Terms and Conditions

Welcome to the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law (the "Lawyers' Committee") Website's Terms and Conditions.

At an historic meeting at the White House nearly forty-five years ago, President John F. Kennedy, Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson, and Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy challenged 244 of America's prominent attorneys to spearhead the cause for equal justice.  The Lawyers' Committee was founded at this closed door meeting, and has been at the forefront of efforts to advance civil rights ever since.  Today, the Lawyers' Committee is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization whose principal mission is to secure, through the rule of law, equal justice under the law.  The Committee's major objective is to use legal skills to obtain equal justice for minorities by addressing factors that contribute to racial justice and economic opportunity. 

The contents of our website are made available to the public for purposes of general information, consistent with the mission of the Lawyers' Committee.  We set forth Terms and Conditions of use to be consistent with laws and regulations that regulate the provision of information and services on the Internet.  After reviewing these Terms and Conditions, if you have questions about the Lawyers' Committee and/or about the use of materials on our Web site, please contact:

Stacie B. Royster
Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
1401 New York Avenue, NW, Suite 400
Washington, D.C. 20005
Office Phone:  202-662-8600
Fax:  202-783-0857
sroyster@lawyerscommittee.org

Terms and Conditions

The following Terms and Conditions shall govern the materials and services provided to you by Lawyers' Committee's Web site (the "Site").

The terms "you" and "user" as used in this Agreement refer to all individuals and/or entities accessing this Site for any reason.

By accessing and using the Site, you acknowledge that you have read and understand these Terms and Conditions, and that you accept them and agree to be legally bound by them. You should not use the Site if you have any objections to any of these Terms and Conditions.

The Lawyers' Committee may revise these Terms and Conditions over time as new features are added to the Site or as Internet law and standards evolve.  We will post those changes prominently but we do recommend that you read these Terms and Conditions each time you visit the Site.

1.         Copyright and Permissions

Please feel free to browse the Site.  You may download or make single copies of materials displayed on the Site for your own personal and noncommercial use, provided that all copies shall retain the copyright, trademark and other proprietary notices displayed with the materials on the Site.

You may not distribute, transmit, copy, download or otherwise make available any material from the Site, including any text, images, audio clips, or video clips for public or commercial use, without the prior written permission of the Lawyers' Committee; you also may not reproduce, distribute, transmit, publicly display, publicly perform, publish, license, modify, rewrite, create derivative works from, transfer or sell any material contained on the Site without prior written permission.

None of the material contained on the Site (including all software, HTML code and other code) may be reverse-engineered, disassembled, decompiled, transcribed, stored in a retrieval system, translated into any language or computer language, retransmitted in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photo-reproduction, recordation or otherwise), resold or redistributed without the prior written permission of the Lawyers' Committee.

Except as otherwise noted, all content of the Site is:

Copyright © 2009 Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law

All Rights Reserved

The Lawyers' Committee has adopted a policy of terminating services to users who willfully and/or repeatedly infringe.

For further information regarding permission to use material, please contact our copyright agent Stacie B. Royster.  She can be reached by e-mail at sroyster@lawyerscommittee.org.

2.         Trademarks/Service Marks

The trademarks/service marks and logos (collectively the "Marks") displayed on the Site identify the products and services of the Lawyers' Committee and other third parties, and inform the public as to the source of those products and services.  Nothing contained on the Site should be construed as granting any right or license to use any Mark displayed on the Site.  Your misuse of any Mark is strictly prohibited, including without limitation, your use of the Marks in any of the following ways:

• In a manner likely to cause confusion;

• To identify your products or services;

• In, as, or part of your own trademarks or services marks;

• In a manner that implies inaccurately a sponsorship, endorsement or other connection with your products, services or other activities; or

• In a manner that disparages or dilutes the Marks.

You are also advised that the Lawyers' Committee will enforce its intellectual property rights to the fullest extent of the law.  You agree not to display or otherwise inappropriately use the Marks without prior written permission from the Lawyers' Committee.  Please make such requests by e-mail to our copyright agent at sroyster@lawyerscommittee.org.  We will evaluate your request and respond as soon as possible.

3.         Fair Use & Proper Attribution of Marks

You may make fair use of the Marks in news, advertising and promotional materials, and in referring to our products and services (for example, in a newspaper article) without our permission, provided you follow standard trademark usage practices and provide proper attribution.  Any other uses require prior written permission from the Lawyers' Committee.  Please make such requests by e-mail to our copyright agent at sroyster@lawyerscommittee.org.  We will evaluate your request and respond as soon as possible.

