"New Reality": Canada Court Says Thumbs Up Emoji Can Represent Contract Agreement
NDTV
Justice Timothy Keene noted that the emoji is a "non-traditional means to 'sign' a document, but nevertheless, under these circumstances, this was a valid way to convey the two purposes of a signature."
In an unusual incident, the "thumbs-up" emoji has been considered similar to a person's signature by a Canadian judge, who ordered a farmer to pay $61,442 (Rs 50.7 lakh) for breach of contract, claiming that courts must adjust to the "new reality" of how people interact, as per a report in The Guardian.
In a recent case, the Court of King's Bench in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan heard that a grain buyer sent a broadcast message to his clients in March 2021 announcing that his company was planning to acquire 86 tonnes of flax at a price of $12.73 (Rs 1051) per bushel. Kent Mickleborough, the buyer, called farmer Chris Achter and sent him a message requesting him to "please confirm flax contract," along with a photo of the contract for the delivery of the grain in November.
Mr Achter replied to the message with a thumbs-up emoji. However, he failed to deliver the flax in November, and by that time, agricultural prices had shot up. Later, the interpretation of the emoji was contested by Mr Mickleborough and the farmer. The buyer cited earlier contracts and asserted that Mr Achter's use of the thumbs-up emoji suggested that he accepted the contract's conditions. On the other hand, the farmer claimed that the emoji just indicated that he had received the contract in the message.