Ben Crump Law PLLC (“BCL,” “we,” “us” or “our”) is committed to maintaining your privacy and informing you of our privacy practices. This privacy policy and agreement (this “Privacy Policy”) covers how we collect, use, and treat data and information, including Personal Information (as defined below), that we collect, receive, process, or store in connection with our business and business activities (the “Business Practices”), which include the legal and other services we offer in connection with such Business Practices (collectively, the “Services”) (the Business Practices and Services are collectively referred to as the “Business”).
1. Scope of this Privacy Policy.
1.1 Application of this Privacy Policy. This Privacy Policy applies to anyone providing us information including:
- Existing clients, prospective clients, and their agents or other authorized representatives (collectively, “Clients”), who have submitted consultation request forms or other related information to BCL by any means, including electronically or in person, in connection with the Business;
- Contractors, vendors, and other service providers, and local counsel to whom we refer matters and/or whom we oversee on behalf of Clients (collectively, “Service Providers”);
- Applicants to our scholarship programs, who have submitted applications or other related information to BCL by any means, including electronically or in person, in connection with the Business (collectively, “Scholarship Applicants”); and
- Visitors of our website located at www.bencrump.com (the “Website”) (collectively, “Site Visitors”).
We use the term “you” to refer to (i) Clients; (ii) Service Providers; (iii) Scholarship Applicants; and (iv) Site Visitors (as the context permits).
1.2 Client Engagements. If you are a Client and we agree to represent you, we will enter into an engagement letter with you. In the course of the engagement, you may provide us with a range of information, including certain sensitive information, such as your medical information. Our engagement letter and our attorney-client, ethical, and other obligations will control our treatment of that information.
1.3 Other Exclusions from this Privacy Policy. This Privacy Policy does not apply to our current or prospective employees providing us information with respect to their actual or potential employment with BCL. Moreover, if we provide you with links to other websites, then they are solely for your convenience and reference and we are not responsible for the privacy practices or content on, or accessed through, such links or websites.
2. Your Consent to this Privacy Policy
2.1 Your Consent If You are a Site Visitor. By accessing and using our Website as a Site Visitor, you are acknowledging that you have read and understood this Privacy Policy, and agree to be legally bound by it. If you do not agree with the terms of this Privacy Policy, please refrain from accessing or using our Website.
2.2 Your Consent If You are Not a Site Visitor. Except as provided in Section 2.3 (Consent by User Acting in a Representative Capacity), your consent to, and your affirmative agreement that you have read and agree to, this Privacy Policy shall be by providing us information in connection with our Business. For example, you may consent to this Privacy Policy by submitting information to us related to your case consultation with us or your application to our scholarship programs. In any case, by providing us information, including Personal Information, you are affirmatively agreeing that you have read and agree to this Privacy Policy, and to be legally bound by it.
2.3 Consent by User Acting in a Representative Capacity. If you are agreeing to our Privacy Policy on behalf of a company or other legal entity (“Your Organization“), then (i) you represent and warrant that you have authority to act on behalf of, and to bind Your Organization, and (ii) for all purposes in this Privacy Policy, the term “you” means Your Organization on whose behalf you are acting.
2.4 Right to Withdraw Consent. You have the right to withdraw your consent at any time, in accordance with Section 13 (Your Choices Regarding Your Personal Information; Opting Out).
3. The Information We Collect.
The information that we collect about you falls into certain categories as further described in this Section 3 (The Information We Collect). This information consists of the following:
3.1 Personal Information. We collect certain information that identifies you as an individual (collectively, “Personal Information“). The Personal Information we collect may include the following:
- Your name;
- Your address;
- Your email address;
- Your phone number;
- Your social security number;
- Your date of birth;
- Your financial account information;
- Your other transaction history;
- Your browsing history when logged into our Website;
- Your academic information (including school name and expected graduation year) and other information that you may submit to us in conjunction with your application to our scholarship programs;
- Photos, videos, or other materials of personal nature (such as written statements or testimonials) depicting you or otherwise relating to you;
- Device identifiers, such as cookies;
- Device information, such as hardware and software settings;
- Other characteristics of a user device, which, by themselves or taken in conjunction with other information, are sufficient to distinguish that user device over time from a population of other user devices;
- IP addresses and log information, such as your device’s name, the type and version of your web browser, and referrer addresses that can function to identify a user device; and
- Tracking information that we, or a third party, collects.
3.2 Online Activity Information. We also collect technical and device-related information through our Website and third-party analytics tools that we use (collectively, “Online Activity Information“). Sometimes Online Activity Information can be associated with your Personal Information, in which case we will treat it as Personal Information (as described in Section 3.4 (Treatment of Combined Information)). Otherwise we consider, and treat, Online Activity Information as Anonymous Information.
