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Terms of Use

Hats & Ladders Terms of Use (November 19, 2021)

These Terms of Use went into effect on the above date. 

PLEASE READ THESE TERMS OF USE CAREFULLY. These Terms of Use (“Agreement”) govern your use of our Hats & Ladders website, software, products, and/or services (collectively, “Products”) and any information or content appearing on or through the Products (collectively referred to as “Content”), including Content created by Hats & Ladders (“H&L Content”). By accessing or using the Products, you agree to the terms of this Agreement. If you have entered into another agreement with Hats & Ladders concerning specific Products, then the terms of that agreement controls where it conflicts with these terms. Hats & Ladders reserves the right, at any time, to modify, alter, update or remove portions of this Agreement.

Hats & Ladders’ current Privacy Policy (located at https://www.hatsandladders.com/privacy-policy/) is incorporated herein by reference and made part of this Agreement. You understand that through your use of the Products and Content, you consent to the collection and use (as set forth in this Agreement, the Privacy Policy and any agreement entered into by your institution relating to the Product) of your information for hosting, processing and use by Hats & Ladders.

Please check this Agreement as well as our Privacy Policy from time to time as your continued use of the Products signifies your acceptance of any changed items.

1. ACCESS AND ACCOUNT SECURITY

We reserve the right to alter or cease to provide the Products in our sole discretion without notice. We will not be liable if for any reason all or any part of the Products is unavailable at any time or for any period. From time to time, we may restrict access to some or all of the Products to users, including registered users.

To access some of the Products, you may be asked to provide certain registration details or other information. It is a condition of your use of the Products that all the information you provide is correct, current, and complete.

If you choose, or are provided with, a user name, password, or any other piece of information as part of our security procedures, you must treat such information as confidential, and you must not disclose it to any other person or entity. You also acknowledge that your account is personal to you and agree not to provide any other person with access to Products or portions of them using your user name, password, or other security information. You agree to notify us immediately of any unauthorized access to or use of your user name or password or any other breach of security (security@hatsandladders.com). You should use particular caution when accessing your account from a public or shared computer so that others are not able to view or record your password or other personal information.

We have the right to disable any user name, password, or other identifier, whether chosen by you or provided by us, at any time if, in our opinion, you have violated any provision of these Terms of Use.

2. YOUR LICENSE TO USE OUR PRODUCTS AND H&L CONTENT.

Subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement and any agreement entered into by your institution relating to the Products, Hats & Ladders grants you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, non-sublicensable license to access and use the Products and H&L Content (but only those Products and H&L Content which you have been given express permission to access and use).

3. ACCEPTABLE USE POLICY

You may use the Products only for lawful purposes and in accordance with these Terms of Use. You agree not to use the Products:

  • In any way that violates any applicable federal, state, local, or international law or regulation (including, without limitation, any laws regarding the export of data or software to and from the US or other countries).
  • For the purpose of exploiting, harming, or attempting to exploit or harm minors in any way by exposing them to inappropriate content, asking for personally identifiable information, or otherwise.
  • To send, knowingly receive, upload, download, use, or re-use any material that does not comply with the Content Standards set out in these Terms of Use.
  • To transmit, or procure the sending of, any advertising or promotional material, including any “junk mail,” “chain letter,” “spam,” or any other similar solicitation.
  • To impersonate or attempt to impersonate Hats & Ladders or its employees, another user, or any other person or entity (including, without limitation, by using email addresses or screen names associated with any of the foregoing).
  • To engage in any other conduct that restricts or inhibits anyone’s use or enjoyment of the Products, or which, as determined by us, may harm Hats & Ladders or users of the Products, or expose them to liability.

