Terms and Conditions of Use – LawyersDirect Network

PLEASE READ THESE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF USE CAREFULLY BEFORE USING THIS SITE.

By using the LawyersDirect Network Inc., website (the “Site”), you agree to follow and be bound by these terms and conditions of use (the “Terms of Use”) and agree to comply with all applicable laws and regulations, including United States export and re-export control laws and regulations. In these Terms of Use, the words “you” and “your” refer to each member or Site visitor, “we”, us” and “our” refer to LawyersDirect Network Inc. and “Services” refers to all services provided by us.

It is your responsibility to review these Terms of Use periodically. If at any time you find these Terms of Use unacceptable or if you do not agree to these Terms of Use, please do not use this Site or our Services. We may revise these Terms of Use at any time without notice to you. If you have any questions about these Terms of Use, please contact our Legal Department.

YOU AGREE THAT BY USING THE SITE AND THE SERVICES YOU ARE AT LEAST 18 YEARS OF AGE AND YOU ARE LEGALLY ABLE TO ENTER INTO A CONTRACT.

Please also refer to the LawyersDirect Privacy Policy and Disclaimer, each of which is incorporated herein by reference.

LawyersDirect provides an online legal portal to give visitors a general understanding of the law. To that extent, the Site includes general information on commonly encountered legal issues. At no time do we draw legal conclusions, provide legal advice or apply the law to the facts of your particular situation. LawyersDirect and its Services are not substitutes for the advice of an attorney.

LawyersDirect strives to keep its information accurate, current and up-to-date. However, because the law changes rapidly, LawyersDirect cannot guarantee that all of the information on the Site is completely current. The law is different from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and may be subject to interpretation by different courts. The law is a personal matter, and no general information like the kind LawyersDirect provides can fit every circumstance. Furthermore, the legal information contained on the Site is not legal advice and is not guaranteed to be correct, complete or up-to-date. Therefore, if you need legal advice for your specific situation, you should consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction.

From time to time, LawyersDirect may perform certain attorney access services and introduce our visitors to attorneys through various methods, including but not limited to (i) legal insurance plans, (ii) third party attorney directory listings, (iii) third party limited scope agreements and (iv) third party attorney referral services. At no time is an attorney-client relationship fostered or created through the performance of any such services.

This Site is not intended to create any attorney-client relationship, and your use of LawyersDirect does not and will not create an attorney-client relationship between you and LawyersDirect.

1. Privacy Policy. LawyersDirect respects your privacy and permits you to control the treatment of your personal information. A complete statement of LawyersDirect’s current Privacy Policy can be found by clicking here. LawyersDirect’s Privacy Policy is expressly incorporated into this Agreement by reference.

When you open an account to use or access certain portions of the Site or the Services, you must provide complete and accurate information as requested on the registration form. You will also be asked to provide a user name and password. You are entirely responsible for the maintaining the confidentiality of your password. You may not use a third party’s account, user name or password at any time. You agree to notify LawyersDirect immediately of any unauthorized use of your account, user name or password. LawyersDirect shall not be liable for any losses you incur as a result of someone else’s use of your account or password, either with or without your knowledge. You may be held liable for any losses incurred by LawyersDirect, our affiliates, officers, directors, employees, consultants, agents and representatives due to someone else’s use of your account or password.

In connection with the use of certain LawyersDirect website-based products or services, you may be asked to provide personal information in a questionnaire, application, form or similar document or service. This information will be protected pursuant to our Privacy Policy. In addition, you grant LawyersDirect a worldwide, royalty-free, nonexclusive, and fully sublicensable license to use, distribute, reproduce, modify, publish and translate this personal information solely for the purpose of enabling your use of the applicable service. You may revoke this license and terminate LawyersDirect’s rights at any time by removing your personal information from the applicable service.

