SAFE & SOUND WEBSITE TERMS OF USE
VERSION 1.0
LAST REVISED ON: JUNE 5, 2025
The website located at www.safeandsound.org (the “Site”) is a copyrighted work belonging to Safe & Sound, a 501(3)(c) nonprofit organization (“Safe & Sound”, “us”, “our”, and “we”). Certain features of the Site may be subject to additional guidelines, terms, or rules, which will be posted on the Site in connection with such features. All such additional terms, guidelines, and rules are incorporated by reference into these Terms. If you opt-in to receive text messages from Safe & Sound, then the additional text messaging terms found here will also apply to you.
THESE TERMS OF USE (THESE “TERMS”) SET FORTH THE LEGALLY BINDING TERMS AND CONDITIONS THAT GOVERN YOUR USE OF THE SITE. BY ACCESSING OR USING THE SITE, OR CLICKING “I ACCEPT” OR OTHERWISE AGREEING TO BE BOUND BY THESE TERMS, YOU ARE ACCEPTING THESE TERMS (ON BEHALF OF YOURSELF OR THE ENTITY THAT YOU REPRESENT), AND YOU REPRESENT AND WARRANT THAT YOU HAVE THE RIGHT, AUTHORITY, AND CAPACITY TO ENTER INTO THESE TERMS (ON BEHALF OF YOURSELF OR THE ENTITY THAT YOU REPRESENT). YOU MAY NOT ACCESS OR USE THE SITE OR ACCEPT THE TERMS IF YOU ARE NOT AT LEAST 13 YEARS OLD. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE WITH ALL OF THE PROVISIONS OF THESE TERMS, DO NOT ACCESS AND/OR USE THE SITE.
PLEASE BE AWARE THAT SECTION 9 CONTAINS PROVISIONS GOVERNING HOW TO RESOLVE DISPUTES BETWEEN YOU AND SAFE & SOUND. AMONG OTHER THINGS, SECTION 9 INCLUDES AN AGREEMENT TO ARBITRATE WHICH REQUIRES, WITH LIMITED EXCEPTIONS, THAT ALL DISPUTES BETWEEN YOU AND US WILL BE RESOLVED BY BINDING AND FINAL ARBITRATION. SECTION 9 ALSO CONTAINS A CLASS ACTION AND JURY TRIAL WAIVER. PLEASE READ SECTION 9 CAREFULLY.
UNLESS YOU OPT OUT OF THE AGREEMENT TO ARBITRATE WITHIN 30 DAYS: (1) YOU WILL ONLY BE PERMITTED TO PURSUE DISPUTES OR CLAIMS AND SEEK RELIEF AGAINST US THROUGH BINDING, FINAL ARBITRATION, WITH LIMITED EXCEPTIONS, AND YOU WAIVE YOUR RIGHT TO PARTICIPATE IN A CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT OR OTHER REPRESENTATIVE PROCEEDING OR CLASS-WIDE ARBITRATION; AND (2) YOU ARE WAIVING YOUR RIGHT TO PURSUE DISPUTES OR CLAIMS AND SEEK RELIEF IN A COURT OF LAW AND TO HAVE A JURY TRIAL.
IF YOU SIGN-UP FOR RECURRING DONATIONS THROUGH THE SITE, THEN SUCH RECURRING DONATIONS WILL AUTOMATICALLY-RENEW ON A MONTHLY BASIS UNTIL YOU CANCEL YOUR DONATION IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 1.4.
1. ACCESS TO THE SITE; DONATIONS
1.1 Use of Site. You agree that: (a) you shall only access and use the Site for your own personal, noncommercial use, and shall not license, sell, rent, lease, transfer, assign, distribute, host, or otherwise commercially exploit the Site, whether in whole or in part, or any content displayed on the Site; (b) you shall not modify, make derivative works of, disassemble, reverse compile or reverse engineer any part of the Site; (c) you shall not access the Site in order to build a similar or competitive website, product, or service; and (d) except as expressly stated herein, no part of the Site may be copied, reproduced, distributed, republished, downloaded, displayed, posted or transmitted in any form or by any means. Unless otherwise indicated, any future release, update, or other addition to functionality of the Site shall be subject to these Terms. All copyright and other proprietary notices on the Site (or on any content displayed on the Site) must be retained on all copies thereof.
1.2 Modification; Discontinuation. Safe & Sound reserves the right, at any time, to modify, suspend, or discontinue the Site (in whole or in part) with or without notice to you. You agree that Safe & Sound will not be liable to you or to any third party for any modification, suspension, or discontinuation of the Site or any part thereof. You acknowledge and agree that Safe & Sound has no obligation to provide any support or maintenance in connection with the Site.
