Terms of Use

This web site, www.rila.org, all of the various pages contained therein, including subdomains, as well as your use of the products and services offered therein (the “Site”) are maintained and operated by the Retail Industry Leaders Association (“RILA,” the “Association,” “us,” “we” and “our” as further defined below).  

Please read these Terms of Use (“Terms”) carefully as they describe your relationship with us and govern your use of the Site and the products and services offered by us.  These Terms will also govern your use of any other web sites that currently exist or may exist or be created by us in the future, associated widgets, mobile applications and other distribution platforms.  (All of the foregoing shall hereafter be referred to as the “Site.”)  

Feel free to print a copy of these Terms for future reference.   

We may from time to time amend these Terms. Those changes will be posted here and may also be communicated to you by any written contact method we have with you. However, these changes take effect on the date posted on our Site.    

1. LEGAL AGREEMENT  

These Terms are a legal agreement between you and us and contain important information regarding your legal rights, remedies and obligations. By accessing, browsing or otherwise using the Site, you: (i) acknowledge you have read, understand, and agree to be bound by these Terms; (ii) agree to comply with all applicable laws, rules and regulations—including but not limited to those related to data privacy, international communications, and the transmission of technical or personal data—with respect to your use of the Site; and (iii) represent you are an adult and have the legal capacity to enter into contracts in the jurisdiction where you reside.   

Our permitting you access to our Site is conditioned on your agreeing to all of the Terms, including your compliance with our policies, including our Privacy Policy, as well as our agreement to arbitrate individual disputes, instead of using class actions or jury trials.  

The Site may not be used in any way that is not expressly permitted by these Terms and our related Privacy Policy.   

IF YOU DO NOT AGREE TO THESE TERMS, YOU MAY NOT ACCESS, BROWSE OR USE OUR SITE, AND SHOULD DISCONTINUE YOUR ACTIVITIES IMMEDIATELY.  IF YOU ACCESS THE SITE, YOU ARE AGREEING TO THESE TERMS, OUR PRIVACY POLICY AND/OR ANY OF THEIR PARTS.  

2. DEFINITIONS  

“RILA,” the “Association,” “we,” “us,” or “our” includes the Retail Industry Leaders Association and its trustees, officers, directors, shareholders, employees, attorneys and agents (current and past) and any related individuals or entities.   

Service or Services means any of the Site or other products or services provided or offered by us, including those described in these Terms, whether through a website owned, maintained or controlled by us, through a social network, a mobile application, on a cellular telephone or otherwise.  
Content means all the content and materials that appear on the Site.   

3. USER QUALIFICATIONS  

We require an individual to be at least eighteen (18) years old to be a user on our Site.  This Site is not directed toward children under 13 years of age, nor do we knowingly collect information about children under 13.  If you are under 13 years of age, you are not permitted to submit personal information to us.  If we find out you are under 13 years of age, we will immediately, upon notice, cancel your account and delete all of your Content.  If a parent becomes aware any of his/her children has submitted personally identifiable information (“PII”) to us, please immediately notify us at legal@rila.org or at Attention: General Counsel – Legal Department, Retail Industry Leaders Association, 99 M Street, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20003.  

4. YOU UNDERSTAND AND AGREE THAT YOUR USE OF THE SITE IS RESTRICTED  

You may access, browse and use the Site and its content only for limited purposes. Your use is limited to your personal, non-commercial use, on a single computer or other Internet-compatible device. If you are posting content on our Site, your use is limited to those uses permitted by any contract you have with us or as is otherwise authorized by us.  

You may access portions of the Site without purchasing anything or creating an account. There is, however, Content on this Site which is available only if you create an account.  When any of the Services on the Site require you to open an account or otherwise provide user or registration information, including user name and password (“User Information”), you must complete the registration process by providing us with complete, truthful and accurate information.  You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your username, password and other information used to register and sign in to the Site, and you are fully responsible for all activities that occur under this password and username. Please immediately notify us of any unauthorized use of your account or any other breach of security by contacting us at legal@rila.org or at Attention: General Counsel – Legal Department, Retail Industry Leaders Association, 99 M Street, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20003. In the event you use the Site over any cellular/mobile devices, you hereby acknowledge that your carrier’s normal rates and fees, such as excess broadband fees, will still apply.  