3.3 Anonymous Information. We also collect, process, and/or use information that does not identify you or your devices, including Personal Information that has been made anonymous by: (i) removing identifying fields and aggregating the information with other information so that individual subjects of the information cannot be re-identified, or (ii) anonymizing the information with techniques that remove or modify the identifying data so as to prevent re-identification of the anonymized information (collectively, “Anonymous Information“). Information that meets these criteria might include, for example, demographic information, statistical information (e.g., page views and hit counts), and general tracking information. We use Anonymous Information for our business operations, for example, to engage in marketing and other activities in a manner that protects our customers. Since Anonymous Information does not include Personal Information, it is outside the scope of this Privacy Policy.
3.4 Treatment of Combined Information. To enable us to better understand the characteristics of our users and/or to conduct the Business, we may link your Personal Information with Online Activity Information associated with you or other Anonymous Information. If we combine or associate Online Activity Information or other Anonymous Information with your Personal Information, then we will treat the resulting combination as Personal Information.
4. How We Collect this Information
We collect the above information through the following means and technologies:
4.1 Contacting BCL. You can contact us with questions or comments. In order to communicate with us, you must provide certain Personal Information. By communicating with us for these purposes, you may provide us with your email address and other Personal Information. In these instances, we use any information you provide to us for the purposes for which you submit the information.
4.2 Scholarship Programs. We may occasionally administer scholarship programs. In order for you to participate in a scholarship program, you will be required to agree to the terms and conditions that apply to such scholarship program, and to provide us with certain Personal Information. We use the Personal Information gathered from the application process solely for the purposes of administering the applicable scholarship program. For example, we will not share applicants’ Personal Information with any third party outside of the purposes of administering the scholarship program. Please note, however, as may be further set forth in the applicable scholarship terms and conditions, we reserve the right to publish the name, geographic region, school name, grade, and scholarship details of the winner in any manner as we see fit, including, but not limited to, on our Website, social media accounts, and press releases.
4.3 Questionnaires and Surveys. We may allow you to participate in surveys and questionnaires, which we may post on the Website or otherwise provide to you from time to time. You are free to choose whether you participate in a survey or questionnaire. We may ask that, in addition to providing your responses, you also provide Personal Information. In these instances, we use any information that you provide to us for the purposes for which you submit the information. We may also add your Personal Information to your customer profile, as well as for advertising and marketing purposes. Survey and questionnaire information may be used for the purposes of monitoring or improving our Business. As further set out in Section 13 (Your Choices Regarding Your Personal Information; Opting Out), please understand that you will not be allowed to “opt out” of formal notices related to our Business, such as the operation of the Website, and legal, and other related notices concerning your relationship with us.
4.4 Newsletters. You may choose to sign up to receive optional communications from us. In addition, if you have previously provided us with your email address, then we may choose to send news, bulletins, marketing materials, or other information to you. We will use Personal Information to determine which communications may interest you, and to send such communications. If we choose to undertake such communications, you will have the ability to opt out of receiving these communications as provided in Section 13 (Your Choices Regarding Your Personal Information; Opting Out).
4.5 Submitted Content. As further set out below, we may provide you with the ability to submit content to us for our internal use or to submit content to us for public consumption (collectively, “Submitted Content”). If you include any Personal Information relating to others in your Submitted Content, then you represent that you have full permission and authority to do so.
1.1.1 Submitted Content Provided to Us for Internal Use. We may provide you with the ability to submit Submitted Content to us (either directly or through a third-party service), and we may also provide content to you, in order for us to better provide Services. For example, we may allow you to provide us with feedback related to the Business. If you provide us with such Submitted Content, we will protect it in accordance with this Privacy Policy.
1.1.2 Submitted Content Provided to Us for Public Consumption. We may give you the ability through our Website or a third-party social media platform, to engage with us and others in public exchanges by providing Submitted Content. For example, we believe that your experiences with us can often act as the strongest promotion for our Services. To promote and illustrate our Services, we may wish to incorporate in our success stories or otherwise post on our Website or elsewhere, your endorsements or your other descriptions of experiences with us, as well as comments, feedback, and other information that you wish to share. Please understand that, if you include Personal Information in such Submitted Content, others will be able to read, collect, re-publish, and otherwise freely use such Personal Information. We are not responsible for Personal Information that you decide to include in such Submitted Content, and we will not take down, remove, or edit Submitted Content, except as required by applicable law.
