A cover letter to the Rulebook Contract, addressed to George De Feis, dated February 3, 2001, on the letterhead on Timothy W. Just, states: "I am sure you will find everything in order after you read it over". The letter further states that all royalties on the rules of chess should be shared with 55% payable to Chess Central (an entity owned by Tim Just) and 45% to Dan Burg.
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This was obviously a note from George DeFeis to Tim Redman. What this note shows is that Tim Redman knew about the contract, even though other USCF Executive Board members did not know about the contract.
The contract specifically gives Tim Just a copyright on the Official USCF Rules of Chess. The contract states in part:
"6. Copyright
"The Editor [Tim Just] upon publication of the Work, agrees to register the Work with the United States Copyright Office. The Parties recognize that the Editor is an independent contractor and that the work is not a work for hire made under the copyright laws of the United States."
The contract provides that the Work shall be published and sold at a price no less than $12 per copy. Royalties for up to 10,000 sold shall be 10% of the sale price. Beyond 10,000 sold, the royalties shall be 12.5% and beyond 15,000 sold the royalties shall be 15%. If the Publisher [the USCF] does not publish the Work, the Editors [Just and Burg] shall be paid as if 10,000 had been sold, which means that they will get a minimum of $12,000 even if the rulebook is not published.
Tim Just was a political ally of Tim Redman. The deal to give Tim Just a copyright on the rules of chess was clearly illegal. It was not merely a violation of USCF bylaws. It was a violation of civil and criminal statutes. In my view, this insider deal may be more than enough for civil suit and even enough for a criminal prosecution of Tim Redman, George De Feis and Tim Just.
Jail time for Tims!
Sam Sloan