1.3 Ownership. Excluding any User Content that you may provide (defined below), you acknowledge that all the intellectual property rights, including copyrights, patents, trademarks, and trade secrets, in the Site and its content are owned by Safe & Sound or Safe & Sound’s suppliers. Neither these Terms (nor your access to the Site) transfers to you or any third party any rights, title or interest in or to such intellectual property rights. Safe & Sound and its suppliers reserve all rights not granted in these Terms. There are no implied licenses granted under these Terms.
1.4 Donations. Safe & Sound uses a third party service provider to collect donations. When you make a donation, or sign-up to make recurring donations, through our Site, you may be required to consent to such service provider’s terms and conditions and/or privacy policy. If you make a donation through the Site, you authorize Safe & Sound, or its third party payment processor, to charge all sums as described to the payment method you specify. If you sign-up for monthly recurring donations through the Site, you authorize Safe & Sound to charge all amounts described on the date of sign-up and on a monthly basis thereafter, until cancellation of your recurring donation. If you sign-up for recurring donations through the Site, you will receive an email confirmation of the start of your recurring donation, an email receipt each month thereafter, and an annual summary of your total giving. You may cancel or modify your donation by contacting us at donate@safeandsound.org.
2. USER CONTENT
2.1 User Content. “User Content” means any and all information and content that a user submits to, or uses with, the Site (e.g., content in the user’s profile or postings). You are solely responsible for your User Content. You assume all risks associated with use of your User Content, including any reliance on its accuracy, completeness or usefulness by others, or any disclosure of your User Content that personally identifies you or any third party. You hereby represent and warrant that your User Content does not violate our Acceptable Use Policy (defined in Section 2.3). You may not represent or imply to others that your User Content is in any way provided, sponsored or endorsed by Safe & Sound. Because you alone are responsible for your User Content, you may expose yourself to liability if, for example, your User Content violates the Acceptable Use Policy. Safe & Sound is not obligated to backup any User Content, and your User Content may be deleted at any time without prior notice.
2.2 License. You hereby grant (and you represent and warrant that you have the right to grant) to Safe & Sound an irrevocable, nonexclusive, royalty-free and fully paid, worldwide license to reproduce, distribute, publicly display and perform, prepare derivative works of, incorporate into other works, and otherwise use and exploit your User Content, and to grant sublicenses of the foregoing rights, solely for the purposes of including your User Content in the Site. You hereby irrevocably waive (and agree to cause to be waived) any claims and assertions of moral rights or attribution with respect to your User Content.
2.3 Acceptable Use Policy. The following terms constitute our “Acceptable Use Policy”:
(a) You agree not to upload, transmit, or provide any User Content to the Site (i) that violates any third-party right, including any copyright, trademark, patent, trade secret, moral right, privacy right, right of publicity, or any other intellectual property or proprietary right; (ii) that is unlawful, harassing, abusive, tortious, threatening, harmful, invasive of another’s privacy, vulgar, defamatory, false, intentionally misleading, trade libelous, pornographic, obscene, patently offensive, promotes racism, bigotry, hatred, or physical harm of any kind against any group or individual or is otherwise objectionable; (iii) that is harmful to minors in any way; or (iv) that is in violation of any law, regulation, or obligations or restrictions imposed by any third party.
(b) In addition, you agree not to: (i) upload, transmit, or distribute to or through the Site any computer viruses, worms, or any software intended to damage or alter a computer system or data; (ii) upload, transmit or provide to the Site unsolicited or unauthorized advertising, promotional materials, junk mail, spam, chain letters, pyramid schemes, or any other form of duplicative or unsolicited messages, whether commercial or otherwise; (iii) interfere with, disrupt, or create an undue burden on servers or networks connected to the Site, or violate the regulations, policies or procedures of such networks; (iv) attempt to gain unauthorized access to the Site (or to other computer systems or networks connected to or used together with the Site); (v) harass or interfere with any other user’s use and enjoyment of the Site; or (vi) use software or automated agents or scripts to produce multiple accounts on the Site, or to generate automated searches, requests, or queries to (or to strip, scrape, or mine data from) the Site (provided, however, that we conditionally grant to the operators of public search engines revocable permission to use spiders to copy materials from the Site for the sole purpose of and solely to the extent necessary for creating publicly available searchable indices of the materials, but not caches or archives of such materials, subject to the parameters set forth in our robots.txt file).