When using the Site, you shall be subject to all displayed rules and policies.  Such rules and policies are hereby incorporated by reference into these Terms. We may also offer other content and/or services that are governed by different Terms.   

5. MATERIALS ARE FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY 

The information and content provided on the RILA Retail Site (the “Materials”) are for general informational and educational purposes only and RILA, by means of hosting of the RILA Retail Site, is not rendering legal or professional advice or services nor is RILA endorsing the use of the Materials. The Materials are not intended to be an exhaustive explanation of any topic or subject matter and RILA makes no representation or warranty as to the completeness or accuracy of the Materials. Moreover, the information displayed on the Site may be delayed or otherwise not up to date, or may not be accurate. Before making any decision or taking any action based upon the Materials that may affect your business, you should consult a qualified professional or legal advisor. RILA shall not be responsible to any party who claims a loss or damages from its use or reliance on these Materials.
 
RILA (a) expressly disclaims the accuracy, adequacy, or completeness of any information displayed and (b) shall not be liable for any errors, omissions or other defects in, delays or interruptions in such information, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon. RILA shall not be liable for any damages relating to your use of the information provided on the Site.

6.  WE RESPECT YOUR PRIVACY  

We respect your privacy.  Our Privacy Policy, constitutes a part of these Terms and explains how we collect, use and protect your personal information.  By accepting these Terms, you agree to our collection and use of your personal information as described in our Privacy Policy.

7. WE OWN OUR INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY  

RILA is the exclusive owner or licensee of all the Content, and of all related intellectual property rights therein, including, but not limited to, all copyrights, moral rights, trademark and patent rights (the “IP”).  Our Content includes, but is not limited to, all features, functions, services, software, algorithms, designs, objects, documentation, know-how, code, data, art, graphics, animation, photographs, images, text, music, sound effects, audio and/or audio-visual elements, downloadable materials, look-and-feel, design, layout, organization, presentation, user interface, navigation and stylistic convention of the Site as well as all software.  
All trademarks, trade names, copyrights, logos and service-marks, whether or not registered (collectively, the “Marks”) relating to or constituting our IP are our exclusive property.  The Site and our Services and Content are protected by copyright, trademark, and other laws of the United States and other countries. Nothing in these Terms gives you the right to use or reproduce any of our trademarks, logos, domain names and other distinctive brand features.  Unauthorized use of any of the Marks is strictly prohibited by law.  All third-party trade names, trademarks, logos and service marks, if any, that appear in or on the Site are the property of their respective owners.   

You do not acquire any ownership interest in the IP or the Marks by accessing, browsing or otherwise using the Site.  You may not reproduce, copy, modify, distribute, transmit, display, perform, publish or otherwise exploit, through any means or media, any of our IP or Marks.  

We may prevent unauthorized use of the Site via technological means.  You agree not to circumvent or attempt to circumvent these means.  You agree that any attempted or actual circumvention, or otherwise unauthorized use, by you or anyone on your behalf will result, at minimum, in the termination of all your rights to our products and Services under these Terms.   

On condition of your acceptance of these Terms and payment of any required fees, we grant you a non-exclusive, limited, non-transferrable, non-sub-licensable, freely revocable license to use the Site for its intended purpose.  We reserve all rights not expressly granted herein.  We also reserve the right to terminate at any time your license to use the Site for any or no reason.   

