Kleargear.com Buys Disasterous Results By Listening to Its “Smart” Lawyers

I rely weekly on review sites like Yelp! and Ripeoffreport.com to help me make decisions on everything from where to get a meal in a different city to which type of tires I should get for better off-road performance. And, occasionally, when a company does a great job or a poor job, I’ll add in my own two cents on these sites. Well, you certainly can’t get in trouble for exercising your “free speech” rights, right? Think again.

The obscure (and soon to be out-of-business) Kleargear.com–who seems to sell stuff you’d find in a modern-day Spencer’s Gifts–snuck a “non disparagement” clause into their on-line sales contract. Essentially, if you buy something from them, you agree not to trash them on-line. If you do say something negative about them, you face a $3500 fine.

Now, a first-year law student will tell you that there is nothing wrong with this clause. We’re Americans and we’re free to enter into any sort of contract. Moreover, buyer beware!?! But, what kind of short-sighted attorney allows their client to not only draft a non-disparagement clause, but then tries to enforce it to the tune of $3500? Attorneys who are trained to see the big picture know that just because a business has the legal right to do something doesn’t mean that it makes good business sense.

Before this week, several thousand Americans knew of kleargear.com. Now, in a short-sighted effort to protect its image on the internet, millions of Americans know of this company…and I can’t imagine any of them anxious to do business with them.

CNN has a story on this case:
Kleargear.com Fails to Manage its Legal Risks