what she's up to?
[07:22] <@Dr_Xadium> Don't know... but meantime, geek out at these reconstructions of the TOS Enterprise (Well, Defiant's) bridge from Enterprise.
[07:22] <@Dr_Xadium> --> https://saveenterprise.com/USSdefiant_exclusive.htm
[07:23] <FireFly_9> You know, looking at them in that light, they do look more futuristic than the Enterprise sets in terms of being sleeker and smoother like the TNG Sets.
[07:57] * --=[ SpeedRcrX ]=-- is back
[07:57] <C'est_la_V> How is that one sec? :P
[07:58] <--=[ SpeedRcrX ]=--> Nevermind that neko, I just got off the phone with my legal team and OH s[BLEEP]t check it out
[07:58] <@Dr_Xadium> If you had a legal team, why did you need me?
[07:59] <--=[ SpeedRcrX ]=--> Man just check it
[08:00] <FireFly_9> Why is there a Toei logo on it if they aren't even mentioned?
[08:00] * C'est_la_V is away: Michiru-san will love this
[08:01] <--=[ SpeedRcrX ]=--> s[BLEEP]t NO WAIT NEKO
[08:01] *** @Dr_Xadium [user-19fasjd.TARDIS14356.panopticon.gallifrey.sen] has quit IRC (You have learned well, Young Padawan, but not well enough.)
[08:01] * Crwn_FruT_Gamer still sits in the corner, staring at his ring, not noticing anything.
[08:02] <FireFly_9> Did you want anything, Motoki-san?
[08:02] * Crwn_FruT_Gamer does not want anything, or notice Hotaru talking to him
[08:03] <FireFly_9> You must want something.
[08:03] * Crwn_FruT_Gamer wants to be left alone; stares at his ring
[08:03] <FireFly_9> You say you want to be left alone, yet you come to a chat channel filled with people.
[08:03] * Crwn_FruT_Gamer doesn't want attention.
[08:04] <FireFly_9> You say you don't want attention, yet you go out of your way to annouce that you are alone, which invites attention.
[08:04] <Crwn_FruT_Gamer> ............fricken paradox
[08:04] *** Crwn_FruT_Gamer [monotavern.crown.co.jp] has quit IRC (bbl)
[08:05] <C'est_la_V> His mind is gone...
[08:05] <FireFly_9> Well I think Reika's infidelity has got to him.
[08:06] <C'est_la_V> Ne... what if this drives him to... to...
[08:06] <FireFly_9> To do himself a harm?
[08:06] <C'est_la_V> To the turtle...
[08:06] <FireFly_9> Good god.
[08:07] *** FireFly_9 [ruin@ntt1.docomo.jp] has quit IRC (we already have a small girl infatuated with a horse, do we need a turtle-lover as well?)
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