2.4 Enforcement. We reserve the right (but have no obligation) to review any User Content, and to investigate and/or take appropriate action against you in our sole discretion if you violate the Acceptable Use Policy or any other provision of these Terms or otherwise create liability for us or any other person. Such action may include removing or modifying your User Content, terminating your account on the Site in accordance with Section 7, and/or reporting you to law enforcement authorities.
2.5 Feedback. If you provide Safe & Sound with any feedback or suggestions regarding the Site (“Feedback”), you hereby assign to Safe & Sound all rights in such Feedback and agree that Safe & Sound shall have the right to use and fully exploit such Feedback and related information in any manner it deems appropriate. Safe & Sound will treat any Feedback you provide to Safe & Sound as non-confidential and non-proprietary. You agree that you will not submit to Safe & Sound any information or ideas that you consider to be confidential or proprietary.
3. INDEMNIFICATION. You agree to indemnify and hold Safe & Sound (and its officers, employees, and agents) harmless, including costs and attorneys’ fees, from any claim or demand made by any third party due to or arising out of (a) your violation of these Terms, (b) your violation of applicable laws or regulations or (c) your User Content. Safe & Sound reserves the right, at your expense, to assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter for which you are required to indemnify us, and you agree to cooperate with our defense of these claims. You agree not to settle any matter without the prior written consent of Safe & Sound. Safe & Sound will use reasonable efforts to notify you of any such claim, action or proceeding upon becoming aware of it.
4. THIRD-PARTY LINKS & ADS; OTHER USERS
4.1 Third-Party Links & Ads. The Site may contain links to third-party websites and services, and/or display advertisements for third parties (collectively, “Third-Party Links & Ads”). Such Third-Party Links & Ads are not under the control of Safe & Sound, and Safe & Sound is not responsible for any Third-Party Links & Ads. Safe & Sound provides access to these Third-Party Links & Ads only as a convenience to you, and does not review, approve, monitor, endorse, warrant, or make any representations with respect to Third-Party Links & Ads. You use all Third-Party Links & Ads at your own risk, and should apply a suitable level of caution and discretion in doing so. When you click on any of the Third-Party Links & Ads, the applicable third party’s terms and policies apply, including the third party’s privacy and data gathering practices. You should make whatever investigation you feel necessary or appropriate before proceeding with any transaction in connection with such Third-Party Links & Ads.
4.2 Other Users. Each Site user is solely responsible for any and all of its own User Content. Because we do not control User Content, you acknowledge and agree that we are not responsible for any User Content, whether provided by you or by others. We make no guarantees regarding the accuracy, currency, suitability, or quality of any User Content. Your interactions with other Site users are solely between you and such users. You agree that Safe & Sound will not be responsible for any loss or damage incurred as the result of any such interactions. If there is a dispute between you and any Site user, we are under no obligation to become involved.
5. DISCLAIMERS. THE SITE IS PROVIDED ON AN “AS-IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS. SAFE & SOUND (AND OUR SUPPLIERS) EXPRESSLY DISCLAIM ANY AND ALL WARRANTIES AND CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS, IMPLIED, OR STATUTORY, INCLUDING ALL WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE, QUIET ENJOYMENT, ACCURACY, OR NON-INFRINGEMENT. WE (AND OUR SUPPLIERS) MAKE NO WARRANTY THAT THE SITE OR ANY OTHER SERVICES PROVIDED BY SAFE & SOUND WILL MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS, WILL BE AVAILABLE ON AN UNINTERRUPTED, TIMELY, SECURE, OR ERROR-FREE BASIS, OR WILL BE ACCURATE, RELIABLE, FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL CODE, COMPLETE, LEGAL, OR SAFE. IF APPLICABLE LAW REQUIRES ANY WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO THE SITE, ALL SUCH WARRANTIES ARE LIMITED IN DURATION TO NINETY (90) DAYS FROM THE DATE OF FIRST USE.
SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES, SO THE ABOVE EXCLUSION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW LIMITATIONS ON HOW LONG AN IMPLIED WARRANTY LASTS, SO THE ABOVE LIMITATION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.
6. LIMITATION ON LIABILITY. TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, IN NO EVENT SHALL SAFE & SOUND (OR OUR SUPPLIERS) BE LIABLE TO YOU OR ANY THIRD PARTY FOR ANY LOST PROFITS, LOST DATA, COSTS OF PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE PRODUCTS, OR ANY INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES ARISING FROM OR RELATING TO THESE TERMS OR YOUR USE OF, OR INABILITY TO USE, THE SITE OR ANY OTHER SERVICES PROVIDED BY SAFE & SOUND, EVEN IF SAFE & SOUND HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. ACCESS TO, AND USE OF, THE SITE IS AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION AND RISK, AND YOU WILL BE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DAMAGE TO YOUR DEVICE OR COMPUTER SYSTEM, OR LOSS OF DATA RESULTING THEREFROM.
TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, NOTWITHSTANDING ANYTHING TO THE CONTRARY CONTAINED HEREIN, OUR LIABILITY TO YOU FOR ANY DAMAGES ARISING FROM OR RELATED TO THIS AGREEMENT (FOR ANY CAUSE WHATSOEVER AND REGARDLESS OF THE FORM OF THE ACTION), WILL AT ALL TIMES BE LIMITED TO A MAXIMUM OF FIFTY US DOLLARS (U.S. $50). THE EXISTENCE OF MORE THAN ONE CLAIM WILL NOT ENLARGE THIS LIMIT. YOU AGREE THAT OUR SUPPLIERS WILL HAVE NO LIABILITY OF ANY KIND ARISING FROM OR RELATING TO THIS AGREEMENT.
SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY FOR INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, SO THE ABOVE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.
7. TERM AND TERMINATION. Subject to this Section, these Terms will remain in full force and effect while you use the Site. We may suspend or terminate your rights to use the Site at any time for any reason at our sole discretion, including for any use of the Site in violation of these Terms. Upon termination of your rights under these Terms, your right to access and use the Site will terminate immediately. You understand that this may involve deletion of your User Content from our live databases. Safe & Sound will not have any liability whatsoever to you for any termination of your rights under these Terms, including for deletion of your User Content. Even after your rights under these Terms are terminated, the following provisions of these Terms will remain in effect: Sections 1.1 through 1.3, Section 2 and Sections 3 through 10.
8. COPYRIGHT POLICY. Safe & Sound respects the intellectual property of others and asks that users of our Site do the same. In connection with our Site, we have adopted and implemented a policy respecting copyright law that provides for the removal of any infringing materials and for the termination, in appropriate circumstances, of users of our online Site who are repeat infringers of intellectual property rights, including copyrights. If you believe that one of our users is, through the use of our Site, unlawfully infringing the copyright(s) in a work, and wish to have the allegedly infringing material removed, the following information in the form of a written notification (pursuant to 17 U.S.C. § 512(c)) must be provided to our designated Copyright Agent:
8.1 your physical or electronic signature;
8.2 identification of the copyrighted work(s) that you claim to have been infringed;
8.3 identification of the material on our services that you claim is infringing and that you request us to remove;
8.4 sufficient information to permit us to locate such material;
8.5 your address, telephone number, and e-mail address;
8.6 a statement that you have a good faith belief that use of the objectionable material is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or under the law; and
8.7 a statement that the information in the notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that you are either the owner of the copyright that has allegedly been infringed or that you are authorized to act on behalf of the copyright owner.
Please note that, pursuant to 17 U.S.C. § 512(f), any misrepresentation of material fact (falsities) in a written notification automatically subjects the complaining party to liability for any damages, costs and attorney’s fees incurred by us in connection with the written notification and allegation of copyright infringement.
The designated Copyright Agent for Safe & Sound is:
Designated Agent: Compliance Officer
Address of Agent: Safe & Sound 1757 Waller Street San Francisco, CA 94117
Telephone: 415-668-0494
Email: info@safeandsound.org
9. ARBITRATION AGREEMENT
9.1 Applicability of Arbitration Agreement. Subject to the terms of this Arbitration Agreement, you and Safe & Sound agree that any disagreement, controversy, or claim arising out of or relating in any way to your access to or use of the Site, or the Terms and prior versions of the Terms (each, a “Dispute”) will be resolved by binding arbitration, rather than in court, except that: (1) you and Safe & Sound may assert claims or seek relief in small claims court if such claims qualify and remain in small claims court; and (2) you or Safe & Sound may seek equitable relief in court for infringement or other misuse of intellectual property rights (such as trademarks, trade dress, domain names, trade secrets, copyrights, and patents). For purposes of this Arbitration Agreement, “Dispute” will also include disputes that were not noticed or that involve facts occurring before the existence of this or any prior versions of the Terms as well as claims that may arise after the termination of these Terms.
9.2 Informal Dispute Resolution. There might be instances when a Dispute arises between you and Safe & Sound. If that occurs, Safe & Sound is committed to working with you to reach a prompt, low‐cost and mutually beneficial resolution. You and Safe & Sound agree to participate in good faith informal efforts to resolve Disputes before starting an arbitration or initiating an action in small claims court (“Informal Dispute Resolution”). You and Safe & Sound agree that as part of these efforts, either party has the option to ask the other to meet and confer telephonically (“Informal Dispute Resolution Conference”). If you are represented by counsel, your counsel may participate in the conference, but you must also personally participate.