1.2 Cookies. A cookie is a small amount of data, which often includes an anonymous unique identifier that is sent to your computer or mobile device from a website or a mobile application and stored on your hard drive. Cookies can be used to provide you with a tailored user experience and to make it easier for you to use a website or a mobile application upon future visits. We may include cookies on our Website, and use them for a variety of purposes, such as to recognize you when you return to our Website and to remember your preferences. You may set your browser or mobile device so that it does not accept cookies. Cookies may need to be enabled, however, if you wish to access certain personalized features of the Website.
1.3 IP Addresses; Logs. We may automatically receive and record information in our server logs from your browser or mobile device, including your IP address (the Internet address of your computer), your computer’s name, the type and version of your web browser or mobile device operating system, referrer addresses, and other generally-accepted log information. We may also record page views (hit counts) and other general statistical and tracking information, which will be aggregated with that of other users in order to understand how our Website is being used, and for security and monitoring purposes.
1.4 Tags. We may use so-called “pixel tags” – small graphic images (also known as “web beacons” or “single-pixel gifs”) – to tell us what parts of our Website have been visited or to measure the effectiveness of searches you perform on our Website. Pixel tags also enable us to send email messages in a format that you can read and they inform us whether emails have been opened. Pixel tags also help us ensure that our messages are of interest to you.
1.5 Click-Throughs. We may send email messages, which use a “click-through URL” linked to content related to our Business. When you click one of these URLs, you pass through our web server before arriving at the destination web page. We may track this click-through data to help determine interest in particular topics and to measure the effectiveness of our customer communications.
1.6 Configuration. In order to determine whether your computer or mobile device is supported by our system, we may collect certain Anonymous Information. This information includes, but may not be limited to, your operating system and browser, the presence of any software that our Website may require to operate with your computer or mobile device, or other third-party software on your computer or mobile device.
1.7 Other Uses. In addition to the uses specifically identified in this Section 4 (How We Collect this Information), there may be instances where you request information or other Services from us that are not described in this Privacy Policy. In that instance, we will use Personal Information that you submit in order to provide such information or Services to you.
1.8 Provision of Personal Information Offline. We may ask you to provide us with Personal Information when you visit our office in person, speak with us on the phone, or otherwise interact with us offline (“Offline Personal Information”). If you provide Offline Personal Information to us, we will strive to provide you with either verbal and/or written notice of this Privacy Policy so that you can review it. For the avoidance of doubt, we treat any Offline Personal Information that you provide to us as Personal Information under this Privacy Policy.
2. How We Use The Information We Collect
We use the information that we collect or process, including Personal Information, Online Activity Information, and Anonymous Information, as permitted under applicable law and consistent with the terms of this Privacy Policy. More specifically, we use the information we collect for the following purposes:
- To provide you with the Services you request and to communicate with you regarding our Services;
- To use, and to allow you to provide us with, Submitted Content for purposes set out in Section 4.5 (Submitted Content);
- To administer our scholarship programs;
- To respond to your inquiries;
- To customize and enhance your use of our Website, such as by personalizing your experience with us;
- To provide communications that might interest you, including marketing messages and to inform you of services that we think would be appealing to you, whether the services are provided by us or by others, and whether the services are available via BCL or a third party;
- To perform analytics, quality control, market research, and to determine the effectiveness of our Services and promotional campaigns, to improve our current Services, and Website, and develop new services;
- To perform internal administration, auditing, operation, and troubleshooting; and
- To disclose the information to third parties as permitted in Section 7 (How We Disclose this Information) below.
In addition to the uses specifically identified above, there may be instances where you request information and Services from us that are not described in this Privacy Policy. In our discretion, we can use information that you submit in order to provide such information and Services.
3. Other Essential or Internal Uses of Information
We may also use the information that we collect as we believe to be necessary or appropriate for certain essential purposes, including:
- To comply with applicable law and legal process;
- To respond to requests from public and government authorities, including public and government authorities;
- To detect, prevent, or investigate potential security incidents or fraud;
- To facilitate the functionality of our Website;
- To enforce our terms and conditions;
- To protect our operations or those of our affiliates;
- To protect our rights, privacy, safety or property, security and/or that of our affiliates, you or others; and
- To allow us to pursue available remedies or limit the damages that we may sustain.
4. How We Disclose this Information
We value your privacy, and we disclose the information we collect only in the manner set out below.
4.1 Our Service Providers. We engage Service Providers to perform functions on our behalf, and these functions may include providing legal services as our local counsel, maintaining the Website, collecting information, responding to and sending email or other messages, data analysis, and other functions useful to our Business. In this capacity, we may provide Service Providers with Personal Information, Online Activity Information, and Anonymous Information as applicable. We will seek to only provide Service Providers with information so that they can perform their required functions.
