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TimS comments on Are smart contracts AI-complete? - Less Wrong Discussion

11 Post author: Stuart_Armstrong 22 June 2016 02:08PM

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Comment author: TimS 22 June 2016 11:26:07PM 1 point [-]

You cannot simply set up a new legal agreement and just say "And you don't have any legal recourse".

It depends. You probably can't write a contract that literally says "no recourse for breach." But you probably could achieve substantially the same effect.
For example, you might define substantial performance so low that it is always met, then explicitly waive any right to good faith and fair dealing) and any injunctive relief. If a court found the contract enforcible, I'm not sure how they could fashion a remedy.

Comment author: Lumifer 23 June 2016 02:20:18AM 2 points [-]

But you probably could achieve substantially the same effect.

That depends. Courts can, and on occassion do, rewrite contracts (or refuse to enforce them) because they consider the contract to be inequitable or, in simpler terms, unjust.

Comment author: HungryHobo 24 June 2016 02:56:51PM *  1 point [-]

Though unfortunately for them once launched the particular type of smart contract in question enforces itself (since it handles the transfers itself) and re-writing it isn't really possible without destroying the entire system so the court isn't being asked for help enforcing the contract and a ruling asking to change it is about as enforceable as a ruling declaring the moon to be an unlicensed aircraft that needs to cease flight immediately if you can't get your hands on both parties to physically force them to make adjustments using new transactions.

It's complicated even more by the fact that contracts can themselves be recipients/actors within this system.