4.         Privacy

Our Privacy Policy is a part of the Site's Terms and Conditions which are binding on all Site users.  The policy of the Lawyers' Committee is to respect and protect the privacy of our users.  The Lawyers' Committee includes as part of its mission, the constant effort to build users' trust and confidence in the Internet by promoting fair information practices.  To fulfill this mission, the Lawyers' Committee agrees to exercise reasonable precautions to maintain the confidentiality of information provided by you in connection with accessing and using the Site.  Because we gather certain types of personally identifiable information ("Personal Information") from users of our website, we feel you should know how we collect, use, disclose, manage, and store the Personal Information that you may voluntarily provide us and the Personal Information that is collected passively through the use of cookies or image tags on the Site.  The Lawyers' Committee agrees to post prominently and in plain language its specific privacy policies.  This Privacy Policy sets forth the Lawyers' Committee's current policies and practices with respect to Personal Information of the users of the Site. 

For our full Privacy Statement, see our PRIVACY POLICY.

5.         Payments to the Lawyers' Committee

All payments to the Lawyers' Committee, including without limitation for donations and merchandise shall be made by mailing a check to our office made payable to the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law or by credit card and are subject to the approval of the financial institution issuing the check or credit card.  Purchases are not binding on the Lawyers' Committee until such approval is received.  The Lawyers' Committee shall not be liable in any way if any financial institution refuses to accept or honor your check or credit card for any reason.

Each time you make a payment you agree that the Lawyers' Committee is authorized to charge your designated account for the applicable amount such as the price published on the Site.

Financial transactions related to your purchases from the Lawyers' Committee are handled by VeriSign Inc. (http://www.verisign.com/) and Blackbaud, Inc. (http://www.blackbaud.com/). 

Information relating to your financial transactions will not be maintained on the Lawyers' Committee servers.

Please visit the website of VeriSign Inc. (http://www.verisign.com/) and Blackbaud, Inc. (http://www.blackbaud.com/) to familiarize yourself with the relevant terms and conditions and privacy policies.

6.        Interactive Material

The Lawyers' Committee maintains a social networking group through Facebook ("Lawyers' Committee Facebook Page").  Portions of the Lawyers' Committee Facebook Page may allow users to post their own material. The materials posted by users do not necessarily reflect the views of the Lawyers' Committee. By posting materials to the Lawyers' Committee Facebook Page, you represent that you have all necessary rights in and to such materials, and that such materials will not infringe on any personal or proprietary rights of any third parties, nor will such materials be harmful, defamatory, unlawful, threatening, obscene, lewd, lascivious, harassing, or otherwise objectionable.  You also represent that any materials you post to the Lawyers' Committee Facebook Page do not violate any provision in this Terms of Service or Facebook's Statement of Rights and Responsibilities or Privacy Policy.  

The Lawyers' Committee reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to review, edit, or delete any material posted by users on the Lawyers' Committee Facebook Page that the Lawyers' Committee for any reason whatsoever determines may be harmful, defamatory, unlawful, threatening, obscene, lewd, lascivious, harassing, potentially in violation of any party's rights, or otherwise objectionable.

NOTWITHSTANDING THE FOREGOING, THE LAWYERS' COMMITTEE EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY RESPONSIBILITY OR LIABILITY FOR ANY MATERIAL COMMUNICATED BY THIRD PARTIES THROUGH THIS WEB SITE.

By posting materials to the Lawyers' Committee Facebook Page, you authorize the Lawyers' Committee to use, and authorize others to use, any such materials in any manner or medium, so long as such use is not in violation of Facebook's Statement of Rights and Responsibilities or Privacy Policy.

You may not advertise or solicit on the Lawyers' Committee Facebook Page without the Lawyers' Committee's prior express written permission. 

7.         Disclaimer

This Site presents general information about the Lawyers' Committee and the information is not intended as legal advice nor should you consider it as such.  Although we welcome your calls, letters and e-mails, please keep in mind that merely contacting the Lawyers' Committee will not establish an attorney-client relationship between us.  Consequently, you should not send any confidential information to us until a formal attorney-client relationship has been established.