4.2 Questions of Harm; Legal Process. We will reveal your Personal Information to the extent we reasonably believe that we are required to do so by applicable law.
4.3 Corporate Transactions. We shall be entitled to transfer information that we collect (including Personal Information) to a third party in connection with or in contemplation of a reorganization, merger, sale, joint venture, assignment, transfer, or other disposition (including a disposition in connection with a bankruptcy or similar proceedings) of all or substantially all assets or stock of the business unit or division responsible for the information under this Privacy Policy; provided the acquiring third party has agreed to safeguard your Personal Information with protections that are compatible with those set out in this Privacy Policy.
4.4 Our Affiliates. We may choose to rely on and share the information we collect with our affiliates. By “affiliate” we mean an entity that is closely related to us, such as an entity that controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with, Ben Crump Law PLLC. Our affiliates will be bound by the terms of this Privacy Policy.
5. Advertising.
We participate in advertising to keep the public apprised on our Services and associated content. As further set out below, we may use the information you shared with us to provide you with advertising or promotions based on your interaction with our Business.
5.1 Our Use of Anonymous Data for Advertising. Like many companies, we utilize targeted banners and ads and may display these to you when you are on other websites and mobile applications. We do this using a variety of digital marketing networks and ad exchanges in addition to using a range of advertising technologies like web beacons, pixels, ad tags, cookies, and mobile identifiers, as well as specific services offered by some sites and social networks. The banners and ads that you may see displayed will be based on information we hold about you, such as your previous use of our Website. This may include your search history on our Website, the content you read on our Website, or banners or ads you have previously clicked.
5.2 Advertisers Use of Anonymous Data for Advertising. Additionally, we may include the use of ad banner partners for the serving and/or targeting of ads, promotions, and other marketing messages. These ads may be provided, in some cases, by a third-party ad service provider or advertiser (collectively, “Advertisers”). Additionally, Advertisers may place or utilize their own cookies on your browser and may use Anonymous Information about your visit to our Website. If an Advertiser requests that you provide Personal Information to it or otherwise accept its cookie on your browser, please be aware that the Advertiser’s use and collection of this information and use of any cookies will be governed by its privacy policy or other relevant agreement, and not our Privacy Policy. We recommend that you review the Advertiser’s privacy policy before providing Personal Information. You may choose not to receive targeted advertising from certain ad networks, data exchanges, marketing analytics, and other service providers as indicated at: https://optout.aboutads.info.
6. Information to Third Parties
Our Website includes links to third party websites offering services that augment those services offered by us. Those third parties determine their own data handling practices – any information that you submit to third parties are not governed by this Privacy Policy.
7. How We Safeguard the Information We Collect
We recognize the sensitivity of our users’ Personal Information and we have put in place security systems designed to prevent unauthorized access to or disclosure of this information. Our security systems include physical, technical, and administrative information security controls, and we take commercially reasonable steps to secure and safeguard such Personal Information in accordance with applicable law.
8. Our Retention of Data
We retain Personal Information for the period of time necessary to fulfill the purposes for which we obtained the Personal Information and consistent with applicable law. We use the following criteria to set our retention periods: (i) the duration of our relationship with you; (ii) the existence of a legal obligation as to the retention period; and (iii) the advisability of retaining the information in light of our legal position (for example, in light of applicable statutes of limitations, litigation, or regulatory investigations).
9. Accuracy and Minimization of Data
We take reasonable steps (i) to maintain the accuracy of the Personal Information we process, and (ii) to limit the Personal Information that we process to that which is reasonably necessary for the purposes for which we obtained the information.
10. Your Choices Regarding Your Personal Information; Opting Out
10.1 Unsubscribing to Marketing Communications. If you no longer wish to receive bulletins, updates, or other marketing-related materials from us, you can opt out of this Service by either (i) following the “unsubscribe” instructions located near the bottom of each email message, or (ii) contacting us as provided in Section 19 (Contact Us).
10.2 Discretionary Account Information. To allow appropriate control over Personal Information, you can view, change, or update discretionary information that you have previously submitted either by contacting us as provided in Section 19 (Contact Us) below.
10.3 Access, Deletion, and Do-Not-Sell Requests. BCL IS CURRENTLY IMPLEMENTING INTERNAL CHANGES TO FULFILL REQUESTS SUBMITTED UNDER THIS SECTION 13.3 (ACCESS, DELETION, AND DO-NOT-SELL REQUESTS). UNTIL SUCH CHANGES ARE COMPLETED, BCL MAY NOT BE ABLE TO FULFILL CERTAIN REQUESTS. BCL WILL NOTIFY THOSE MAKING A REQUEST IF SUCH REQUEST IS IMPACTED BY ONGOING INTERNAL CHANGES.