You retain ownership of the intellectual property contained in your Content.  However, you grant us and users of the Site a royalty-free, irrevocable, transferrable, sublicensable, and non-exclusive perpetual license throughout the universe for use in any and all media whether now known or hereafter devised to use and exploit (including without limitation by reproduction, distribution, public display, adaptation, communication to the public, and/or public performance, and including for commercial purposes) any and all Content that you post to or through the Site, as reasonably necessary.  You also waive to the full extent permitted by law any and all claims against us related to moral rights in the Content.  In no circumstances shall we be liable to you for any exploitation of any Content that you post.  You affirm, represent, and warrant that you own or have the necessary licenses, rights, consents, and permissions to publish and exploit Content that you post.   

Third-party users may not use your Content for commercial purposes, unless we provide them with written consent to use your Content for commercial purposes (for the purpose of which you authorize us to be your agent).   
We reserve all rights not expressly granted herein. 

8. PLEASE USE OUR SITE RESPONSIBLY  

You agree to use the Site only for those purposes to which you are authorized.  When you access or use the Site, including when you submit Content to be published on or in the Site, you further warrant and represent that you will not engage in any of the following activities, some of which may also expose you to civil and/or criminal liability:  

• violate any law or encourage or provide instructions to any other person or entity to do so; 
• act in a manner that negatively affects other users’ ability to use the Site, including without limitation by engaging in conduct that is harmful, threatening, abusive, inflammatory, intimidating, violent or encouraging of violence, harassing, stalking, invasive of another’s privacy, or racially, ethnically, or otherwise objectionable; 
• post any Content containing unsolicited or unauthorized advertising, promotional materials, spam, junk mail, chain letters, pyramid schemes, or any other form of unauthorized solicitation; 
• post any Content containing sweepstakes, contests, lotteries, or otherwise related to gambling; 
• post any Content containing copyrighted materials, or materials protected by other intellectual property laws, that you do not own; 
• post any Content for which you have not obtained all the necessary written permissions and releases; 
• post any software viruses or any other computer code, files or programs designed to interrupt, destroy or limit the functionality of any computer software or hardware or telecommunications equipment, including by engaging in any denial of service attack or similar conduct; 
• use automated scripts to collect information from or otherwise interact with the Site;
• exceed your authorized access to any portion of the Site; 
• collect or store personal data about anyone; 
• obtain or attempt to access or otherwise obtain any Content or information through any means not intentionally made available or provided for through the Site; 
• submit Content of a commercial nature (e.g., advertising) – including but not limited to (i) offering to third parties a service of your own that uses the Site; (ii) reselling or offering to rent or lease the Site; (iii) integrating the Site within a service of your own – unless specifically authorized by us; 
• engage in spamming, flooding, harvesting of email addresses or other personal information, spidering, “screen scraping,” “database scraping,” or any other activity whose purpose is to obtain lists of users, their PII, or any other information we maintain about Site users; 
• submit any comments, content or materials to us or to any third-party website that falsely expresses or implies that those comments or Content or materials originate with or are endorsed by us; 
• use the Site or any of its Services in violation of our IP (including but not limited to copyright and trademark) or other proprietary or legal rights or those of any third party; 
• post, upload, transmit, publish, reproduce or otherwise disseminate through the Site any Content that we determine in our sole discretion is: (i) unlawful, harmful, harassing, fraudulent, threatening, abusive, libelous, defamatory, vulgar, obscene, hateful, discriminatory, or otherwise infringes our or any third party’s intellectual property or other rights; (ii) is derogatory or harmful to our reputation; (iii) is harmful to children in any manner; (iv) seeks to or discriminates against any individual based on race, gender, gender identity, ethnicity, religion, occupation, political view, socioeconomic class, national origin, sexual preference, physical or mental handicap or on any other basis; (v) poses a risk to a person’s safety, security or health; (vi) personally identifies any other person without obtaining such person’s express advance written consent to the disclosure of his or her personal information; and/or (vii) encourages criminal behavior or conduct that would constitute a criminal offense under any law, or could give rise to civil liability or other lawsuit; 
• seek to use or actually use the PII of any user or any individual associated with us in any manner not approved in writing in advance by that individual; and
• provide to us sensitive information such as social security numbers, financial account information, public health information, driver's license numbers, birthdates, payment card data or similarly sensitive information.

