Several months ago, I received a copy of a casebook with the words "PROFESSOR REVIEW COPY NOT FOR SALE" emblazoned on the cover. I was not the only law professor to receive this text, and the legal significance of those six words was the topic of much heated debate on the AALS Contracts law professor listserv. Much of the discussion, perhaps predictably, revolved around whether the prohibition against subsequent sale of the textbook was enforceable as a "contract." This particular publisher's action of placing the "PROFESSOR REVIEW COPY NOT FOR SALE" language upon the book cover was likely sparked by two recent developments made possible by the Internet. The first is email solicitations by entities seeking new, complimentary copies of casebooks from professors for cash. The solicitors then resell the books to students for less than the retail price. This proposition benefits the entities, the professors who make a little cash for giving away books that might otherwise end up in the recycle bin, and students who spend a bit less for already costly textbooks. These textbook reseller businesses were not feasible in the pre-Internet era.
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