We provide the following additional rights with respect to your Personal Information:
10.3.1 Copy of Personal Information. You may request a copy of the following: (i) the categories of Personal Information we collected about you; (ii) the categories of sources from which the Personal Information is collected; (iii) the business or commercial purpose for collecting or selling (if applicable) the Personal Information; (iv) the categories of third parties with whom we share Personal Information; and (v) the specific pieces of Personal Information we have collected about you.
10.3.2 Deletion of Personal Information. You may request that we delete your Personal Information. Note that deletion requests are subject to a number of limitations, for example, we may keep Personal Information as permitted by law, such as for tax or other record keeping purposes, to maintain an active account, to process transactions and facilitate customer requests, and for other internal business purposes consistent with the terms under which it was collected.
10.3.3 Do-Not-Sell Requests. You may request that we do not share your Personal Information with third parties to be used for purposes not described in this Privacy Policy. The California Consumer Privacy Act refers to this as a “Do Not Sell” request. BCL only seeks to share Personal Information with service providers and others described above for purposes identified in this Privacy Policy. Please note, however, that Online Activity Information or Anonymous Information collected by service providers providing pixels or other third party technologies on our Website could potentially be used by those service providers for their own purposes, some of whom may be able to associate such information with you based on other information they have collected independently (not from BCL). We will endeavor to block such sharing upon request.
10.3.4 Submission of Requests. We are in the process of implementing a web-based form for purposes of submitting the requests described above. In the interim, you can submit any of these requests by contacting us at 1-800-715-1766 or by visiting our office. You may authorize another person (your “Agent“) to submit a request on your behalf the same way. Shortly after you (or your Agent) submit a request, we will contact you (usually via email) with instructions on how to verify the submitted request before we fulfill it. Please be advised that these requests are unrelated to your ability to opt-out of marketing communications, which can be done as provided in Section 13.1 (Unsubscribing to Marketing Communications) above.
10.3.5 Response to Requests. Please be advised that BCL will fulfill these requests in its reasonable discretion and in a manner consistent with any applicable law. Likewise, we will aim to complete such requests as soon as reasonably practicable and in a manner consistent with any applicable law. If you otherwise have concerns or objections with our processing of your Personal Information, please contact us as provided in Section 19 (Contact Us).
10.4 Anonymous Information. We will not delete Anonymous Information from our database, and nothing in this Privacy Policy restricts our use of Anonymous Information.
11. Advisory Regarding Participation by Children and Teens
Under U.S. Federal Law (as reflected in the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act), WE DO NOT COLLECT OR STORE ANY PERSONAL INFORMATION FROM INDIVIDUALS THAT WE KNOW ARE UNDER THE AGE OF 13. If you wish further information concerning privacy policies in general, and concerning online social networking and safety, you should visit the following website: https://www.ftc.gov/privacy/index.html.
12. Relationship to Terms of Use
This Privacy Policy must be read in conjunction with our Terms of Use, and the provisions of our Terms of Use are incorporated herein. To the extent the Terms of Use conflict with the terms of this Privacy Policy, the terms of this Privacy Policy will control.
13. Notice of Privacy Rights to California Residents
The following provisions of this Section 16 (Notice of Privacy Rights to California Residents) apply if you are a California resident.
13.1 Shine the Light Law. California law requires certain businesses to respond to requests from California users who ask about business practices related to disclosing Personal Information to third parties for direct marketing purposes. The California “Shine the Light” law further requires us to allow California residents to opt out of certain disclosures of Personal Information to third parties for their direct marketing purposes.
13.2 California Consumer Privacy Act. BCL makes the following disclosures regarding the California Consumer Privacy Act:
13.2.1 No Financial Incentives. BCL does not provide a financial incentive or a price or service difference to individuals in exchange for the retention or sale of their Personal Information. We may send offers to those individuals subscribing to our marketing communications and, unless an individual has opted out of such communications, the individual will continue to receive such communications irrespective of whether a disclosure, deletion, or “Do Not Sell” request has been submitted. BCL does not offer financial incentives to deter consumers from making such requests. BCL will not discriminate against any consumer for exercising their privacy rights, including those provided by applicable law.
13.2.2 Consumer Reporting. BCL will endeavor to report consumer request metrics when they become available.
13.2.3 Questions. If you have any questions about our privacy practices, including in connection with the California Consumer Privacy Act, please contact us as directed in Section 19 (Contact Us).