The foregoing examples are made solely for illustrative purposes and do not constitute an exhaustive list of restricted or prohibited activities.  

We may decline to publish or delete any Content you submit if you or the Content have violated these Terms, our Privacy Policy, or if you engaged in a commission or omission that is harmful or may be harmful to our Site, our users and/or us.  In any such case, we may also terminate your access to the Site or prevent you from posting additional Content on or otherwise using the Site.  We may examine Content at any time, refuse publication of any Content, and/or remove such Content after its publication.  However, we do not routinely utilize this right to monitor Content and do so only in cases needed to enforce these Terms of Use or our Privacy Policy.  The provisions of this clause are made in addition to any rights afforded to us by any law.   

We, in our sole discretion, may decide the duration of the publication of any Content, its location, when and how it appears in or on the Site, its design and any other matter pertaining to the publication of Content in or on the Site.  Content submitted by users for publication does not reflect the views of RILA. The fact that we permit any Content to be posted does not warrant the validity, reliability, accuracy, timeliness, or legality of that Content.   

9. ACCOUNT SERVICES  

There are Services on this Site that are available only if you create an account.  When you open an account (“Account”) or otherwise provide user or registration information, including a username and password (“User Information”), you must complete the registration process by providing us with complete, truthful and accurate information.  When you create an Account, you alone are responsible for maintaining the strict confidentiality of any username and password relied upon to gain access to your Account, and for the use by you and any other person or entity that accesses our Site by use of your User Information, whether or not that access was authorized by you.  Notify us immediately of any suspected or actual unauthorized use of your Account or your User Information, and of any and all other security breaches.  You grant to us and to all other persons and entities involved in the maintenance and operation of the Site the right to use, store, monitor, retrieve and transmit your User Information in connection with maintaining and operating the Site.  Our information collection and use policies with respect to the privacy of your User Information are set forth in our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated in these Terms by reference for all purposes.   

We reserve the right to terminate any Account and/or to refuse Service to you, without prior notice, at any time, and for any or no reason. Without limiting the above, if we, in our absolute discretion, find that you have violated these Terms more than once, we will, in appropriate circumstances, permanently terminate your Account.  You have the right to cancel your Account at any time by emailing legal@rila.org.   

If you voluntarily terminate your Account or allow your Account to lapse, it may be reactivated through the Site.  Any Account terminated by us for any type of abuse, including for a violation of these Terms and/or our Privacy Policy, may not be reactivated without our express consent, which is in our absolute discretion to give.

10. THIRD-PARTY WEBSITES  

The Site may contain links to websites of third parties.  If you click these links, you will leave our Site.  
These third parties and their websites are not under our control.  We are not responsible for their content or operation.  By providing links to these websites, we do not approve, warrant or endorse, or otherwise make any representation about them or their owners or operators, and do not assume any related responsibility or liability.  You should exercise your own judgment in evaluating and using these websites.  When you link to these websites, you become subject to their terms and conditions of use and privacy policies and should review them carefully before entering any such websites.  We do not endorse these websites and our Terms and Privacy Policy do not apply to them.   

You expressly release us from any and all liability arising from your use of any third-party website, service or content.  You specifically agree that we are not responsible for any loss or damage of any sort resulting or arising from your dealings with those third-party websites and/or their providers. 

11. GEOGRAPHIC REACH OF THE SITE  

We administer, control and operate the site from Washington, DC, United States of America.  The site is accessible worldwide.  However, some of its features or functions may not be available or appropriate for use outside of the United States and/or may not be available to all persons or in all geographic locations.  We make no representation that the site or our Content and/or Services are appropriate or authorized for use in all countries, states, provinces, counties, localities or any other jurisdictions.  Your access and use of the Site may not be legal in your jurisdiction.  If you choose to access, browse or use the Site, you do so on your own initiative and at your own risk, and you are responsible for compliance with all applicable laws if, and to the full extent that, such laws and restrictions are applicable.  We reserve the right to limit, in our sole discretion, the provision of any feature or function of the Site to any person and/or geographic area.  Any offer for any feature or function made on the Site is void where prohibited.