2. Ownership. This Site is owned and operated by LawyersDirect Network Inc., All right, title and interest in and to the materials provided on this Site, including but not limited to information, documents, logos, graphics, sounds and images (the “Materials”) are owned either by LawyersDirect or by our respective third party authors, developers or vendors (“Third Party Providers”). Except as otherwise expressly provided by LawyersDirect, none of the Materials may be copied, reproduced, republished, downloaded, uploaded, posted, displayed, transmitted or distributed in any way and nothing on this Site shall be construed to confer any license under any of LawyersDirect’s intellectual property rights, whether by estoppel, implication or otherwise. See the “Legal Contact Information” below if you have any questions about obtaining such licenses. LawyersDirect does not sell, license, lease or otherwise provide any of the Materials other than those specifically identified as being provided by LawyersDirect. Any rights not expressly granted herein are reserved by LawyersDirect.

3. Limited Permission to Download. LawyersDirect hereby grants you permission to download, view, copy and print the Materials on any single, stand-alone computer solely for your personal, informational, non-commercial use provided that (i) the copyright and trademark notice appearing below appears in such Materials, (ii) the Materials are not used on any other Web site or in a networked computer environment and (iii) the Materials are not modified in any way. This permission terminates automatically without notice if you breach any of the terms or conditions of these Terms of Use. On any such termination, you agree to immediately destroy any downloaded or printed Materials. Any unauthorized use of any Materials contained on this Site may violate copyright laws, trademark laws, laws of privacy and publicity and communications regulations and statutes.

4. Links to Third Party Sites. This Site may contain links to Web sites controlled by parties other than LawyersDirect (each a “Third Party Site”). LawyersDirect works with a number of partners and affiliates whose sites are linked with LawyersDirect. LawyersDirect is not responsible for and does not endorse or accept any responsibility for the availability, contents, products, services or use of any Third Party Site, any Web site accessed from a Third Party Site or any changes or updates to such sites. LawyersDirect makes no guarantees about the content or quality of the products or services provided by such sites. LawyersDirect is not responsible for webcasting or any other form of transmission received from any Third Party Site. LawyersDirect is providing these links to you only as a convenience, and the inclusion of any link does not imply endorsement by LawyersDirect of the Third Party Site. You acknowledge that you bear all risks associated with access to and use of content provided on a Third Party Site and agree that LawyersDirect is not responsible for any loss or damage of any sort you may incur from dealing with a third party. You should contact the site administrator for the applicable Third Party Site if you have any concerns regarding such links or the content located on any such Third Party Site.

5. Additional Terms. Some LawyersDirect Services may be subject to additional posted guidelines, rules or terms of service (“Additional Terms”) and your use of such Services will be conditioned on your agreement to the Additional Terms. If there is any conflict between these Terms of Use and the Additional Terms, the Additional Terms will control for that Service, unless the Additional Terms expressly state that these Terms of Use will control.

6. Reviews, Comments, Communications, And Other Content. At various locations on the Site, LawyersDirect may permit visitors to post reviews, comments, and other content (the “User Content”). Contributions to, access to and use of the User Content is subject to this paragraph and the other terms and conditions of these Terms of Use.

Rights and Responsibilities of LawyersDirect
LawyersDirect is not the publisher or author of the User Content. It is a passive service for storage and dissemination of the ideas and opinions that LawyersDirect members may choose to post and distribute as User Content. LawyersDirect does not screen works before they are posted, and no prior approval is required for posting. LawyersDirect disclaims all copyright and ownership in such works and all responsibility for them.

Although we cannot make an absolute guarantee of system security, LawyersDirect takes reasonable steps to maintain security. If you have reason to believe system security has been breached, contact us by email for help.

If LawyersDirect’s technical staff finds that files or processes belonging to a member pose a threat to the proper technical operation of the system or to the security of other members, LawyersDirect reserves the right to delete those files or to stop those processes. If the LawyersDirect technical staff suspects a user name is being used by someone who is not authorized by the proper user, LawyersDirect may temporarily disable that user’s access in order to preserve system security. In all such cases, LawyersDirect will contact the member as soon as feasible.

