Website-law.co.uk

“Please do whatever necessary to make sure I don’t get sued or fined!”

Clients sometimes assume that the instruction of a legal adviser amounts to an insurance policy against legal risk. But whilst proper legal advise should reduce a business’s legal risks, it will not eliminate them.

There are, I think, five main reasons why web-based businesses must live with legal risks.

First, the law changes all the time. This is especially true of “internet law”. Sometimes these changes can be easily anticipated, but sometimes not.

Second, good websites are regularly updated; and few web publishers take legal advice on everything they publish.

Third, user-generated content can give rise to liabilities which may be beyond the control of the web publisher.

Fourth, the law is often much more uncertain than we would like. For example, the special defences under the E-commerce Regulations, which from a risk management perspective may be considered crucial to the operation of many websites, are of uncertain scope.

Fifth, legal advisers sometimes get things wrong. Whilst you may well be able to sue a negligent legal adviser, that is not the same things as an insurance policy!