Y2KLIABILITY ISSUES
National Conference of State Legislatures

Table of Contents

Y2KLIABILITY ISSUES
National Conference of State Legislatures
April 9, 1999

Check Out Fried Frank’s Y2K PAGE

The Problem000101

12:01 am January 1, 2000

General Y2K Considerations

Range of Systems at Risk

Macro & Micro Issues

Senate Y2K Report

Responsibility & Liability

General Legal Considerations

Contract law principles

Does the contract provide other grounds for excusing nonperformance?

Tort claims

Fraud claims

Litigation to date

ASE Ltd. v. INCO Alloys (W.D. Pa. 1998)

Paragon Networks v. Macola (Ohio 1998)

Faegenburg v. Intuit (N.Y. Sup. Ct. 1998)

Courtney v. Medical Manager Corp. (D.N.J.)

Look Who’s Watching!

Look Who’s Watching!

Look Who’s Watching!

Congressional Action

The Y2K Act, S. 96

All provisions of a contract enforced unless court determines that contract as a whole is unenforceable.

Reasonable efforts an absolute defense to a Y2K tort claim.

Special rules for Y2K class actions.

Year 2000 Fairness and Responsibility Act, S.461

Year 2000 Consumer Protection Plan Act of 1999 H.R. 192

PPT Slide

No action may be brought for a Y2K failure after December 31, 2001.

Year 2000 Readiness and Responsibility Act, H.R. 775

State Actions

PPT Slide

Virginia

No liability for damages caused by a delay or interruption in performance or delivery of goods or services related to a Y2K problem to the extent that it was caused by a third party.

Public Policy Issues

PPT Slide

If Y2K failures cause harm in the economy and to society why does society benefit if the harm is allocated to the party that was not in a position to remediate the Y2K problem rather than the party that could have remediated the problem but failed to remediate?

To what extent will proposed federal and state legislation raise possible claims for Constitutional violations of Due Process rights and Impairment of Contract protections?

Who will you be protecting and why?

In the end -- its all about the electric companies…….

NCSL Contact: jo.anne.bourquard@ncsl.org

Home Page: http://www.ncsl.org/

Other information:
Y2K Liability Issues
Robert H. Ledig, Partner
Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson
ASI/AFI Joint Meeting
Jacksonville, Florida
April 1999