(a) To initiate Informal Dispute Resolution, a party must give notice in writing to the other party (“Notice”). Such Notice to Safe & Sound should be sent by email to info@safeandsound.org or regular mail to our offices located at 1757 Waller Street San Francisco, California 94117. The Notice must include: (1) your name, telephone number, mailing address, and e‐mail address; (2) the name, telephone number, mailing address and e‐mail address of your counsel, if any; and (3) a description of the Dispute. Safe & Sound will send Notice, including a description of the Dispute, to your email address or regular address. If you’ve registered an email address or regular address with us, it is your responsibility to ensure your email and regular address are correct and remain up to date.
(b) The Informal Dispute Resolution process lasts 45 days and is a mandatory precondition to commencing arbitration. During this period, either party has the option to ask the other to participate in an Information Dispute Resolution Conference as part of a good faith effort to resolve the Dispute. The Informal Dispute Resolution Conference shall be individualized such that a separate conference must be held each time either party initiates a Dispute, even if the same law firm or group of law firms or organizations represents multiple users in similar cases, unless all parties agree; multiple individuals initiating a Dispute cannot participate in the same Informal Dispute Resolution Conference unless all parties agree.
(c) The statute of limitations and any filing fee deadlines shall be tolled while the parties engage in Informal Dispute Resolution.
9.3 Waiver of Jury Trial. YOU AND SAFE & SOUND HEREBY WAIVE ANY CONSTITUTIONAL AND STATUTORY RIGHTS TO SUE IN COURT AND HAVE A TRIAL IN FRONT OF A JUDGE OR A JURY. You and Safe & Sound are instead electing that all Disputes shall be resolved by arbitration under this Arbitration Agreement, except as specified in the subsection entitled “Applicability of Arbitration Agreement” above. There is no judge or jury in arbitration, and court review of an arbitration award is subject to very limited review.
9.4 Waiver of Class and Other Non-Individualized Relief. EACH OF US MAY BRING CLAIMS AGAINST THE OTHER ONLY ON AN INDIVIDUAL BASIS AND NOT ON A CLASS, REPRESENTATIVE, OR COLLECTIVE BASIS, AND THE PARTIES HEREBY WAIVE ALL RIGHTS TO HAVE ANY DISPUTE BE BROUGHT, HEARD, ADMINISTERED, RESOLVED, OR ARBITRATED ON A CLASS, COLLECTIVE, OR REPRESENTATIVE BASIS. ONLY INDIVIDUAL RELIEF IS AVAILABLE. Subject to this Arbitration Agreement, the arbitrator may award declaratory or injunctive relief only in favor of the individual party seeking relief and only to the extent necessary to provide relief warranted by the party’s individual claim. Nothing in this paragraph is intended to, nor shall it, affect the terms and conditions under the subsection 9.9 entitled “Batch Arbitration.” Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Arbitration Agreement, if a final decision, not subject to any further appeal or recourse, determines that the limitations of this subsection, “Waiver of Class and Other Non-Individualized Relief,” are invalid or unenforceable as to a particular claim or request for relief (such as a request for public injunctive relief), you and Safe & Sound agree that that particular claim or request for relief (and only that particular claim or request for relief) shall be severed from the arbitration and may be litigated in the state or federal courts located in the State of California. All other Disputes shall be arbitrated or litigated in small claims court. This subsection does not prevent you or Safe & Sound from participating in a class-wide or mass settlement of claims.
9.5 Rules and Forum. The Terms evidence a transaction involving interstate commerce; and notwithstanding any other provision herein with respect to the applicable substantive law, the Federal Arbitration Act, 9 U.S.C. § 1 et seq., will govern the interpretation and enforcement of this Arbitration Agreement, including the procedures governing Batch Arbitration, and any arbitration proceedings held pursuant to this Arbitration Agreement. If Informal Dispute Resolution does not resolve satisfactorily within forty-five (45) days after receipt of a Notice, you and Safe & Sound agree that either party shall have the right to finally resolve the Dispute through binding arbitration.
(a) The arbitration will be administered by the National Arbitration & Mediation (“NAM”) in accordance with the NAM Comprehensive Dispute Resolution Rules and Procedure (the “NAM Rules”) in effect at the time of arbitration, except as supplemented, where applicable, by the NAM Mass Filing Supplemental Dispute Resolution Rules and Procedures (the “NAM Mass Filing Rules”), and as modified by this Arbitration Agreement. The NAM Rules are currently available at https://www.namadr.com/resources/rules-fees-forms/.