12. OUR LIABILITY IS LIMITED  

AS A USER, YOU ACKNOWLEDGE AND AGREE THAT YOUR SOLE REMEDY FOR ANY PROBLEMS OR DISSATISFACTION WITH THE SITE IS TO TERMINATE YOUR ACCOUNT AND DISCONTINUE ALL USE OF THE SITE.   

THUS, EXCEPT AS SET OUT BELOW, UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES, INCLUDING ANY BREACH OF CONTRACT, TORT, NEGLIGENCE, STRICT LIABILITY OR ARISING UNDER ANY OTHER LEGAL OR EQUITABLE THEORY WILL RILA BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, PUNITIVE, INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES THAT ARISE OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE THE SITE (INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION USE OF OR RELIANCE ON INFORMATION AVAILABLE ON OR IN THE SITE OR OTHERWISE RELIED ON OR USED BY US IN DELIVERING THE SITE, AND/OR ANY INTERRUPTIONS, ERRORS, DEFECTS, MISTAKES, OMISSIONS, DELETIONS OF FILES, DELAYS IN OPERATION OR TRANSMISSION, NONDELIVERY OF INFORMATION, DISCLOSURE OF COMMUNICATIONS, AND/OR ANY OTHER FAILURE OF PERFORMANCE), OR FOR ANY CONTENT, INFORMATION, SOFTWARE, PRODUCTS OR SERVICES OBTAINED OR ACCESSED THROUGH THE SITE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.   

IN NO EVENT SHALL THE TOTAL LIABILITY OF RILA TO YOU FOR ALL DAMAGES, LOSSES AND CAUSES OF ACTION EXCEED, IN THE AGGREGATE, THE AMOUNT PAID BY YOU TO US FOR YOUR USE OF THE SITE DURING THE THREE (3) MONTHS IMMEDIATELY PRECEDING YOUR CLAIM.   

Some jurisdictions do not allow the disclaimer of implied warranties, so the foregoing disclaimers may not apply to you.  

Some states or jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion or limitation of consequential or incidental damages and, in such states or jurisdictions, our liability shall be limited to the fullest extent permitted by law.    

If any particular type of damage cannot be waived or disclaimed under the law, then the remainder of the disclaimer will remain valid and continue to disclaim every other form of damage that may be disclaimed under the law.    

13. PROCEDURE FOR MAKING COMPLAINTS  

If you believe that your rights, or the rights of a third party, are being violated in any way by any content accessible on or through the Site, including copyrights, please contact us at legal@rila.org or at Attention: General Counsel – Legal Department, Retail Industry Leaders Association, 99 M Street, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20003.  
If you wish to send a notice under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”), please refer to our  DMCA Policy.   

14. STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS  

You and we agree that, regardless of any statute or law to the contrary, any claim or cause of action arising out of or related to our Site, or our Content and/or Services, Terms and/or Privacy Policy must be filed within one (1) year after such claim or cause of action arose or be forever barred.

15. ASSIGNMENT  

You agree that we may assign any of our rights, and/or transfer, sub-contract or delegate any of our obligations, under these Terms.  You may not transfer or assign your rights and obligations under these Terms to any third party without our prior written consent.      

16. MODIFICATIONS  

We reserve the right to modify these Terms and/or any other guidelines or policies affecting the Site at any time, and such revisions will become effective upon the earlier of (i) posting of the revisions to the Site, or (ii) distribution of the revisions by electronic mail. For this reason, please visit this page on a regular basis and check the “Last Updated” date at the top of these Terms to ensure you are familiar with the most recent version of these Terms. Your continued use of the Site after the effective date of the revisions signifies your acceptance of any such revisions.  You will have no claim, complaint or demand against us for applying such changes or for failures incidental to such changes.    

