But Could They Countersign by Facsimile?

From the Small Business Law Blog, comes this piece on the unenforceability of contracts written in blood. It seems that the multi-million dollar Stanford International Bank Ponzi scheme was formalized by a blood oath ceremony. NYT coverage here.

According to Stanford's CFO's plea agreement , Allen Stanford entered into the blood oath with the head of Antigua’s Financial Services Regulatory Commission (FSRC) and another FSCR employee to bind them to an agreement to not examine false investment reports that Stanford filed in exchange for regular cash bribes.

The lurid blood ceremony seems extraneous, to say the least; the cash was probably sufficient to ensure performance.

What's the old saw? Never write when you can speak; never speak when you can nod; never nod when you can wink. We guess no one ever told Stanford never seal your illegal deal in blood.