Re: WIPO Copyright Treaty Article 11 & Grammar

From: Bob Stock <bstock[_at_]ucla.edu>
Date: Thu, 23 Apr 1998 16:12:34 -0700

On 4/22/98, Mac Norton <mnorton[_at_]cavern.uark.edu> wrote:
>
> On Mon, 20 Apr 1998, Bob Stock <bstock[_at_]ucla.edu> wrote:
> >
> > Article 11 of the WIPO Copyright Treaty of 1996 states:
> >
> > "Contracting Parties shall provide adequate legal protection and
> > effective legal remedies against the circumvention of effective
> > technological measures that are used by authors in connection
> > with the exercise of their rights under this Treaty or the Berne
> > Convention and that restrict acts, in respect of their works, which
> > are not authorized by the authors concerned or permitted by law."
>
> Are you concerned at all about the improper use of "which" for "that"?

Only slightly. They got the first one right. I began a paper I recently wrote with the following:

"An oft-quoted, albeit ungrammatical, definition of reverse engineering is: '[a] fair and honest means [of] ... starting with the known product and working backward to divine the process which aided in its development or manufacture.'"

So, as you can see, I am a little concerned, but perhaps only when Chief Justice Burger is ungrammatical, not when treaty drafters are.

---

Bob Stock <bstock[_at_]ucla.edu>
UCLA School of Law '98
http://www.geocities.com/Paris/1206/

---

Received on Thu Apr 23 1998 - 23:11:36 GMT