Gentlemen’s agreement

For other uses, see Gentlemen’s agreement (disambigua-tion).

A gentlemen’s agreement (or gentleman’s agreement)is an informal and legally non-binding agreement betweentwo or more parties. It is typically oral, though it maybe written, or simply understood as part of an unspokenagreement by convention or through mutually beneficialetiquette. The essence of a gentlemen’s agreement is thatit relies upon the honor of the parties for its fulfillment,rather than being in any way enforceable. It is, therefore,distinct from a legal agreement or contract, which can beenforced if necessary.

1 History

The phrase appears in British Parliamentary records of1821,[1] and in Massachusetts public records of 1835.[2]The Oxford English Dictionary cites P. G. Wodehouse's1929 story collection Mr Mulliner Speaking as the firstappearance of the term.[3]

1.1 Industry

A gentleman’s agreement, defined in the early 20th cen-tury as “an agreement between gentlemen looking towardthe control of prices,” was reported by one source to bethe loosest form of a extquotedblpool.”[4] These types ofagreements have been reported to be found in every typeof industry, and are numerous in the steel and iron indus-tries.[4]

A report from the United States House of Representativesdetailing their investigation of the United States SteelCorporation asserted that there were two general typesof loose associations or consolidations between steel andiron interests in the 1890s, in which the individual con-cerns retained ownership as well as a large degree of inde-pendence: the “pool” and the “gentleman’s agreement”.[5]

The latter type lacked any formal organization to regu-late output or prices, nor did they contain any provisionsfor forfeiture in the event of an infraction.[5] The effi-cacy of the agreement relied on members to keep infor-mal pledges.[5]

In the automotive industry, Japanese manufacturersagreed that no production car would have more than 276horsepower; this agreement ended in 2005.[6] Germanmanufacturers limit the top speed of high-performancesaloons (sedans) and station wagons to 250 kilometres perhour (155 miles per hour).

1.2 International relations

Intense anti-Japanese sentiment developed on the WestCoast. US President Theodore Roosevelt did not want toanger Japan by passing legislation to bar Japanese immi-gration to the US, as had been done for Chinese immigra-tion. Instead, there was an informal “Gentlemen’s Agree-ment” (1907-8) between the United States and Japan,whereby Japan made sure there was very little or nomovement to the US. The agreements were made by Sec-retary of State, Elihu Root, and Japan’s Foreign Minister,Tadasu Hayashi. The agreement banned emigration ofJapanese laborers to the US and rescinded the segregationorder of the San Francisco School Board in California,which had humiliated and angered the Japanese. Theagreements remained effect until 1924, when Congressforbade all immigration from Japan.[7]

1.3 Trade policies

Gentlemen’s agreements have come to regulate interna-tional activities such as the coordination of monetary ortrade policies.[8] According to Edmund Osmańczyk inthe Encyclopedia of the United Nations and InternationalAgreements, it is also defined as “an international termfor an agreement made orally rather than in writing, yetfully legally valid”.[9] This type of agreement may allowa nation to avoid the domestic legal requirements to enter

1

2 3 REFERENCES

into a formal treaty,[8] or it may be useful when a gov-ernment wants to enter into a secret agreement that isnot binding upon the next administration.[10] Accordingto another author, all international agreements are gen-tlemen’s agreements because, short of war, they are allunenforceable.[10] Osmańczyk pointed out that there isa difference between open gentlemen’s agreements andsecret diplomatic agreements.[9] In the United States, aprohibition against gentlemen’s agreements in commer-cial relations between states was introduced in 1890, be-cause the secretive nature of such agreements was beyondanyone’s control.[9]

1.4 As a discriminatory tactic

See also: Old boys network

Gentlemen’s agreements were a widely useddiscriminatory tactic reportedly more common thanrestrictive covenants in “preserving” the homogeneityof upper-class neighborhoods and suburbs in the UnitedStates.[11] The nature of these agreements made themextremely difficult to prove or to track, and were effec-tive long after the United States Supreme Court's rulingsin Shelley v. Kraemer and Barrows v. Jackson.[11] Onesource states that gentlemen’s agreements “undoubtedlystill exist,” but that their use has greatly diminished.[11]

In 1934, the National Football League entered into a gen-tlemen’s agreement to ban black players.[12] Until JackieRobinson was hired by the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1946, agentlemen’s agreement also ensured that African Ameri-can players were excluded from organized baseball.[13]

2 See also• Anti-trust• Gentlemen’s agreement of Andhra Pradesh (1956)• Good faith• Handshake• Memorandum of understanding• News embargo• List of fastest production motorcycles#Gentlemen’sagreement for the agreement to limit productionmotorcycles to 300 km/h (186 mph)

3 References[1] Great Britain. Parliament (1812), Royal Commission of

the Press 2, G.E. Eyre and W. Spottiswoode, printers tothe Queen’s Most Excellent Majesty, p. 267

[2] Massachusetts (1835), Public documents of Massachusetts4, p. 150

[3] “gentleman, n.”. OED Online. December 2013. OxfordUniversity Press. 11 February 2014

[4] Jones, Elio (1921). “II”. The Trust Problem in the UnitedStates. New York: Macmillan Company. pp. 7–8. Re-trieved June 28, 2010.