(b) A party who wishes to initiate arbitration must provide the other party with a request for arbitration (the “Request”). The Request must include: (1) the name, telephone number, mailing address, e‐mail address of the party seeking arbitration and email address; (2) a statement of the legal claims being asserted and the factual bases of those claims; (3) a description of the remedy sought and an accurate, good‐faith calculation of the amount in controversy in United States Dollars; (4) a statement certifying completion of the Informal Dispute Resolution process as described above; and (5) evidence that the requesting party has paid any necessary filing fees in connection with such arbitration. Any Request you send to Safe & Sound should be sent by email to info@safeandsound.org or regular mail to our offices located at 1757 Waller Street San Francisco, California 94117. If you have an email address on file with Safe & Sound, Safe & Sound will provide the Request to your email address on file.
(c) If the party requesting arbitration is represented by counsel, the Request shall also include counsel’s name, telephone number, mailing address, and email address. Such counsel must also sign the Request. By signing the Request, counsel certifies to the best of counsel’s knowledge, information, and belief, formed after an inquiry reasonable under the circumstances, that, consistent with the standards set forth in Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 11(b): (1) the Request is not being presented for any improper purpose, such as to harass, cause unnecessary delay, or needlessly increase the cost of dispute resolution; (2) the claims, defenses and other legal contentions are warranted by existing law or by a nonfrivolous argument for extending, modifying, or reversing existing law or for establishing new law; and (3) the factual and damages contentions have evidentiary support or, if specifically so identified, will likely have evidentiary support after a reasonable opportunity for further investigation or discovery (“Counsel’s Certification”).
(d) Unless you and Safe & Sound otherwise agree, or the Batch Arbitration process discussed in subsection 9.9 is triggered, the arbitration will be conducted in San Francisco, California. Subject to the NAM Rules, the arbitrator may direct a limited and reasonable exchange of information between the parties, consistent with the expedited nature of arbitration. If NAM is not available to arbitrate, the parties will select an alternative arbitral forum. Your responsibility to pay any NAM fees and costs will be solely as set forth in the applicable NAM fee schedules (the “Fee Schedules”).
(e) You and Safe & Sound agree that all materials and documents exchanged during the arbitration proceedings shall be kept confidential and shall not be shared with anyone except the parties’ attorneys, accountants, or business advisors, and then subject to the condition that they agree to keep all materials and documents exchanged during the arbitration proceedings confidential.
(f) You and Safe & Sound agree that at least 14 days before the date set for an arbitration hearing, any party may serve an offer in writing upon the other party to allow judgment on specified terms. If the offer made by one party is not accepted by the other party, and the other party fails to obtain a more favorable award, the other party shall not recover any post-offer costs to which they otherwise would be entitled and shall pay the offering party’s costs from the time of the offer.
9.6 Arbitrator. The arbitrator will be either a retired judge or an attorney licensed to practice law in the state of California and will be selected by the parties from NAM’s roster of consumer dispute arbitrators. If the parties are unable to agree upon an arbitrator within thirty-five (35) days of delivery of the Request, then NAM will appoint the arbitrator in accordance with NAM Rules, provided that if the Batch Arbitration process under subsection 9.9 is triggered, NAM, without soliciting input or feedback from any party, will appoint the arbitrator for each batch.
9.7 Authority of Arbitrator. The arbitrator shall have exclusive authority to resolve any Dispute, including, without limitation, disputes regarding the interpretation or application of the Arbitration Agreement, including the enforceability, revocability, scope, or validity of the Arbitration Agreement or any portion of the Arbitration Agreement, except that all Disputes regarding the subsection entitled “Waiver of Class and Other Non-Individualized Relief,” including any claim that all or part of the subsection entitled “Waiver of Class and Other Non-Individualized Relief” is unenforceable, illegal, void or voidable, or that such subsection entitled “Waiver of Class and Other Non-Individualized Relief” has been breached, shall be decided by a court of competent jurisdiction and not by an arbitrator. The arbitrator shall have the authority to grant motions dispositive of all or part of any Dispute. The arbitrator shall issue a written award and statement of decision describing the essential findings and conclusions on which the award is based, including the calculation of any damages awarded. The award of the arbitrator is final and binding upon you and us. Judgment on the arbitration award may be entered in any court having jurisdiction.