17. TERMINATION  

You may discontinue your use of our Site at any time without informing us. We may, without prior notice, change the Site and any of our Content and/or Services, stop providing them or any of their features to you or to users generally, or create usage limits for our Site. We may permanently or temporarily terminate or suspend your access to our Site without notice and without liability for any or no reason, including if, in our sole determination, you violate any provision of these Terms. In particular, we may immediately terminate or suspend any Account that has been flagged for repeat infringement of any Marks or violation of any other laws or our Terms and/or Privacy Policy.   

Upon termination of your access to or ability to use our Site, including but not limited to suspension of your Account, your right to use or access any Service and/or any Content will immediately cease. All provisions of this Agreement that by their nature should survive termination, shall survive termination, including, but not limited to, ownership provisions, warranty disclaimers, limitations of liability, the dispute resolution (arbitration) and class waiver provisions. Termination of your access to and use of our Site shall not relieve you of any obligations arising or accruing prior to such termination or limit any liability which you otherwise may have to us or any third party.   
On termination of your Account or upon your deletion of any particular Service or Content, you acknowledge and agree that: (a) caching of, copies of, or references to the Content may not be immediately removed; and (b) such removed Content may persist in backups (not available to others) for reasonable periods of time. You agree to release and indemnify us from all claims related to the retention of deleted Content.   

18. INDEMNITY  

You agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless us and our employees, contractors, agents, professional advisers, members, officers and directors, from and against any and all claims, damages, obligations, losses, liabilities, costs or debt, and expenses (including but not limited to actual attorney’s fees and costs) arising from: (i) your use of and access to the Site, including any data or Content transmitted, submitted, viewed, or received by you; (ii) your violation of any provision of these Terms and/or our Privacy Policy, including your breach of any of the representations and/or warranties contained in these Terms; (iii) your violation of any third party right, including any right of privacy or intellectual property rights; (iv) your violation of any applicable law, rule or regulation; (v) any claim or damages that arise as a result of any of your Content or any that is submitted via your Account; and/or (vi) any other party’s access and use of the Site and any of the Site’s Services and/or Content with your unique username, password or other appropriate security code.  

You hereby agree that we shall have the sole right and obligation to control the legal defense against any such claims, demands, or litigation, including the right to select counsel of our choice and to compromise or settle any such claims, demands, or litigation.  

19. RELEASED PARTIES  

To the fullest extent permitted by law, you release us and any of our trustees, members, directors, officers, shareholders, employees, representatives, consultants, attorneys, agents, suppliers, distributors, licensees and/or licensors from any and all responsibility, liability, claims, demands, and/or damages (actual and consequential) of every kind and nature, known and unknown, arising out of or in any way connected with the following: (i) disputes between users, including those between you and other users; (ii) third-party sites and services, including Content found on such sites and services; (iii) disputes concerning any use of or action taken using your Account; and (iv) claims relating to the unauthorized access to any data communications or Content stored under or relating to your Account, including unauthorized use or alteration of such communications or your Content.  

You further waive any and all benefits and rights that would otherwise accrue to you by reason of the provisions of any federal or state statute or principle of common law of any state of the United States, or any political entity or nation, province or local law or regulation that may govern this release, which statute, regulation, law or principle.  You agree not to file any action or lawsuit inconsistent with the foregoing release.   

20. GOVERNING LAWS  

You agree the laws of the United States of America and, more specifically, the laws of the Commonwealth of the District of Columbia, without regard to any principles of conflicts of laws, will govern these Terms, your use of the Site, and all matters relating to your access to, and/or use of, the Site, including all disputes between you and us.  You also agree that: (i) the Site shall be deemed solely based in the District of Columbia; and (ii) the Site shall be a passive site that does not give rise to personal jurisdiction over us, either specific or general, in any jurisdiction other than the District of Columbia.

