Can abandonment be irrevocable?

[Peter Fairbrother]

Lawrence E. Rosen wrote:

>> 1) can Alice can regain ownership of the right?
>> 
>> What about 1)? How could Alice go about it??
> 
> Regain ownership?  What do you mean by that?  Have her name inscribed on
> a rock somewhere?  Or regain her authority and dominion over a work that
> she previously abandoned so that she can prevent people from doing what
> she previously permitted them to do?

The latter. 

But perhaps Alice's heirs may get ownership by statute, and assert it. I'm
concerned whether Charles, who hasn't in any way relied on the act
indicating abandonment, would at a later time be able to rely on a defense
by abandonment after such an assertion.

> I agree with a previous email, this is probably a question of equitable
> estoppel.  
>
> I don't know why it would any different if one granted an "irrevocable"
> open source license, and then revoked it.  Probably a new licensee with
> notice of the revocation can't obtain a license.

A grant of a license is "in deed", and is enforceable even without
consideration. The license is assumed to be irrevocable unless it says so in
the licence (ignoring the US 35-40 year rule, and assuming the conditions
are obeyed etc). 

There might be no harm to Charles if he never relied on a revoked act of
abandonment while the abandonment was in force; or no harm greater than the
requirement for a license - I have seen something like that in a judgement
disallowing an abandonment defense - and no harm, no estoppel.

> Does this have practical implications for any real-world scenario, or
> are we just speculating here?

Real-world. The question is how to irrevocably and permanently "free" code
for all others to use, despite any actions anyone else can take in the
future. Preferably in all jurisdictions.

"Putting it into the public domain" has all sorts of problems, and is
probably impossible even in the US - it's certainly impossible to "free"
code by doing so in the UK.

Licences cannot be irrevocable in the US, under the 35-40 year rule.

Waivers? I doubt it.

An act indicating abandonment may or may not be irrevocable - but some
coders are actually doing it, now, with the intention to irrevocably "free"
code. 

I'd like to know whether abandonment can be irrevocable, and if so how to do
it properly. But I don't think it can be.


-- 
Peter Fairbrother

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