Additionally, you agree not to:

  • Use the Products in any manner that could disable, overburden, damage, or impair the site or interfere with any other party’s use of the Products.
  • Use any robot, spider, or other automatic device, process, or means to access the Products for any purpose, including monitoring or copying any of the material on the Products.
  • Use any manual process to monitor or copy any of the material on the Products, or for any other purpose not expressly authorized in these Terms of Use, without our prior written consent.
  • Use any device, software, or routine that interferes with the proper working of the Products.
  • Introduce any viruses, Trojan horses, worms, logic bombs, or other material that is malicious or technologically harmful.
  • Attempt to gain unauthorized access to, interfere with, damage, or disrupt any parts of the Products, the servers on which the Products are stored, or any server, computer, or database connected to the Products.
  • Attack the Products via a denial-of-service attack or a distributed denial-of-service attack.
  • Otherwise attempt to interfere with the proper working of the Products.

4. USER CONTRIBUTIONS

Some Products may contain interactive features (the “Interactive Services”) that allow users to post, submit, publish, display, or transmit to other users or other persons (“post”) content or materials (collectively, “User Contributions”) on or through the Products.

All User Contributions must comply with the Content Standards set out in these Terms of Use.

By providing any User Contribution using the Products, you grant us and our service providers, and our licensees, successors, and assigns the right to use, reproduce, modify, perform, display, distribute, and otherwise disclose to third parties any such material to provide the Products, consistent with our Privacy Policy.

You represent and warrant that:

  • You own or control all rights in and to the User Contributions and have the right to grant the license granted above.
  • All of your User Contributions do and will comply with these Terms of Use.

You understand and acknowledge that you are responsible for any User Contributions you submit or contribute, and you, not Hats & Ladders, have full responsibility for such content, including its legality, reliability, accuracy, and appropriateness.

We are not responsible or liable to any third party for the content or accuracy of any User Contributions posted by you or any other user of the Products. We do not undertake to review all material before it is posted using the Products, and cannot ensure prompt removal of objectionable material after it has been posted. Accordingly, we assume no liability for any action or inaction regarding transmissions, communications, or content provided by any user or third party.

5. CONTENT STANDARDS

These content standards apply to any and all User Contributions and use of Interactive Services. User Contributions must in their entirety comply with all applicable federal, state, local, and international laws and regulations. Without limiting the foregoing, User Contributions must not:

  • Contain any material that is defamatory, obscene, indecent, abusive, offensive, harassing, violent, hateful, inflammatory, or otherwise objectionable.
  • Promote sexually explicit or pornographic material, violence, or discrimination based on race, sex, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation, or age.
  • Infringe any patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright, or other intellectual property or other rights of any other person.
  • Violate the legal rights (including the rights of publicity and privacy) of others or contain any material that could give rise to any civil or criminal liability under applicable laws or regulations or that otherwise may be in conflict with these Terms of Use and our Privacy Policy.
  • Be likely to deceive any person.
  • Promote any illegal activity, or advocate, promote, or assist any unlawful act.
  • Cause annoyance, inconvenience, or needless anxiety, or be likely to upset, embarrass, alarm, or annoy any other person.
  • Impersonate any person, or misrepresent your identity or affiliation with any person or organization.
  • Involve commercial activities or sales, such as contests, sweepstakes, and other sales promotions, barter, or advertising.
  • Give the impression that they emanate from or are endorsed by us or any other person or entity, if this is not the case.

6. COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT

If you believe that any User Contributions violate your copyright, please see our Copyright Policy for instructions on sending us a notice of copyright infringement. It is the policy of the Company to terminate the user accounts of repeat infringers. 

7. HATS & LADDERS’ RIGHTS.

All right, title, and interest in and to the Products and H&L Content, and all underlying ideas, concepts, data, written content, procedures, processes, algorithms, principles, know-how, methods of operation, images, source code, and specifications related thereto, together with any related updates, enhancements, modifications, improvements or derivative works, in each case including all copyrights, trade names, trademarks and other intellectual property rights therein (collectively, the “Hats & Ladders IP”), is, and shall remain the sole and exclusive property of Hats & Ladders. Certain Hats & Ladders IP is protected by United States copyright laws (and other laws relating to intellectual property). The Products and H&L Content are licensed, not sold, to you hereunder and, except for the express limited license rights granted to you in accordance with the terms of this Agreement, no right, title or interest in or to the Hats & Ladders IP is granted or otherwise transferred by Hats & Ladders in connection with this Agreement. Hats & Ladders shall have, and you hereby grant to Hats & Ladders, a royalty-free, perpetual, worldwide, non-exclusive, irrevocable right to use or incorporate into the Products and/or any specifications or proposals relating to the Products, without restriction or obligation, any suggestions, enhancements, recommendations or other feedback provided by you with respect to the Products.