The Lawyers' Committee has at least one affiliated attorney licensed to practice in each of the following jurisdictions: NC, DC, MA, OH, NY, IL, MD, PA, TX, VA.    Our practice outside of the District of Columbia is either through lawyers of the Committee licensed in such other jurisdictions, in cooperation with local counsel, through admission to practice pro hac vice, or as otherwise permitted under applicable local rules.

We also attempt to provide links to other Web sites that we hope you will find helpful.  We do not control the material presented in other sites, however, and we do not vouch for or assume responsibility for the accuracy of such material.

8.         Additional Disclaimers and Limitation of Liabilities and Warranties

The Site may contain technical inaccuracies, typographical errors, and out-of-date information.  The Site makes no representations as to the accuracy, reliability, completeness, or timeliness of the information posted, and the Site makes no warranty that the Site will meet your requirements.  You understand, acknowledge, and agree that your use of the Site is at your own risk.  The Lawyers' Committee reserves the right to make changes to the Site at any time.

THE LAWYERS' COMMITTEE SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY SPECIAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, PUNITIVE OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION, LOST REVENUES OR LOST PROFITS, WHICH MAY RESULT FROM THE USE OF, ACCESS TO, OR INABILITY TO USE THE SITE.  (BECAUSE SOME STATES DO NOT ALLOW THE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY FOR CONSEQUENTIAL OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES, THE ABOVE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.)  THE LAWYERS' COMMITTEE MAKES NO WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO THE MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE WITH RESPECT TO ANY OF THE MATERIALS/SERVICES AVAILABLE FROM THE SITE, ALL OF WHICH ARE BEING OFFERED "AS IS."  THE LAWYERS' COMMITTEE ASSUMES NO RESPONSIBILITY AND SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES TO, OR VIRUSES THAT MAY INFECT, YOUR COMPUTER EQUIPMENT OR OTHER PROPERTY ON ACCOUNT OF YOUR ACCESS TO, USE OF, OR BROWSING THE SITE OR YOUR DOWNLOADING ANY MATERIALS FROM THE SITE.

9.         Intellectual Property Limitation of Liability

The Lawyers' Committee respects the intellectual property of others, and we ask visitors to the Site to do the same.  If you believe that your work has been used in a way that constitutes copyright infringement, the following information in the form of a written notification (pursuant to 17 U.S.C. § 512(c)) must be provided to a designated Copyright Agent of the Lawyers' Committee:

1. Identification of the copyrighted work(s) that you claim has been infringed;
2. Identification of where the material that you claim to be infringing is located on the Site;
3. A statement that you have a good faith belief that use of the disputed material is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law;
4. A statement that the information in the notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that you are the owner of an exclusive copyright that is allegedly infringed or are authorized to act on the copyright owner's behalf;
5. Your address, telephone number, and e-mail address; and
6. Your physical or electronic signature.

The designated agent of the Lawyers' Committee for notification of claims of copyright infringement on the Site is our copyright agent Stacie B. Royster. who can be reached as follows:

Stacie B. Royster
Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
1401 New York Avenue, NW, Suite 400
Washington, D.C. 20005
Office Phone:  202-662-8600
Fax:  202-783-0857
sroyster@lawyerscommittee.org

Similarly, if you believe that any of your trademarks or service marks have been infringed, please notify the designated agent of the Lawyers' Committee.

10.         User Conduct/Guidelines

The Site may provide users with the opportunity to submit, post and/or exchange information, data, text, software, music, photographs, graphics or artwork, video, audio, messages or other materials, whether publicly posted or privately transmitted.  You agree that you have read and are familiar with the following guidelines. 

Please note that messages from users who violate our guidelines may be blocked.  Users who violate our guidelines may also be sent a warning, and if necessary, will be banned from further posting.

You understand and agree that all text, graphics, software, music, sound, photographs, videos, messages, posts, data, information, or other materials (collectively, the "Content") is the sole responsibility of the person with whom the Content originated.  Thus, you are responsible for all Content that you disseminate or transmit through or by means of the Site.

You will post honestly and in good faith and with the intention to accurately inform.  We do not welcome people who wish to disrupt or insult other users.  If we believe you are posting with the intent to cause disruption or harm to other users, you will be banned from further posting on the Site.

