Click-On Agreements. America Online, Inc (AOL), provided e-mail service to Walter Hughes and other members under a click-on agreement titled "Terms of Service." This agreement consisted of three parts: a "Member Agreement," "Community Guidelines," and a
"Privacy Policy." The Member Agreement included a forum-selection clause that read, "You expressly agree that exclusive jurisdiction for any claim or dispute with AOL or relating in any way to your membership or your use of AOL resides in the courts of Virginia." When Officer Thomas McMenamon of the Methuen, Massachusetts, Police Department received threatening e-mail sent from an AOL account, he requested and obtained from AOL Hughes's name and other personal information. Hughes filed a suit in a federal district court against AOL, which filed a motion to dismiss on the basis of the forum-selection clause. Considering that the clause was a click-on provision, is it enforceable? Explain.
Click-on agreements
A click-warp agreement is generally construed as a contract, and as long as a party has the opportunity to review the terms and decline to accept, it is generally held to be enforceable. In this case, the court held the clause to be enforceable and dismissed Hughes's claims. The court explained, "The prevailing view towards contractual forum-selection clauses is that such clauses are prima facie valid and should be enforced unless enforcement is shown by the resisting party to be unreasonable under the circumstances. Forum selection clauses of the type used by AOL, sometimes referred to as clickwrap agreements, have been upheld as valid and enforceable. It is undisputed that Hughes agreed to the Terms of Service contract when he became a subscriber to AOL's services. It is clear from the facts alleged in the Complaint, taken in the light most favorable to Hughes, that his claims are ‘claims or disputes with AOL' which relate to his membership and/or his use of AOL's services. The Court rules that the forum selection clause in the Terms of Service contract is enforceable and Hughes' claims are within its scope. Accordingly, . . . AOL is entitled to their dismissal, without prejudice to Hughes refiling them in a Virginia court."
You might also like to view...
What is the appropriate order for a company's chart of accounts?
A. Assets, liabilities, revenues, expenses, stockholders' equity B. Assets, revenues, expenses, liabilities, stockholders' equity C. Assets, liabilities, stockholders' equity, expenses, revenue D. Assets, liabilities, stockholders' equity, revenues, expenses
Civil law is the law governing litigation between two private parties
Indicate whether the statement is true or false