Even more serious is the total absence of any testing programs for most legacy systems. In the case of embedded applications, the testing routines may be available only from the original suppliers. Even then, this software would work only if someone maintained configuration control all along, which is extremely rare. The costs of making the necessary Year 2000 fixes will therefore vary greatly depending on the availability of tools and expertise. Making sure that database records remain usable may take at least as much effort as the initial software repairs.
Lawyers know that willful disregard of a known danger can be construed as an act of negligence.
Litigants appreciate that such cases offer enormous opportunities for collecting big damages and exorbitant legal fees. There will be sufficient plaintiffs to make sure that the year 2000 problem will be tried as a managerial liability before local juries. A hard-pressed computer executive will have the incentive of taking the easy way by accepting a bid quoting a firm price for taking care of logic malfunctions that involve the calendar. I have looked at some of these bids and find that they lack warranties and avoid independently verifiable safeguards. Budget estimates based on such bids are not worth much, because they do not cover the eventual litigation.