14. Complaints
If you have a suggestions on how we can improve our Services or complaints you would like us to address, please contact us at the address set out in Section 19 (Contact Us). If you are a California resident, you may report complaints to the Complaint Assistance Unit of the Division of Consumer Services of the California Department of Consumer Affairs. Other states may provide similar avenues for lodging complaints. Please check with your state’s consumer protection authority.
15. Changes to this Privacy Policy
From time to time, we may change this Privacy Policy for our business purposes and to comply with changes in applicable law. In the event of any substantive or material changes, we will communicate these changes to you by posting the updated Privacy Policy on the Website and/or notifying you of the change via the Website, email, or other methods. Your continued use following such notice constitutes your agreement to follow and be bound by the updated Privacy Policy. If you do not agree with any changes to our Privacy Policy, please contact us using the information set forth in Section 19 (Contact Us).
16. Contact Us
If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or your dealings with us, please contact us at 1-312-488-2000.
17. Effective Date
The effective date of this Privacy Policy is May 15. 2020.
Website Terms of Use
Our website available at bencrump.com (the “Website“) is provided to you by Ben Crump Law PLLC (“BCL,” “we,” “us” or “our“).
To assist you in using our Website, and to explain the relationship arising from your use of our Website and the information and services offered through it (collectively, “Site Services“), we have created (i) these Terms of Use (the “Terms of Use” or “Terms“), and (ii) a Privacy Policy. Our Privacy Policy explains how we treat certain information that we have about you, including Personal Information (as defined in the Privacy Policy), and our Terms govern your use of our Website and participation in our Site Services.
PLEASE READ THIS DOCUMENT CAREFULLY BEFORE YOU USE OUR WEBSITE. BY USING THE WEBSITE, YOU AGREE TO BE BOUND BY THESE TERMS. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE TO BE BOUND BY THESE TERMS, PLEASE DO NOT USE OUR WEBSITE.
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- Scope of these Terms. Our Terms apply to any visitor to the Website (collectively, “you“), including persons identified in Section 1.1 (Application of this Privacy Policy) of our Privacy Policy. These Terms only apply to your use of the Website and receipt of Site Services through the Website.
- Your Agreement. These Terms govern your use of the Website. Please read these Terms carefully as they impose legal obligations on you and us. By accessing and using our Website, you acknowledge and agree to be legally bound by these Terms. In addition, for certain activities on the Website, we may further confirm your consent by asking you to click an “I accept” or similar button. If you do not agree with these Terms, please refrain from using our Website.
- Grant of Rights to Users. Based on your agreement to comply with these Terms, we grant you the right to access and use all publicly available areas of our Website, Website Content (as defined below), and Site Services in order to: (i) learn more about BCL and our services; (ii) provide information to us through our Website; (iii) download and print pages on our Website; and (iv) access Site Services available through the Website (collectively, the “General Permitted Purposes“). We strictly prohibit use of the Website, Website Content, and Site Services for any purpose other than the General Permitted Purposes.
- BCL Ownership; Reservation of Rights. All information, articles, resources, software, artwork, trademarks, text, video, audio, pictures, logos, and other content on the Website or embodied in our Site Services, including all associated intellectual property rights (collectively, the “Website Content“), are the property of BCL and its licensors, are protected by U.S. and international copyright and other intellectual property laws, or are used under principles of fair use. BCL and its licensors retain all rights with respect to the Website, Website Content, and Site Services except those expressly granted to you in these Terms. You agree not to duplicate, publish, display, distribute, modify, or create derivative works from the Website Content or Site Services unless specifically authorized in writing to do so by BCL. The term “Website Content” expressly excludes Submitted Content.
- Submitted Content. The term “Submitted Content” means information that you submit to our Website or otherwise make available to us, including, but not limited to: (i) feedback, comments, and suggestions you provide to us; (ii) questions or comments that you provide to us; (iii) images and audiovisual files that you provide to us; (iv) material you may submit to us in connection with your application to our scholarship programs; and (v) any other information or materials you provide to us or post directly or indirectly on our Website.+
Grant of Rights in Submitted Content. By providing Submitted Content, and subject to your rights in Personal Information set out in our Privacy Policy, you authorize us to copy, modify, display, distribute, perform, use, and otherwise exercise applicable rights in the Submitted Content without compensation to you and for so long as we deem warranted (collectively, the “Use Rights“). In addition, you authorize us to permit third parties to exercise these Use Rights as necessary. By way of example, the Use Rights include the right for us to publish Submitted Content on our Website in whole or in part, and whether cropped, adopted, altered, or otherwise manipulated, for as long as we choose.