8. TERMINATION.

Hats & Ladders may suspend or terminate your account or cease providing you with access to our Products and H&L Content, without notice, for any conduct that Hats & Ladders, in its sole discretion, believes is in violation of any applicable law or the terms of this Agreement. The sections titled “User Contributions,” “Hats & Ladders’ Rights,” “Termination,” “Indemnification”, “Disclaimer of Warranties & Limitation of Liability,” and “Miscellaneous” shall survive any termination of this Agreement.

9. INDEMNIFICATION.

You agree to indemnify, defend and hold harmless Hats & Ladders and Hats & Ladders’ officers, directors, employees, agents, and representatives, from and against any and all claims, damages, expenses, judgments, fines, and amounts paid in settlement in connection with any proceeding arising from your breach of this Agreement or your use of the Products (except for any gross negligence on the part of Hats & Ladders).

10. DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES & LIMITATION OF LIABILITY.

YOU EXPRESSLY UNDERSTAND AND AGREE THAT TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, YOUR USE OF OUR PRODUCTS IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK, AND OUR PRODUCTS ARE PROVIDED “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” AND WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY IMPLIED WARRANTY OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE, SECURITY, QUALITY, PRODUCTIVENESS OR CAPACITY, OR THAT THE OPERATION OF THE SOFTWARE INCLUDED WITHIN THE PRODUCTS WILL BE ERROR FREE. ALL OTHER WARRANTIES RELATING TO THE PRODUCTS OR THIS AGREEMENT ARE HEREBY EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMED BY HATS & LADDERS. HATS & LADDERS MAKES NO WARRANTY OR REPRESENTATION THAT (A) THE PRODUCTS WILL MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS; (B) YOUR USE OF THE PRODUCTS WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, TIMELY, SECURE OR ERROR-FREE OR (C) ANY ERRORS IN THE PRODUCTS WILL BE CORRECTED.

In connection with using our Products, we may provide links to third party websites and apps as a convenience to you, including the websites of third party providers that offer activities in connection with our Products or that create Content that may be accessed through our Products (“Providers”). You may purchase other products and/or services from and/or participate in promotions of Providers or other third parties.  WE ARE NOT AFFILIATED WITH ANY PROVIDERS AND WE ARE NOT ACTING AS THEIR AGENT OR REPRESENTATIVE. WE MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS AS TO ANY THIRD PARTIES, THEIR WEBSITES, THEIR APPS, PRODUCTS, SERVICES, AND/OR PROMOTIONS, AND IN NO EVENT WILL HATS & LADDERS HAVE ANY LIABILITY WHATSOEVER IN CONNECTION THEREWITH.

If you chose to register for and/or participate in an activity that you accessed through Hats & Ladders, you are dealing directly with the Provider responsible for the activity, not with Hats & Ladders. Everything related to the Provider and the activity is solely between you and that Provider. Hats & Ladders is not a party to such interactions, even if Hats & Ladders has received compensation related to such interactions.

IN ADDITION, WE DISCLAIM ALL RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANY INFORMATION OR OTHER CONTENT CREATED OR PROVIDED BY ANY THIRD PARTY, INCLUDING ACTIVITY PROVIDERS AND OTHER HATS & LADDERS USERS. WE DO NOT GUARANTEE THAT SUCH CONTENT IS AVAILABLE, ACCURATE, OR SAFE. WE DO NOT VERIFY SUCH CONTENT AND IT MAY CONTAIN INACCURACIES OR FALSE INFORMATION. WE ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY LOSS OR DAMAGE ARISING OUT OF SUCH CONTENT, INCLUDING ANY FEEDBACK, COMMENTARY, RATINGS, PHOTOGRAPHS, OR ANY OTHER INFORMATION OF ANY KIND CREATED OR TRANSMITTED BY ANY THIRD PARTY. YOU HEREBY IRREVOCABLY WAIVE ANY CLAIM YOU MIGHT HAVE (ON YOUR BEHALF OR ON BEHALF OF ANY OTHER PERSON) AGAINST HATS & LADDERS WITH RESPECT TO ALL THIRD PARTIES, THEIR CONTENT, ACTIVITIES, WEBSITES, AND APPS.

