Hi, There has been discussion of having one new legal entity representing the Debian project worldwide. What are the candidates opinions on that?
I am interested in the idea of having a legal entity for Debian. Till a year back, I was not in favor of having such an entity. But some of my experiences, especially during DebConf23 made me rethink. I still think there are numerous pros for not having a legal entity, but there are cons too.
When we have to deal with an external organization, or when having a legal battle or when interacting with Government entities etc, having a legal standing makes things easier. But with the legal standing comes the problems of bureaucracy, reporting, jurisdiction etc. The decision to register Debian should not be taken in haste. There is a history of great communities going dormant after legal registration - burdened by extensive reporting required or with non-functional officials.
If we ever end up registering, the by-law should be written with great care to maintain the unique and efficient ways of functioning we currently have in Debian. The whole process of registering Debian as legal entity should a GR with good amount of discussion.
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