Would anyone in the collecting world be interested in an article on the various Terms of Sale of the

Longacre

I'm serious with this question, but I don't know if any collector would have an interest in reading such an article. I was taking a quick read through the Terms of Sale of the various auction firms in their catalogs. Although much of the terms are similar, there are other provisions that are very different. Would anyone here be interested in reading an article (I have no clue where it might get published) that analyzes the Terms of Sale of the different firms, and discusses which Terms might be more collector-friendly versus auction house friendly, etc.? I think I could probably write from a consumer advocate perspective, although trying to be unbiased regarding the different firms and how they might have different needs based on their business models. Or should I save this article for a stodgy old Law Review at a law school? Any other comments or things you might want to see (or not see) would be helpful.

CoinRaritiesOnline

I, for one, would be interested.

DMWJR

I would be interested.


Can we also get an opinion letter to go along with it?

Barry

Yes. Great idea.

coinmickey

This is a good idea for a consumer advocate/affairs type of article. I can't see it in a law review unless you wrap it in or accompany it with a larger issue.

I've thought about something like this as well. I'm sure many bidders don't fully read the terms and therefore don't realize or understand what they're contracting to do or not do.

Excellent idea!

Longacre

<< <i>Can we also get an opinion letter to go along with it? >>




You'd have to pay for that.

RichieURich

Yes, Longacre, I would be interested in a summary of the differences between the auction houses' terms of sale. Thanks.

291fifth

I'd love to read such an article. Would anyone in the numismatic field publish it? Good question as the article might offend some powerful advertisers.

RYK

Speaking for majorbigtime and myself, we would BOTH be interested, and one of us will bellyache a lot about it afterward.

RichieURich

<< <i>Speaking for majorbigtime and myself, we would BOTH be interested, and one of us will bellyache a lot about it afterward. >>



It's not even necessary to guess which one of you would be bellyaching!

Julian

Me too

michael

would be too long and complicated and also convluded

michael

basically
you wanted it
you are 18 and over of sound legal mind with no guardian
you bought it
you own it

IGWT

I think you'll find very little difference in the terms and conditions among the auction houses. Each of them, for example, acquires a security interest in your firstborn by virtue of your bid. As another example, raising your paddle consititutes a release of any and all claims that you might have. The real difference will be found in the extent to which the auction houses will relax the T&C in the event a problem arises.

Mark

Longacre:

Do the differences in the terms of sale affect in which the companies' auctions you will bid? In other words, do you not bid in Company A's auctions but instead bid in Company B's auctions because of a difference in the terms of sale? Or do the differences affect how much you'll bid for a particular coin? I think that if the answer to any of these questions is "Yes," then the article would be large interest. If the answer is no, then perhaps a better artcile would simply explain the generic terms of sale provisions.

Longacre

<< <i>Longacre:

Do the differences in the terms of sale affect in which the companies' auctions you will bid? In other words, do you not bid in Company A's auctions but instead bid in Company B's auctions because of a difference in the terms of sale? Or do the differences affect how much you'll bid for a particular coin? I think that if the answer to any of these questions is "Yes," then the article would be large interest. If the answer is no, then perhaps a better artcile would simply explain the generic terms of sale provisions. >>





I think the article idea stems more from the fact that people don't understand the various terms and conditions, and the pitfalls of various items. For example, every auction firm includes a Choice of Laws/Conflicts provision, and there are some jurisidictions that are more adventagous (sp?) than others. I am not sure if such a detailed analysis would put people to sleep, though.

Mark

Longacre:

Coin World has an attorney who writes for them once a month. I think he did do a little once on auction terms. But I don't recall much of the specifics. Perhaps the Numismatist might be interested in article going over the various terms because they seem to publish such "general interest" articles.

Personally, I think an article would be of most use if it actually named which auction house(s) had the most buyer-friendly provisions, but my guess is that neither Coin World nor Numismatist would be at ease publishing a story that compares different auction houses. Plus, I guess that you, as an attorney, can see a tremendous number of pitfalls that could result from actually naming different companies and then giving your opinion as to whether one of their policies was good or bad for buyers.

In any case, if you do decide to write such an article, I hope you can keep the number of footnotes down to no more than a double digit number.

Mark

MikeKing

I'd be very interested, and hope that you do it.
I do wonder thought if there is such a thing as 'Auction Law' and what the state to state variations on that might be. I think there is.

majorbigtime

<< <i>I, for one, would be interested. >>



Mee too, very interested.

Conder101

<< <i> Can we also get an opinion letter to go along with it? >>

You'd have to pay for that. >>


You don't do Pro Bono work?

I'm not too sure how many real differences there would really be, but it could be very useful for many people if they could be explained in simple language exactly what each section means. Sort of a laymans summary. Because I'm sure the vast majority of the bidders never bother to wade through all the Terms of Sale and that is what leads to misunderstandings later like MBT had.

Of course then you have to try and get them to actually read the layman summaries. (Most people just WON'T read, and you would be surprised at how many are functionally illiterate. I read well, I just can't spell, and don't proofread. )

123cents

I would be interested.

Michigan

<< <i>I would be interested. >>




Sure, yes. Count me in.


I had a coin dealer once tell me that a certain big name in the coin auction business has auction terms
that are so complex that it is next to impossible to return something you bought if you didn't like it.

Having dealt with them before and never having to return something I can't verify if that statement was
true. I tried reading the auction terms but found them too confusing to understand (oh well, i guess it
won't be a problem unless I try to return something).

morgannut2

I would be very interested. A lot of the "pro consumer" regulation and law has

actually come out of several bills that were effected, and enforced, in NEW York State. People went to jail--or Switzerland to hide!!!.

Anything from other states--Texas for example (kidding)-- rely on "the good faith" of the auction Those wouldn't be very interesting, and California's lassez-faire type
"Terms of Sale" would be bacically a book jokes--not education.
Look--------------- there are not too many states where it's legal to advertise a new car for $1000, then say "sorry"

it was another of our 50 typographical errors this week!!! (Yea!!--tell me that doen't happen in Califormia Coin Auctions!!!!!)

messydesk

Sounds interesting enough. Could be useful if you could distill key items into a table for easy comparison as well.