Gentlemen's agreement
A Gentlemen's agreement is an informal agreement between two parties. It may be written or verbal. The essence of a gentleman's agreement is that it relies upon the honour of the parties for its fulfilment, rather than being in any way enforceable. It is, therefore, the opposite of a legal agreement or contract, which can be enforced if necessary.
Negative Connotations
The term has come to sound distinctly old fashioned, both because of its implicit assumption that the parties will be men, and because of its assumption that they will be gentlemen (and the old-fashioned nature of that phrase). After interwar politics in Europe the phrase has gained somewhat the connotation of an agreement easily broken.
Examples
Diplomacy
- The Gentlemen's Agreement of 1907 was an informal agreement between the United States and Japan. Japan agreed not to issue passports to citizens for travel to the United States, thus eliminating immigration. In exchange, schools in San Francisco, California, agreed not to discriminate against students of Japanese descent.
- Britain signed a 'gentlemen's agreement' with Mussolini in 1937 over Naval access to the Mediterranean.
- British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain's discussions with Adolf Hitler culminated in the Munich Agreement of 1938 which is described in similar terms.
- Hitler's agreement with the Austrian government in 1937 in which he guaranteed the country's independence.
Politics
- A gentlemen's agreement that once covered the City of Philadelphia by limiting the height of all buildings within the city to be no taller than the statue of William Penn that sits on top of Philadelphia City Hall. The Curse of Billy Penn is a coincidental anecdote in relation to the agreement.
- The agreement by the United States press not to print photographs of President Franklin Roosevelt that showed his wheelchair or leg braces.
- An agreement between the United States Army and Air Force prohibiting the army from operating combat jet airplanes.
Sport
- In baseball, the unwritten rules that formed the baseball color line from 1887 to 1946.
- In American football, an equally restrictive covenant against African-Americans existed in the NFL from 1933 to 1945.
Industry
A now-defunct agreement between the major Japanese auto manufacturers to limit the maximum advertised engine power of their cars to 280 PS (206 kW or 276 hp).
- Boeing Commercial Airplanes signed exclusivity contracts with American Airlines, Continental Airlines, and Delta Air Lines in separate but nearly identical arrangements, regarding the supply of airliners. The European Union forced the contracts to be voided when Boeing merged with McDonnell Douglas, but all parties are continuing to adhere to the terms under gentlemen's agreements.
- All major Japanese manufacturers voluntarily agreed to restrict the top speed of their motorcycles to 300 km/h (186 mph). The late 1990s saw "power wars" between various motorcycle manufacturers that culminated in Suzuki GSX1300R Hayabusa, the first production motorcycle to exceed this speed in 1999, and Kawasaki ZX-12R, designed to exceed 320 km/h (200 mph).
- German manufacturers puts a 250km/h speed limit on their automobiles, except Porsche.
Memorandum of understanding
MOUs in private law
In private law, MOU is a common synonym for a letter of intent (LOI). One example is the MOU between Bush and Kerry for the 2004 debates.
MOUs in public international law
In international relations, one of the advantages of MOUs over treaties is that the text of the MOU can be kept confidential. In addition, they can be put into effect in most countries without requiring ratification. MOUs are easier to modify and adapt than treaties which may require lengthy negotiating processes. The decision concerning ratification, however, is determined by the parties' internal law and depends to a large degree on the subject agreed upon. Although MOUs in the multilateral field are seldomly seen, the transnational aviation agreements are actually MOUs.
Examples include:
The Agreed Framework between the U.S. and North Korea over nuclear weaponry.
the Oil for Food program, for which Iraq signed an MOU in 1996,
the 1997 document signed by President Bill Clinton and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics successor states updating the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, and
the Key West Agreement between the United States Air Force and United States Army
The agreeement between Hezbollah and erstwhile enemy Michel Aoun on Feb 6, 2006
A Gentlemen's agreement is an informal agreement between two parties. It may be written or verbal. The essence of a gentleman's agreement is that it relies upon the honour of the parties for its fulfilment, rather than being in any way enforceable. It is, therefore, the opposite of a legal agreement or contract, which can be enforced if necessary.
Negative Connotations
The term has come to sound distinctly old fashioned, both because of its implicit assumption that the parties will be men, and because of its assumption that they will be gentlemen (and the old-fashioned nature of that phrase). After interwar politics in Europe the phrase has gained somewhat the connotation of an agreement easily broken.
Examples
Diplomacy
- The Gentlemen's Agreement of 1907 was an informal agreement between the United States and Japan. Japan agreed not to issue passports to citizens for travel to the United States, thus eliminating immigration. In exchange, schools in San Francisco, California, agreed not to discriminate against students of Japanese descent.
- Britain signed a 'gentlemen's agreement' with Mussolini in 1937 over Naval access to the Mediterranean.
- British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain's discussions with Adolf Hitler culminated in the Munich Agreement of 1938 which is described in similar terms.
- Hitler's agreement with the Austrian government in 1937 in which he guaranteed the country's independence.
Politics
- A gentlemen's agreement that once covered the City of Philadelphia by limiting the height of all buildings within the city to be no taller than the statue of William Penn that sits on top of Philadelphia City Hall. The Curse of Billy Penn is a coincidental anecdote in relation to the agreement.
- The agreement by the United States press not to print photographs of President Franklin Roosevelt that showed his wheelchair or leg braces.
- An agreement between the United States Army and Air Force prohibiting the army from operating combat jet airplanes.
Sport
- In baseball, the unwritten rules that formed the baseball color line from 1887 to 1946.
- In American football, an equally restrictive covenant against African-Americans existed in the NFL from 1933 to 1945.
Industry
A now-defunct agreement between the major Japanese auto manufacturers to limit the maximum advertised engine power of their cars to 280 PS (206 kW or 276 hp).
- Boeing Commercial Airplanes signed exclusivity contracts with American Airlines, Continental Airlines, and Delta Air Lines in separate but nearly identical arrangements, regarding the supply of airliners. The European Union forced the contracts to be voided when Boeing merged with McDonnell Douglas, but all parties are continuing to adhere to the terms under gentlemen's agreements.
- All major Japanese manufacturers voluntarily agreed to restrict the top speed of their motorcycles to 300 km/h (186 mph). The late 1990s saw "power wars" between various motorcycle manufacturers that culminated in Suzuki GSX1300R Hayabusa, the first production motorcycle to exceed this speed in 1999, and Kawasaki ZX-12R, designed to exceed 320 km/h (200 mph).
- German manufacturers puts a 250km/h speed limit on their automobiles, except Porsche.
Memorandum of understanding
MOUs in private law
In private law, MOU is a common synonym for a letter of intent (LOI). One example is the MOU between Bush and Kerry for the 2004 debates.
MOUs in public international law
In international relations, one of the advantages of MOUs over treaties is that the text of the MOU can be kept confidential. In addition, they can be put into effect in most countries without requiring ratification. MOUs are easier to modify and adapt than treaties which may require lengthy negotiating processes. The decision concerning ratification, however, is determined by the parties' internal law and depends to a large degree on the subject agreed upon. Although MOUs in the multilateral field are seldomly seen, the transnational aviation agreements are actually MOUs.
Examples include:
The Agreed Framework between the U.S. and North Korea over nuclear weaponry.
the Oil for Food program, for which Iraq signed an MOU in 1996,
the 1997 document signed by President Bill Clinton and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics successor states updating the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, and
the Key West Agreement between the United States Air Force and United States Army
The agreeement between Hezbollah and erstwhile enemy Michel Aoun on Feb 6, 2006
