IT-Related Litigation: Likely Trends and Recommended Practices: Opening Statement

by Ed Yourdon

During the past 15 years, we have devoted a number of issues of Cutter IT Journal to the legal ramifications of IT, and yet it seems to be a perennially new topic, perhaps because most IT professionals would prefer not to think about such things. Alas, an embarrassingly large percentage of IT projects continue to fail -- and now that so many system development/integration projects involve outsourcing contracts between vendors and customers who may be located on opposite sides of the world, the failures are even more likely to result in expensive litigation.