21. DISPUTE RESOLUTION  

 BINDING ARBITRATION AGREEMENT AND CLASS WAIVER DISCLOSURE  

Agreement to Pre-Arbitration Notification: These Terms provide for final, binding arbitration of all disputed claims (discussed immediately below).  We and you agree, however, that it would be advantageous to discuss and hopefully resolve any disputes before arbitration proceedings or any other proceedings authorized herein are initiated.  In the event of a dispute, the claimant (whether you or us) shall send a letter to the other side briefly summarizing the claim and the request for relief.  If we are the claimant, the letter shall be sent to whatever address we have on file for you (or email address if we have no physical address).  If you are the claimant, the letter shall be sent to RILA, Attention: General Counsel – Legal Department, Retail Industry Leaders Association, 99 M Street SE, Suite 700, Washington DC, 20003.  If the dispute is not resolved within 60 days after the letter is sent, the claimant may proceed to initiate arbitration proceedings or any other proceedings authorized herein.   

Agreement to Arbitration; Class Waiver:  You and we agree, except as provided below regarding small claims court proceedings, that any dispute, claim or controversy arising out of or relating in any way to our Site, Services and Content, including, but not limited to, our Site, our Content, products, Services and user interfaces, our Privacy Policy and/or our privacy practices generally, these Terms, and this arbitration provision, as well as any claim relating to the interpretation or validity of this Agreement, including but not limited to the determination of the scope or applicability of this agreement to arbitrate, shall be determined by binding arbitration in District of Columbia before one arbitrator. The arbitration shall be administered by JAMS pursuant to its arbitration rules.  These rules may be found at https://www.jamsadr.com/adr-rules-procedures/.

Arbitration is more informal than a lawsuit in court.  Arbitration uses a neutral arbitrator instead of a judge or jury, allows for more limited discovery than in court, and is subject to very limited review by courts.  YOU AGREE THAT, BY AGREEING TO THESE TERMS, THE U.S. FEDERAL ARBITRATION ACT GOVERNS THE INTERPRETATION AND ENFORCEMENT OF THIS ARBITRATION PROVISION, AND THAT YOU AND WE ARE EACH WAIVING THE RIGHT TO A TRIAL BY JURY OR TO PARTICIPATE IN A CLASS ACTION. 

This arbitration provision shall survive termination of these Terms.  

Class Waiver:  YOU AND WE ALSO AGREE THAT EACH MAY BRING CLAIMS AGAINST THE OTHER ONLY IN AN INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY AND NOT AS A PLAINTIFF OR CLASS MEMBER IN ANY PURPORTED CLASS OR REPRESENTATIVE PROCEEDING.  Further, unless both you and we agree otherwise, the arbitrator may not consolidate the claims of more than one party, and may not otherwise preside over any form of a representative or class proceeding.  If this specific provision is found to be unenforceable as applied to any claim asserted by any individual, then the entirety of the arbitration provision set forth herein shall be null and void.   

You and we waive our respective rights, if any, to bring any claim that is subject to this arbitration provision as a class action or otherwise on a representative basis.    

Notwithstanding the foregoing binding arbitration procedure, either party may bring an individual action in small claims court (provided the claim otherwise qualifies for such a program) as an alternative to proceeding with arbitration.   

You may elect to opt out (exclude yourself) from the final, binding arbitration procedure and the class action waiver specified in these Terms by doing the following:  Within 15 days of your first accessing the Site, you must send a letter to us at: Attention: General Counsel – Legal Department, Retail Industry Leaders Association, 99 M Street, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20003, specifying (1) your name, (2) your IP address(es), (3) your email address, (4) your mailing address, and (5) your request to be excluded from the final, binding arbitration provision and class action waiver specified in these Terms.  You are not required to send the letter by certified mail, return receipt requested or overnight courier, but it is recommended that you do so.  Your request to be excluded will only be effective and enforceable if you can prove the request was postmarked within the applicable 15-day deadline.   