If you have concerns or questions about content that you accessed through Hats & Ladders, please email us at info@hatsandladders.com.

IN NO EVENT WILL HATS & LADDERS, ITS DEVELOPERS, OR ITS SUPPLIERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY LOST PROFITS, LOST OPPORTUNITY, LOST SAVINGS, LOSS OF GOODWILL, LOST BUSINESS, LOSS OF ANTICIPATED BENEFITS, BUSINESS INTERRUPTION, LOSS OF BUSINESS INFORMATION, LOSS OF OR DAMAGE TO DATA, COMPUTER FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION, OR ANY INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF OR AS A RESULT OF THIS AGREEMENT, THE USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE THE PRODUCTS OR THE PROVISION OF SERVICES, EVEN IF HATS & LADDERS HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. IN NO EVENT WILL HATS & LADDERS’, ITS DEVELOPERS’ OR SUPPLIERS’ ENTIRE LIABILITY FOR ALL CLAIMS ARISING OUT OF OR AS A RESULT OF THIS AGREEMENT EXCEED THE GREATER OF TWENTY FIVE DOLLARS ($25) OR THE AMOUNT YOU ACTUALLY PAID HATS & LADDERS IN THE TWELVE (12) MONTHS PRECEDING THE INCIDENT GIVING RISE TO LIABILITY. THE FOREGOING LIMITATIONS WILL APPLY WHETHER AN ACTION IS IN CONTRACT OR TORT AND REGARDLESS OF THE THEORY OF LIABILITY.

11. MISCELLANEOUS.

Force Majeure. Hats & Ladders shall not be liable for any delay or failure to perform any obligation hereunder due to causes beyond its control, including without limitation, war, riot, insurrection, civil commotion, terrorist activity, fire, industrial disputes of whatever nature, acts of nature, computer crimes, epidemics, acts or omissions of third party vendors or suppliers, equipment failures, public enemies of government, failure of telecommunications, system malfunctions, fire, or other casualty.

Waiver and Severability. Waiver by Hats & Ladders of any default or breach by you of any provision contained in this Agreement does not constitute a waiver of any subsequent default or breach of the same or any other provision of this Agreement. If any part of this Agreement shall be held invalid, illegal, in conflict with any law, or otherwise unenforceable by a court of competent jurisdiction, the remainder of this Agreement will nevertheless remain in full force and effect.

No Third Party Beneficiaries. Neither you nor Hats & Ladders intends to confer any right or remedy on any third party.

Entire Agreement. Except where you or your institution have entered into a specific agreement with Hats & Ladders and/or for particular Products, this Agreement and our Privacy Policy contains the entire understanding are the entire and exclusive agreement between Hats & Ladders and you regarding the subject matter of this Agreement and this Agreement supersedes all prior and contemporaneous negotiations and agreements, whether written or oral, between Hats & Ladders and you with respect to the subject matter of this Agreement.

Assignment. You may not assign this Agreement to any third party without the prior written consent of the Hats & Ladders. Any such purported assignment shall be null and void. Subject to the foregoing, this Agreement shall be binding upon and inure to the benefit of the parties and their respective successors, and permitted assigns, if any. Hats & Ladders may assign its rights and obligations under this Agreement to a third party without your consent.

Controlling Law and Venue. This Agreement shall be construed and controlled by the laws of the State of New York, U.S.A., without giving effect to principles of conflict of laws. The United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods is specifically disclaimed and shall not apply to this Agreement. Courts located in New York, New York shall be the exclusive forum for any litigation arising out of this Agreement. You waive any objections to venue, personal jurisdiction, or forum non conveniens.