LawyersDirect has the right, in its sole and absolute discretion, to (i) edit, redact or otherwise change any User Content, (ii) re-categorize any User Content to place it in a more appropriate location or (iii) pre-screen or delete any User Content that is determined to be inappropriate or otherwise in violation of these Terms of Use, including but not limited to User Content containing offensive language and advertisements.

LawyersDirect reserves the right to refuse service to anyone and to cancel user access at any time.

Rights and Responsibilities of LawyersDirect Users or Other Posters of User Content
You are legally and ethically responsible for any User Content – writings, files, pictures or any other work – that you post or transmit using any LawyersDirect service that allows interaction or dissemination of information. In posting User Content, you are responsible for honoring the rights of others, including intellectual-property rights (copyright, patent and trademark), the right to privacy and the right not to be libeled or slandered. For example, if you wish to post a copyrighted work as User Content, you are responsible for obtaining the copyright holder’s permission first.

Under United States federal law, you retain copyright on all works you create and post as User Content, unless you choose specifically to renounce it. In posting a work as User Content, you authorize other members who have access to that service to make personal and customary use of the work, including creating links or reposting, but not otherwise to reproduce or disseminate it unless you give permission for such dissemination. You also give permission to LawyersDirect to copy your works as part of the normal backup process. You have the right to remove any of your works from User Content at any time.

The use of your LawyersDirect user account or posting User Content for any illegal activity under the laws of Ohio and the United States is a violation of these Terms of Use. Since the law as to jurisdiction of online systems is unsettled, we urge you to consider the possible effect of laws outside LawyersDirect’s locality or your own residence. LawyersDirect is open to members worldwide (and works published on the World Wide Web, Usenet or other such services are accessible to anyone on the Internet), and LawyersDirect cannot guarantee that you won’t run into legal trouble in other jurisdictions over your posting.

Your Rights and Responsibilities as a LawyersDirect User and Reader of User Content
You are not required to provide your real name when signing up as a user of LawyersDirect. LawyersDirect permits anonymous or pseudonymous accounts. Any user may request that such member’s e-mail address be hidden to provide for additional privacy.

If you have a complaint about the behavior or posts of another user, it is your responsibility to attempt to resolve the conflict, typically by contacting that person directly, if possible. Normally, LawyersDirect staff will not take a role in mediating conflicts between you and other users. LawyersDirect does not take responsibility for your behavior or that of other users. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if such a complaint or conflict arises, the user or users may request that a LawyersDirect moderator intervene and attempt to resolve any such dispute. Any such request is not a guarantee that a moderator will (i) intervene, (ii) intervene in a timely manner, (iii) resolve the dispute in favor of one party or the other or (iv) successfully resolve the situation. The decision to intervene rests with LawyersDirect, in our sole and absolute discretion.

Your access to the postings that users have posted as User Content is for your personal use only. If you want to redistribute postings you find as User Content, it is your responsibility to obtain permission from the poster (and any other person with rights in such work).

You agree to help protect your account and the security of other users by guarding your password. If you have reason to believe your password has been compromised or there has been any unauthorized use of your account, contact LawyersDirect via email as soon as possible.

7. NO WARRANTY. THE SITE AND ALL MATERIALS, DOCUMENTS OR FORMS PROVIDED ON OR THROUGH YOUR USE OF THE SITE ARE PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, LAWYERSDIRECT EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE AND NON-INFRINGEMENT.

LAWYERSDIRECT MAKES NO WARRANTY THAT: (A) THE SITE OR THE MATERIALS WILL MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS; (B) THE SITE OR THE MATERIALS WILL BE AVAILABLE ON AN UNINTERRUPTED, TIMELY, SECURE OR ERROR-FREE BASIS; (C) THE RESULTS THAT MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE USE OF THE SITE, OR ANY MATERIALS OFFERED THROUGH THE SITE, WILL BE ACCURATE OR RELIABLE; OR (D) THE QUALITY OF ANY PRODUCTS, SERVICES, INFORMATION OR OTHER MATERIAL PURCHASED OR OBTAINED BY YOU THROUGH THE SITE OR IN RELIANCE ON THE MATERIALS WILL MEET YOUR EXPECTATIONS.