Requisite Permission for Providing Submitted Content. By providing Submitted Content, you represent and warrant that you own such Submitted Content (including any copyright and other intellectual property rights therein), or that you have obtained sufficient authority and right in and to the Submitted Content in order to provide the Use Rights.
Submitted Content Containing Personal Information. If you provide Submitted Content to the Website that includes Personal Information (as this term is defined in our Privacy Policy), we will treat such Submitted Content in accordance with our Privacy Policy.
Right to Decline Submitted Content. We expressly reserve the right to refuse to use (or to disable or remove) Submitted Content for any reason, including, but not limited to, if we conclude, in our sole discretion, that the Submitted Content violates these Terms or our Privacy Policy, or is incompatible with the purposes of our Website or operations.
6. Code of Conduct; Revocation or Suspension of Use Privileges. By using our Website, you agree to comply with these Terms, and to follow our code of conduct (the “Code of Conduct“), which is set out below. Under this Code of Conduct, you shall not:
A. Use the Website or Site Services for purposes that are unlawful, obscene, harmful, hateful, invasive of the privacy of others, objectionable, or otherwise prohibited by these Terms.
B. Use the Website in a manner that could disable, overburden, or impair the Website or Site Services or interfere with another party’s use and enjoyment of the Website and Site Services, such as through sending “spam.”
C. Seek to obtain access to any Site Services, Website Content, materials, accounts, or information through hacking, data harvesting, data mining, or through other means we have not intentionally made available to you through the Website or Site Services.
D. Infringe BCL’s or any third party’s copyright, patent, trademark, trade secret, or other proprietary rights or rights of publicity or privacy.
We reserve the right at any time to terminate or suspend your use of some or all of the Website if you engage in activities that we conclude, in our sole discretion, breach our Code of Conduct or otherwise violate these Terms or our Privacy Policy.
7. Links to Third Party Websites. Our Website may contain links or references to other websites. We have no control over these other sites or their content and do not assume responsibility or liability for any content, opinions, or material available on them. We do not endorse the content of any third-party site, nor do we warrant that a third-party site will be free of computer viruses or other harmful code that can impact your computer or other web-access device. If you link to any third-party site through the Website, Website Content, or Site Services, please be aware that you are doing so at your own risk. We encourage you to review any third-party website’s terms of use and privacy policy as those, and not our Terms and Privacy Policy, are applicable to your use of their site and any information that they collect.
8. Warranty Disclaimer. SUBJECT TO SECTION 21 (RELATIONSHIP TO ENGAGEMENT LETTER), BCL DOES NOT PROMISE THAT THE WEBSITE OR SITE SERVICES WILL BE ERROR-FREE, UNINTERRUPTED, OR WITHOUT INACCURACIES. THE WEBSITE, WEBSITE CONTENT, AND SITE SERVICES ARE DELIVERED ON AN “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS. WHEN YOU ACCESS THE WEBSITE OR WEBSITE CONTENT, OR USE THE SITE SERVICES, YOU DO SO AT YOUR OWN RISK. BCL DOES NOT WARRANT OR REPRESENT THAT MATERIALS YOU DOWNLOAD FROM THE WEBSITE WILL BE FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL FEATURES OR INACCURACIES.
SUBJECT TO SECTION 21 (RELATIONSHIP TO ENGAGEMENT LETTER), BCL DISCLAIMS: (i) ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT; (ii) ANY RESPONSIBILITY OR LIABILITY FOR THE ACCURACY, CONTENT, COMPLETENESS, OR LEGALITY OF INFORMATION AVAILABLE THROUGH THE WEBSITE OR SITE SERVICES; AND (iii) ANY RESPONSIBILITY OR LIABILITY FOR HARM RESULTING FROM DOWNLOADING OR ACCESSING INFORMATION THROUGH THE WEBSITE, INCLUDING HARM CAUSED BY VIRUSES OR SIMILAR DESTRUCTIVE FEATURES. YOU EXPRESSLY AGREE THAT USE OF THE WEBSITE, SITE SERVICES, AND WEBSITE CONTENT IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK.
9. Limitation of Liability. SUBJECT TO SECTION 21 (RELATIONSHIP TO ENGAGEMENT LETTER), UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO BREACH OF CONTRACT, TORT, OR NEGLIGENCE, WILL BCL BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, PUNITIVE, EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING LOST PROFITS) THAT ARISE OUT OF, OR ARE RELATED TO, YOUR USE OF THE WEBSITE, WEBSITE CONTENT, OR WEBSITE SITE SERVICES. IN NO EVENT SHALL BCL’S AGGREGATE LIABILITY TO YOU FOR ANY LOSS, DAMAGE, OR CLAIM RELATED TO OR ARISING OUT OF THE WEBSITE, WEBSITE CONTENT, OR SITE SERVICES RECEIVED FROM BCL EXCEED U.S. $100.00.