[5] United States House of Representatives (1912). UnitedStates Steel Corporation: Hearings before the Commit-tee on Investigation of United States Steel Corporation..Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office. Re-trieved June 28, 2010.

[6] Japan Dumps 276-hp Pact

[7] Carl R. Weinberg, “The 'Gentlemen’s Agreement' of1907-08,” OAH Magazine of History (2009) 23#4 pp 36-36.

[8] Kotera, Akira (1991). “Western Export Controls Affect-ing the Eastern Bloc”. In Oda, Hiroshi. Law and Pol-itics of West-East Technology Transfer 1988. MartinusNijhoff Publishers. pp. 34–38. ISBN 9780792309901.

[9] Osmańczyk, Edmund Jan (2003). Mango, Anthony,ed. Encyclopedia of the United Nations and InternationalAgreements: G to M. 2: G-M (Third ed.). New York:Routledge. p. 792. Retrieved June 28, 2010.

[10] Shafritz, Jay M. The Dictionary of Public Policy and Ad-ministration. Boulder, Colorado: Westview Press. p. 131.ISBN 9780813342603.

[11] Higley, Stephen Richard (1995). Privilege, Power, andPlace: The Geography of the American Upper Class.Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 40–41,61. ISBN 9780847680214. Retrieved June 28, 2010.

[12] Sports Law by Patrick Thornton. Chapter 7. Page 379.

[13] N. JeremiDuru, Friday Night ‘Lite’: HowDe-Racializationin the Motion Picture Friday Night Lights Disserves theMovement to Eradicate Racial Discrimination from Amer-ican Sport, 25 CARDOZO ARTS & ENT. L.J. 485, 530(2007).

3

4 Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

4.1 Text• Gentlemen’s agreement Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gentlemen's_agreement?oldid=621251419 Contributors: Mav, BryanDerksen, Roadrunner, DavidLevinson, Stevertigo, Patrick, Jengod, Itai, Ashley Y, Guy Peters, Dmn, Philwelch, Ævar Arnfjörð Bjarma-son, Bfinn, Niteowlneils, Siroxo, MisfitToys, Mr impossible, Heirpixel, D6, Freakofnurture, N328KF, RedWordSmith, Brianhe, Rich Farm-brough, Tomtom, Smyth, Kaisershatner, Jonathan Drain, Bobo192, Flying Hamster, Func, Jumbuck, PaulHanson, Crebbin, Bz2, RoySmith,DreamGuy, Theltalpha, Lapinmies, Hsmith254, , Gene Nygaard, Dennis Bratland, Woohookitty, Splintax, Hbdragon88, TotoBag-gins, Plornt, Zoz, Shortenfs, Exeunt, FlaBot, Naraht, Jlittlet, Robert A West, Foxxygirltamara, Matt.lohkamp, Rjensen, Retired username,Malcolma, Rockero, DRosenbach, Intershark, Paul Erik, SmackBot, RDBury, Lcarsdata, Marc Lacoste, WookieInHeat, Scubbo, Com-mander Keane bot, Hmains, Bluebot, Jprg1966, Oatmeal batman, MrRadioGuy, Dreadstar, Chrylis, Marcus Brute, CoolKoon, Optakeover,Jdng, Mrdthree, Hammer Raccoon, Fireblade, Location, Macktheknifeau, Cydebot, Dougweller, Thijs!bot, Biruitorul, Chris01720, Phoe,Jnork, Martinllevine, Marketstel, Sophie means wisdom, RainbowCrane, Magioladitis, Clivestaples, Dragonbeast, Froid, IL-Kuma, Rick-terp, Davidjcmorris, R'n'B, Whitebox, Fbi04, Protricity, Mydogtrouble, Funandtrvl, TallNapoleon, Reinhardheydt, Jkeene, Bearian,AlleborgoBot, Aepoutre, SieBot, VonBlade, Lightmouse, SimonTrew, Sanya3, Escape Orbit, ClueBot, Eridanos, DragonBot, Resoru,SchreiberBike, Aitias, Lord Cornwallis, Against the current, Avoided, Diddlyman2004, No, you take a hike, Addbot, Meledin, SpBot,Peridon, Groupsixty, Lucas, AnomieBOT, Captain Quirk, 7472u3, DiscerningGentlemansClub, Erik9bot, MHR65, HRoestBot, TobeBot,Trappist the monk, RjwilmsiBot, TjBot, EmausBot, Shining.Star, GoingBatty, Active Banana, ZéroBot, Cymru.lass, Donner60, Chuispas-tonBot, ClueBot NG, Satellizer, Tyrus44, Helpful Pixie Bot, Biggybear, JohnChrysostom, AvocatoBot, CitationCleanerBot, Dirtbagg2000,Khazar2, Majorsarcasm38, Musicoll47 and Anonymous: 121

4.2 Images

4.3 Content license• Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0