9.8 Attorneys’ Fees and Costs. The parties shall bear their own attorneys’ fees and costs in arbitration unless the arbitrator finds that either the substance of the Dispute or the relief sought in the Request was frivolous or was brought for an improper purpose (as measured by the standards set forth in Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 11(b)). To the extent, following a presentation on the merits, on its own motion or a party’s, and after affording a reasonable opportunity to respond, an arbitrator determines that a party who commenced arbitration did not bring its claim(s) consistent with Counsel’s Certification and the standards set forth in Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 11(b), the arbitrator shall, as part of its award, impose sanctions by ordering that the initiating party who made the arbitration Request reimburse the responding party for all arbitration fees and costs the responding party incurred under the Fee Schedules. If you or Safe & Sound need to invoke the authority of a court of competent jurisdiction to compel arbitration, then the party that obtains an order compelling arbitration in such action shall have the right to collect from the other party its reasonable costs, necessary disbursements, and reasonable attorneys’ fees incurred in securing an order compelling arbitration.
9.9 Batch Arbitration. To increase the efficiency of administration and resolution of arbitrations, you and Safe & Sound agree that in the event that there are twenty-five (25) or more individual Requests of a substantially similar nature filed against Safe & Sound by or with the assistance of the same law firm, group of law firms, or organizations (“Claimants’ Counsel”), within a ninety (90) day period), NAM shall (1) administer the arbitration demands in batches of 100 Requests per batch (or, if between twenty-five (25) and ninety-nine (99) individual Requests are filed, a single batch of all those Requests, and, to the extent there are fewer than 100 Requests remaining after the batching described above, a final batch consisting of the remaining Requests); (2) appoint one arbitrator for each batch; and (3) provide for the resolution of each batch on a consolidated basis with one set of filing and administrative fees due per side per batch, one procedural calendar, one hearing (if any) in a place Claimants’ Counsel may select, so long as there is a reasonable basis for the selection, or, if Claimants’ Counsel does not have a preference or the arbitrator determines the selection is unreasonable, by the arbitrator, and one final award, which will provide for any and all relief to which the arbitrator determines each individual party is entitled (“Batch Arbitration”). NAM shall administer all batches concurrently, to the extent possible.
(a) All parties agree that Requests are of a “substantially similar nature” if they arise out of or relate to the same event or factual scenario and raise the same or similar legal issue(s) and seek the same or similar relief. To the extent the parties disagree on the application of the Batch Arbitration process, the disagreeing party shall advise NAM, and NAM shall appoint a sole standing arbitrator to determine the applicability of the Batch Arbitration process (“Administrative Arbitrator”). In an effort to expedite resolution of any such dispute by the Administrative Arbitrator, the parties agree the Administrative Arbitrator may set forth such procedures as are necessary to resolve any disputes promptly. The Administrative Arbitrator’s fees shall be paid by Safe & Sound.
(b) You and Safe & Sound agree to cooperate in good faith with NAM to implement the Batch Arbitration process including the payment of single filing and administrative fees for batches of Requests, as well as any steps to minimize the time and costs of arbitration, which may include: (1) the appointment of a discovery special master to assist the arbitrator in the resolution of discovery disputes; and (2) the adoption of an expedited calendar of the arbitration proceedings.
(c) This Batch Arbitration provision shall in no way be interpreted as authorizing or creating a class, collective, and/or representative arbitration or action of any kind, except as expressly set forth in this provision, and nothing about the Batch Arbitration process will preclude any party from participating in any arbitration administered according to that process.
9.10 30-Day Right to Opt Out. You have the right to opt out of the provisions of this Arbitration Agreement by sending written notice of your decision to opt out to: 1757 Waller Street San Francisco, California 94117, within thirty (30) days after first becoming subject to this Arbitration Agreement. Your notice must include your name and address, email address and an unequivocal statement that you want to opt out of this Arbitration Agreement. If you opt out of this Arbitration Agreement, all other parts of these Terms will continue to apply to you. Opting out of this Arbitration Agreement has no effect on any other arbitration agreements that you may currently have with us, including any previous versions of this Arbitration Agreement to which you agreed, and has no effect on any arbitration agreements with us you may enter in the future.