OBTAINING ANY MATERIALS THROUGH THE USE OF THE SITE IS DONE AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION AND AT YOUR OWN RISK. LAWYERSDIRECT SHALL HAVE NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANY DAMAGE TO YOUR COMPUTER SYSTEM OR LOSS OF DATA THAT RESULTS FROM THE DOWNLOAD OF ANY CONTENT, MATERIALS, INFORMATION OR SOFTWARE.

8. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY. IN NO EVENT SHALL LAWYERSDIRECT, OUR SHAREHOLDERS, OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES OR AGENTS BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, PUNITIVE, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGE (INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO LOSS OF BUSINESS, REVENUE, PROFITS, USE, DATA OR OTHER ECONOMIC ADVANTAGE), HOWEVER IT ARISES, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, NEGLIGENCE OR OTHER TORTIOUS ACTION, OR ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE THIS SITE OR MATERIALS AVAILABLE FROM THIS SITE, EVEN IF LAWYERSDIRECT HAS BEEN PREVIOUSLY ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE. IF YOUR USE OF MATERIALS FROM THIS SITE RESULTS IN THE NEED FOR SERVICING, REPAIR OR CORRECTION OF EQUIPMENT OR DATA, YOU ASSUME ANY COSTS THEREOF. SOME STATES DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, SO THE ABOVE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.

9. Indemnification. You agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless LawyersDirect, our officers, directors, shareholders, employees and agents from and against any and all claims, liabilities, damages, losses or expenses, including reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs, arising out of or in any way connected with your access to or use of the Site and the Materials.

10. Unsolicited Submissions. Except as may be required in connection with your use of LawyersDirect Services, LawyersDirect does not want you to submit confidential or proprietary information to us through this Site. All comments, feedback, information or material submitted to LawyersDirect through or in association with this Site shall be considered non-confidential and LawyersDirect’s property. By providing such submissions to LawyersDirect you hereby assign to LawyersDirect, at no charge, all worldwide right, title and interest in and to the submissions and any intellectual property rights associated therewith. LawyersDirect shall be free to use and/or disseminate such submissions on an unrestricted basis for any purpose. You acknowledge that you are responsible for the submissions that you provide, including their legality, reliability, appropriateness, originality and content.

11. Compliance with Intellectual Property Laws. When accessing LawyersDirect or using LawyersDirect’s Service, you agree to obey the law and you agree to respect the intellectual property rights of others. Your use of the Service and the Site is at all times governed by and subject to laws regarding copyright, trademark and other intellectual property ownership. You agree not to upload, download, display, perform, transmit or otherwise distribute any information or content in violation of any third party’s copyrights, trademarks or other intellectual property or proprietary rights. You agree to abide by laws regarding copyright ownership and use of intellectual property, and you shall be solely responsible for any violations of any relevant laws and for any infringements of third party rights caused by any content you provide or transmit or that is provided or transmitted using your LawyersDirect user account.

LawyersDirect has adopted a policy that provides for the immediate removal of any content, article or materials that have infringed on the rights of LawyersDirect or of a third party or that violate intellectual property rights generally. LawyersDirect’s policy is to remove such infringing content or materials and investigate such allegations immediately.

If you believe that your copyright has been infringed, and you would like LawyersDirect to remove the material in question, please contact the Legal Department.

12. Inappropriate Content. When accessing the Site or using LawyersDirect’s Services, you agree not to upload, download, display, perform, transmit or otherwise distribute any content that: (i) is libelous, defamatory, obscene, pornographic, abusive or threatening; (b) advocates or encourages conduct that could constitute a criminal offense, give rise to civil liability or otherwise violate any applicable local, state, national or foreign law or regulation; or (c) advertises or otherwise solicits funds or is a solicitation for goods or services. LawyersDirect reserves the right to terminate or delete such material from its servers. LawyersDirect will cooperate fully with any law enforcement officials or agencies in the investigation of any violation of these Terms of Use or of any applicable laws.

