Court Gives The ‘Thumbs-Up’ Emoji An Official Nod When Used In Legal Contracts

The ‘thumbs-up’ emoji is probably one of the more handy symbols out there that can summarize your agreement to something without you having to type it out in words. Is your friend asking you to brunch? That’s the one to use. Someone needs you to pick up dinner on the way home? You know what to do. Have to sign a legally binding contract between you and a secondary party? Look no further.

The last scenario might sound slightly improbable (and informal for legal negotiations). Still, according to a new Canadian ruling, a Saskawetchan judge has just given the thumbs-up to thumbs-up emojis in legal contracts. Which means that it’s as valid as a signature is.

 
It all started with a case where a grain buyer sent a mass text message to clients in March 2021, advertising that the company wanted to buy 86 tonnes of flax for CAD$17 (US$12.73) per bushel. The buyer contacted one farmer and sent over a picture of the contract. They asked to “please confirm flax contract” in a follow-up message. The farmer sent back a thumbs-up icon. Come November, the buyer still had not received the flax, and by then, prices for the crop had increased. The prosecution is now asking the farmer to pay up CAD$82,000 (US$61,442).

The use of the symbol was then raised in court as a means of agreeing to the contract sent. However, the farmer rebutted and said that the emoji was only meant to show they had received the message.

The case had the lawyers conducting a cross-examination of the true meaning of the thumbs-up emoji citing cases from Israel, New York, Canada, and even the Rosetta Stone. Justice Timothy Keene also looked to Dictionary.com’s definition of the symbol, which states: “express assent, approval, or encouragement in digital communications, especially in Western Culture,” as part of his decision in the ruling.

The defense brought up how this might crack open “the floodgates” and call for new interpretations of other emojis like the “fist bump” and the “handshake.” The opposition also stated that the court should not give in to technology and allow it to dictate how people communicate.

To that, Keene maintained the ruling and noted that this is a new reality for Canadian society, and the court has to be ready to take on more cases that stem from the use of emojis.

So the next time you send a thumbs-up to somebody, make sure you’re in agreement to nothing but the truth. 

 
 
 
[via The Guardian and Engadget, Photo 280287851 © Yuri Arcurs | Dreamstime.com]