9.11 Invalidity, Expiration. Except as provided in the subsection entitled “Waiver of Class or Other Non-Individualized Relief,” if any part or parts of this Arbitration Agreement are found under the law to be invalid or unenforceable, then such specific part or parts shall be of no force and effect and shall be severed, and the remainder of the Arbitration Agreement shall continue in full force and effect. However, if Section 9.9 of this Arbitration Agreement is found under the law to be invalid or unenforceable then, in that case, the entire Arbitration Agreement shall be void, and the parties agree that all Disputes will be heard in the state or federal courts located in San Franciso, California. You further agree that any Dispute that you have with Safe & Sound as detailed in this Arbitration Agreement must be initiated via arbitration within the applicable statute of limitation for that claim or controversy, or it will be forever time barred. Likewise, you agree that all applicable statutes of limitation will apply to such arbitration in the same manner as those statutes of limitation would apply in the applicable court of competent jurisdiction.
9.12 Modification. You and we agree that Safe & Sound retains the right to modify this Arbitration Clause in the future. Any such changes will be posted at https://safeandsound.org/terms-of-use/ and you should check for updates regularly. Your continued use of the Site, including the acceptance of products and services offered on the Site following the posting of changes to this Arbitration Agreement, constitutes your acceptance of any such changes. Changes to this Arbitration Agreement do not provide you with a new opportunity to opt out of the Arbitration Agreement if you have previously agreed to a version of these Terms and did not validly opt out of arbitration. Safe & Sound will continue to honor any valid opt outs of the Arbitration Agreement that you made to a prior version of these Terms.
10. GENERAL
10.1 Changes. These Terms are subject to occasional revision, and if we make any substantial changes, we may notify you by sending you an e-mail to the last e-mail address you provided to us (if any), and/or by prominently posting notice of the changes on our Site. You are responsible for providing us with your most current e-mail address. In the event that the last e-mail address that you have provided us is not valid, or for any reason is not capable of delivering to you the notice described above, our dispatch of the e-mail containing such notice will nonetheless constitute effective notice of the changes described in the notice. Any changes to these Terms will be effective upon the earlier of thirty (30) calendar days following our dispatch of an e-mail notice to you (if applicable) or thirty (30) calendar days following our posting of notice of the changes on our Site. These changes will be effective immediately for new users of our Site. Continued use of our Site following notice of such changes shall indicate your acknowledgement of such changes and agreement to be bound by the terms and conditions of such changes.
10.2 Export. The Site may be subject to U.S. export control laws and may be subject to export or import regulations in other countries. You agree not to export, reexport, or transfer, directly or indirectly, any U.S. technical data acquired from Safe & Sound, or any products utilizing such data, in violation of the United States export laws or regulations.
10.3 Disclosures. Safe & Sound is located at the address in Section 10.7. If you are a California resident, you may report complaints to the Complaint Assistance Unit of the Division of Consumer Product of the California Department of Consumer Affairs by contacting them in writing at 400 R Street, Sacramento, CA 95814, or by telephone at (800) 952-5210.
10.4 Electronic Communications. The communications between you and Safe & Sound use electronic means, whether you use the Site or send us emails, or whether Safe & Sound posts notices on the Site or communicates with you via email. For contractual purposes, you (a) consent to receive communications from Safe & Sound in an electronic form; and (b) agree that all terms and conditions, agreements, notices, disclosures, and other communications that Safe & Sound provides to you electronically satisfy any legal requirement that such communications would satisfy if it were be in a hardcopy writing. The foregoing does not affect your non-waivable rights.
10.5 Entire Terms. These Terms constitute the entire agreement between you and us regarding the use of the Site.
10.6 Waiver; Assignment. Our failure to exercise or enforce any right or provision of these Terms shall not operate as a waiver of such right or provision. The section titles in these Terms are for convenience only and have no legal or contractual effect. The word “including” means “including without limitation”. If any provision of these Terms is, for any reason, held to be invalid or unenforceable, the other provisions of these Terms will be unimpaired and the invalid or unenforceable provision will be deemed modified so that it is valid and enforceable to the maximum extent permitted by law. Your relationship to Safe & Sound is that of an independent contractor, and neither party is an agent or partner of the other. These Terms, and your rights and obligations herein, may not be assigned, subcontracted, delegated, or otherwise transferred by you without Safe & Sound’s prior written consent, and any attempted assignment, subcontract, delegation, or transfer in violation of the foregoing will be null and void. Safe & Sound may freely assign these Terms. The terms and conditions set forth in these Terms shall be binding upon assignees.
10.7 Copyright/Trademark Information. Copyright © Safe & Sound. All rights reserved. All trademarks, logos and service marks (“Marks”) displayed on the Site are our property or the property of other third parties. You are not permitted to use these Marks without our prior written consent or the consent of such third party which may own the Marks.
10.8 Contact Information:
Shimina Harris
Address:
1757 Waller Street
San Francisco, California 94117
Telephone: (415) 668-0494
Email: info@safeandsound.org