13. Compliance with Export Restrictions. You may not access, download, use or export the Site or the Materials in violation of United States export laws or regulations or in violation of any other applicable laws or regulations. You agree to comply with all export laws and restrictions and regulations of any United States or foreign agency or authority and to assume sole responsibility for obtaining licenses to export or re-export as may be required. You acknowledge and agree that the Materials are subject to the United States Export Administration Laws and Regulations and agree that none of the Materials or any direct product therefrom is being or will be acquired for, shipped, transferred or re-exported, directly or indirectly, to proscribed or embargoed countries or their nationals or used for any prohibited purpose.

14. Children. Minors are not eligible to use the Site and we ask that they do not submit any personal information to us.

15. Governing Law; Venue. By using this Site, you expressly agree that your rights and obligations shall be governed by and interpreted in accordance with the laws of the State of Ohio, excluding its choice of law rules. Any legal action or proceeding relating to your access to or use of the Site or Materials shall be instituted in a state or federal court in Ohio, and in the County of Franklin. You and LawyersDirect agree exclusively and irrevocably to submit to the jurisdiction of, and agree that venue is proper in, these courts in any such legal action or proceeding. These Terms of Use expressly exclude and disclaim the terms of the U.N. Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods, which shall not apply to any transaction conducted through or otherwise involving this Site.

17. Trademarks. LawyersDirect Network Inc., LawyersDirect, LawyersDirect Network, LawyersDirect Legal Plan, LawyersDirect System 2000, LawyersDirectNetwork.com, the LawyersDirect logo, all images and text, and all page headers, custom graphics and button icons are service marks, trademarks and/or trade dress of LawyersDirect. All other trademarks, product names and company names or logos cited herein are the property of their respective owners.

18. Acknowledgement. BY USING LAWYERSDIRECT’S SERVICES OR ACCESSING THE LAWYERSDIRECT SITE, YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU HAVE READ THESE TERMS OF USE AND AGREE TO BE BOUND BY THEM.

Full Disclaimer. LawyersDirect is not a law firm, and the employees of LawyersDirect are not acting as your attorney. LawyersDirect’s service is not a substitute for the advice of an attorney. LawyersDirect cannot provide legal advice. LawyersDirect is not an attorney and may not perform the legal services that an attorney performs.

By using LawyersDirect you agree to the following

No attorney-client privilege is created with LawyersDirect;
I have been informed of the services that LawyersDirect is performing and the cost of these services;
Neither the clerk of the County of Franklin, the Supreme Court Of The State Of Ohio, nor any other governmental entity or authority has evaluated or approved LawyersDirect’s knowledge or experience, or the quality of LawyersDirect’s services;
LawyersDirect is not a lawyer referal service;
I may obtain information about free or low-cost legal representation through a local bar association or legal aid foundation and I may also contact local law enforcement, a district attorney or a legal foundation if I believe that I have been a victim of fraud, the unauthorized practice of law or any other injury;
LawyersDirect is not permitted to engage in the practice of law. LawyersDirect is prohibited from providing any kind of advice, explanation, opinion, or recommendation to a consumer about possible legal rights, remedies, defenses, options, selection of forms or strategies;
If, prior to my transaction, I believe that LawyersDirect gave me any legal advice, opinion or recommendation about my legal rights, remedies, defenses, options, selection of forms or strategies, I will not proceed with this transaction and any purchase that I do make will be null and void;
LawyersDirect exists solely within the County of Franklin in the State of Ohio. I agree that regardless of where I reside or where my browser is physically located, my viewing and use of LawyersDirect occurs solely within the County of Franklin in the State of Ohio, and that all content and services shall be deemed to be served from, and performed wholly within, Franklin County, Ohio, as if I had physically traveled there to obtain the service. I agree that Ohio law shall govern any disputes arising from my use of this website, and that the courts of the County of Franklin, State of Ohio, shall have exclusive jurisdiction over any disputes.