An emoji can be worth a thousand words, but it can also be expensive. In Canada, the Saskatchewan King’s Bench Court has ruled that the “thumbs up” emoji, one of the most widely used in the emoticon repertoire, could be considered a contract signature.
It all starts with a conflict between two farmers. On the one hand, Kent Mickeborough, a grain buyer, who wanted to buy several tons of flax. On the other, Chris Achter who, luckily, has the necessary amount of flax and proposes to Kent Mickeborough to close a deal. The latter decides to send the seller an SMS with a photo of the contract for Chris Achter to confirm.
This is where the case takes its most unexpected turn. Chris Achter decides to reply to the SMS with a thumbs up emoji, which for him is equivalent to “I got your message”. Except that Kent Mickeborough does not understand this emoji in the same way, believing that it is an equivalence to a classic signature and therefore a contract agreed between the two parties.
“A non-traditional way”
Chris Atcher’s lawyer said the decision leaves the door open for interpretations of emojis, such as punching or shaking hands. “Counsel argues that the courts will be inundated with all manner of cases if this court determines that the thumbs-up emoji can replace a signature,” the ruling report read.
For breach of contract, Chris Atcher was eventually ordered to pay CAD$82,200 in damages, or approximately €55,000.
Source: BFM TV