10. Indemnity. You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold BCL and its subsidiaries, affiliates, officers, directors, agents, and employees harmless from any liability to third parties, including reasonable attorneys’ fees, arising from or related to your breach of these Terms or a claim that Submitted Content or other material that you provide to us violates rights held by a third party.
11. Contact for Alleged Copyright Infringement. We respect the intellectual property rights of others and require that our users do the same. If you believe that any content available on our Website or any other activity taking place on the Website constitutes infringement of a work protected by copyright law, please contact us using the information set out in Section 19 (Contact Us).
12. Monitoring Website Use. You agree that we have the right and discretion to monitor any activity and content associated with our Website, Website Content, and Site Services. We may investigate any reported violation of these Terms or complaints relating to the Website, Website Content, and Site Services, and may take any action that we believe is appropriate including, but not limited to, removing materials from the Website and terminating/suspending your access to the Website.
13. Modifications to these Terms. If we modify these Terms, then such modifications shall take effect proactively, upon your subsequent access to the Website. You may print out a copy of these Terms for your records.
14. Assignment. These Terms shall not be assignable by you, either in whole or in part. We reserve the right to assign the rights and obligations under these Terms for any reason and in our sole discretion.
15. General. These Terms shall be governed in all respects by the laws of the State of Illinois, without giving effect to its conflicts of law provisions. Both parties submit to the personal jurisdiction of and venue in, the state and federal courts sitting in the judicial district that includes Chicago, Illinois. The parties further agree that any cause of action arising under these Terms shall exclusively be brought in such courts. If any provision of these Terms is held to be invalid or unenforceable, such provision shall be struck and the remaining provisions shall be enforced. Headings are for reference purposes only and in no way define, limit, construe, or describe the scope or extent of such section. Our failure to act with respect to a breach by you or others does not waive our right to act with respect to subsequent or similar breaches.
16. Claims Against Other Users. You agree that in the event that you have any right, claim, or action against visitors or other users of our Website arising out of that person’s use of the Website, then you will pursue such right, claim, or action independently of and without recourse to us.
17. Translations. These Terms may be translated into languages other than English (collectively, “Translations“). Any communications sent by us to you shall be sent in English. Dispute resolution procedures arising out of either these Terms or the Translations shall be conducted in English, and the English version of these Terms shall control over the Translations.
18. Survival. In addition to any right or obligation that by its nature or intent is intended to survive any termination or expiration of these Terms, the following provisions shall survive the termination or expiration of these Terms and shall apply indefinitely: (i) Section 4 (BCL Ownership; Reservation of Rights); (ii) Section 5 (Submitted Content); (iii) Section 8 (Warranty Disclaimer); (iv) Section 9 (Limitation of Liability); (v) Section 10 (Indemnity); (vi) Section 15 (General); (vii) Section 18 (Survival); and (viii) Section 21 (Relationship to Engagement Letter).
19. Contact Us. We welcome your feedback or suggestions. If you would like to contact us, please call us at 1-312-488-2000 during our business hours.
20. Additional Terms. Certain portions of the Website and Site Services may be subject to additional or different terms and conditions. We will notify you if those portions of the Website or Site Services are subject to terms and conditions that differ from these Terms, and you will have the opportunity to decline to participate in those portions of the Website or applicable Site Services if you do not agree with the differing terms and conditions.
21. Relationship to Engagement Letter. If you have executed an engagement letter with us, then these Terms do not supersede the engagement letter. In the event of a conflict or inconsistency between the terms and conditions of the engagement letter and these Terms, the terms and conditions of the engagement letter shall control.
22. Complete Agreement. Subject to Section 21 (Relationship to Engagement Letter), these Terms of Use must be read in conjunction with our Privacy Policy and the provisions of our Privacy Policy are incorporated herein. To the extent that the Terms of Use conflict with the Privacy Policy, the terms of the Privacy Policy shall control. Please note that, except as expressly stated otherwise, these Terms of Use only apply to your use of our Website. Subject to Section 21 (Relationship to Engagement Letter), these Terms and the Privacy Policy set forth the entire understanding and agreement between you and us with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersede any prior or contemporaneous understanding, whether written or oral.
23. Effective Date. The effective date of these Terms of Use is May 15, 2020.