22. ALTERNATIVE JURISDICTION  

If any court of competent jurisdiction finds these arbitration and/or class action waiver provisions invalid or inapplicable, you agree to the exclusive jurisdiction of the federal and state courts located in District of Columbia, and the related appellate courts, in any related action or proceeding.  Further, you irrevocably submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of, and venue in, the state and federal courts in District of Columbia, and the related appellate courts, in any related action or proceeding and shall agree to not raise any claims as to Washington, DC being an inconvenient forum.

23. NOTICE FOR CALIFORNIA USERS  

Under California Civil Code Section 1789.3, users of the Site from California are entitled to the following specific consumer rights notice:  The Complaint Assistance Unit of the Division of Consumer Services of the California Department of Consumer Affairs may be contacted in writing at 400 R Street, Suite 1080, Sacramento, California 95814, or by telephone at (916) 445-1254 or (800) 952-5210. 

24. NOTICE FOR NEW JERSEY USERS  

The following sections shall not apply to users of the Website from New Jersey:  Disclaimers/No Warranties, Limitation of Liability and Jurisdiction.

25. WAIVER  

Our failure to enforce any rights or provisions of these Terms shall not be deemed a waiver or relinquishment of such rights or provisions. Any waiver of any right or provision of these Terms must be in writing.  

26. SEVERABILITY  

If any part of these Terms is determined to be invalid or unenforceable under applicable law, including the warranty disclaimers and liability limitations stated elsewhere herein, then the invalid or unenforceable provision(s) will be deemed superseded by a valid, enforceable provision that most closely matches the intent of the original provision, and the remainder of these Terms shall continue in full effect.

27. ENTIRE AGREEMENT  

These Terms shall be deemed to include all other notices, policies, disclaimers and other terms and conditions contained in the Site, including our Privacy Policy; provided, however, these Terms shall prevail in the event of a conflict with any such other documents. Any rights not expressly granted in these Terms are reserved to us.   

These Terms constitute the entire agreement between you and us and supersede all prior or contemporaneous communications and proposals, whether electronic, oral or written, between you and us, with respect to your use of the Site and all matters relating to your access to, and/or use of, the Site, our Services and our Content.     

28. ELECTRONIC RECORDKEEPING  

A printed version of these Terms, our Privacy Policy, and of any notice given in electronic form shall be admissible in any and all judicial, arbitration, or administrative proceedings based upon or relating to these Terms to the same extent as other business documents and records originally generated and maintained in printed form.    

29. MISCELLANEOUS  

• No party, nor any of the parties’ respective attorneys, shall be deemed the drafter of this agreement for purposes of interpreting any provision hereof in any judicial or other proceeding that may arise between the parties. 
• These Terms and the rights, benefits and obligations contained herein are fully assignable by us and will be binding upon and inure to the benefit of our successors and assigns. 
• Except as otherwise expressly provided in these Terms, there shall be no third party beneficiaries to this agreement. 
• The headings in these Terms are for convenience only and have no legal or contractual effect. 
• We may terminate these Terms for any or no reason at any time by notifying you through a notice on the Site or by any other method of communication provided elsewhere herein. Any such termination will be without prejudice to our rights, remedies, claims, or defenses hereunder. 
• “Include,” “Includes,” “Including,” “include,” “includes,” and “including” herein mean including without limitation. 
• These Terms and your use of the Site, including the submission of Content in or onto the Site, do not, and shall not be construed as creating any relationship, partnership, joint venture, employer-employee, agency, or franchisor-franchisee relationship in any way and/or of any kind between the parties hereto. Your use of the Site is intended for your personal enjoyment and benefit, and the provision of the Site to you (subject to your compliance with these Terms and our Privacy Policy) constitutes the sole and sufficient consideration that you are entitled to receive for any Content or other contributions you have made to us and our products and Services.  

30. QUESTIONS?  

You may contact us concerning any question about the Site or these Terms at legal@rila.org or at Attention: General Counsel – Legal Department, Retail Industry Leaders Association, 99 M Street, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20003.