You agree not to:

1. post, disseminate, or transmit any Content that is unlawful, harassing, defamatory, abusive, threatening, obscene, harmful, tortious, libelous, or invasive of another's privacy;
2. post, disseminate, or transmit any Content that infringes or violates any party's copyright, trademark, trade secret, patent, or other proprietary right, including, but not limited to, using third-party copyrighted materials without appropriate permission or attribution, using third-party trademarks without appropriate permission or attribution, and using or distributing third-party information (whether or not protected as a trade secret) in violation of a duty of confidentiality;
3. post, disseminate, or transmit any worms, viruses, or other harmful, disruptive, or destructive files, code, or programs;
4. impersonate any person or entity; falsely state or otherwise misrepresent your affiliation with any person or entity; intentionally omit, delete, forge, or misrepresent transmission information, including headers, return mailing, and Internet protocol addresses; or otherwise manipulate identifiers to disguise the origin of any Content transmitted through the Site;
5. post, disseminate, or transmit any Content you do not have the right to post, disseminate, or transmit;
6. interfere with, disrupt, or harm in any way the Site or servers or networks connected to the Site;
7. use the Site for any illegal purpose, in violation of any applicable laws or regulations or in violation of the rules of any other website's providers, websites, or the like;
8. violate any applicable local, state, national, foreign or international law or regulation, intentionally or unintentionally;

11.       Dispute Resolution

Any action based on a breach of the terms herein shall be brought to the federal or local courts presiding in District of Columbia, whichever is appropriate, and to whose jurisdiction you consent in such an action.  If a breach is found by the court, the court shall have the right to issue an injunction, and grant to the Lawyers' Committee its damages and attorneys' fees and such other and further relief as the court may deem appropriate.

12.       Applicable Laws and Jurisdictional Issues

The Site shall be governed by the laws of the United States, including federal copyright and trademark laws, and the laws of the District of Columbia applicable to contracts entered into and to be wholly performed therein without regard to conflict of laws or choice of laws principles.  By visiting and using the Site, you consent to the jurisdiction of District of Columbia and you agree to accept service of process by mail.  You hereby waive any and all jurisdictional and venue defenses that might otherwise be available.

13.       Force Majeure

Notwithstanding any other provision contained in these Terms and Conditions, in the event that the performance of any obligation of the Lawyers' Committee is prevented due to acts of God, exchange controls, export or import controls, or any other government restriction, wars, hostilities, blockades, civil disturbances, revolutions, strikes, lockouts, or any other cause beyond the reasonable control of the Lawyers' Committee, then the Lawyers' Committee shall not be responsible to you for any failure or delay in the performance of its obligations.  The Lawyers' Committee shall promptly notify you of such force majeure condition.  The terms of this clause shall not exempt, but merely suspend, the Lawyers' Committee from its duty to perform until as soon as practicable after a force majeure condition ceases to exist.

14.       Headings

The headings of each of these Terms and Conditions are for convenience of reference only.  Such headings shall be ignored in the interpretation or construction of any of these terms and conditions.

15.       No Assignment

You may not assign your rights or obligations under this Agreement without the prior express written consent of the Lawyers' Committee.

16.       Invalidity of Provisions

In the event that any portion of these Terms and Conditions is held to be unenforceable, the unenforceable portion shall be construed in accordance with applicable law as nearly as possible to reflect the original intention and the remainder of the provisions shall remain in full force and effect.

17.       No Waiver

Any failure by the Lawyers' Committee to insist upon or enforce strict performance of any provision of these Terms and Conditions shall not be construed as a waiver of any provision or right.

18.       Changes to the Terms and Conditions

No changes to these Terms and Conditions shall be made except by a revised posting on this page, and no advice or other information provided by the Site or its representatives to any user in any manner which is not posted on this page will constitute any amendment of, waiver or change to these Terms and Conditions, unless such an amendment, waiver or change is in writing from an authorized officer or representative of the Lawyers' Committee.

19.       Complete Understanding

These Terms and Conditions constitute the entire understanding between the Lawyers' Committee and you with respect to the Site.

By using the Site, you signify your assent to these Terms and Conditions and any subsequent modifications.  As a condition of your use of the Site, you warrant that you will not use the Site for any purpose that is unlawful.

For more information about the Lawyers' Committee or if you have any questions about our Terms and Conditions, please contact us by e-mail at admin@lawyerscommittee.org.

We would be happy to answer your questions or hear your concerns.

Last Updated: March 29, 2010