PLEASE READ THESE TERMS OF USE CAREFULLY BEFORE USING THIS WEBSITE.

Welcome to Columbia Association’s website (“Site“). This site is presented to you by Columbia Association, Inc. Columbia Association maintains this Site to provide general information to our visitors. All use of this Site is subject to the following terms and conditions (“Terms of Use“). Columbia Association reserves the right to update these Terms of Use at any time with or without notice to you. By accessing and browsing this Site, you agree to be bound by these Terms of Use.

Certain Features Subject to Other Terms. Some of the features offered through this Site may be subject to terms of use, rules and policies in addition to or in lieu of these Terms of Use. If you choose to use any of those features, you agree that your use thereof will be subject to such additional or separate terms of use, rules and/or policies, as applicable.

Copyright. This Site, including all text, images, software and other content contained herein, is the property of the Columbia Association or its suppliers and is protected by United States and international copyright laws. The compilation and arrangement of all content on this Site is the exclusive property of Columbia Association and is protected by United States and international copyright laws. All rights reserved.

Trademarks. All of Columbia Association’s marks, graphics, logos, designs and trade names used and displayed on this Site are service marks or trademarks of the Columbia Association and are the sole and exclusive property of the Columbia Association. The “look and feel” of this Site constitutes proprietary trade dress of Columbia Association. All other trademarks not owned by Columbia Association that appear on this Site are the property of their respective owners. You may not use any such marks for any purpose whatsoever without the express prior written permission of the owner.

Use of Site; Restrictions. You may view and print material displayed on this Site subject to the following conditions: (a) the materials may be used solely for your own, personal information and not for commercial use; and (b) you must retain without modification all copyright, trademark and other proprietary notices affixed to or contained in the materials you print and all copies thereof. You may not copy or otherwise use this Site or any portion hereof, except as expressly provided above. You may not republish, frame, or otherwise exploit, modify, alter, reverse engineer or prepare derivative works from this Site or any portion hereof, except with the express prior written permission of Columbia Association. Use of data mining, robots and similar data gathering and extraction tools is expressly prohibited. Links to this Site may not be made to any page other than the home page of this site (i.e., no deep linking) without the express prior written permission of Columbia Association. Nothing contained in this Site shall be construed as conferring by implication, estoppel or otherwise any license or right under any copyright, patent, trademark or other proprietary interest of Columbia Association or any third party. Any rights not expressly granted herein are reserved.

Registration. In order to access certain features of this Site you may be required to register and obtain a unique username and password. In connection with any such registration, you agree to: (a) provide true, accurate, current and complete information about yourself as prompted by the registration form; and (b) maintain and promptly update such information to keep it true, accurate, current and complete. If you provide any information that is untrue, inaccurate, not current or incomplete, Columbia Association has the right to suspend or terminate your account and refuse any and all current and future use of this Site or any portion hereof.

You are solely responsible for maintaining the strict confidentiality of your username and password and for any charges, costs, expenses, damages, liabilities and losses you or Columbia Association may incur or suffer as a result of your failure to do so. Furthermore, you are entirely responsible for any and all activities that occur under your username and password and for ensuring that use of your account complies fully with these Terms of Use. To reduce the risk that others will gain unauthorized access to your account, you must ensure that you “log out” from your account at the end of each session. You further agree to immediately notify Columbia Association of any unauthorized use of your account or any other breach of security. You may not use anyone else’s account, at any time, without the permission of the account holder.

No Rendering of Advice. The information contained in or made available through this Site is provided for informational purposes only and should not be construed as rendering professional advice of any kind. Your use of this Site does not give rise to a client, advisory, fiduciary or professional services relationship between you and Columbia Association.

Accuracy of Information. While Columbia Association uses reasonable efforts to furnish accurate and up-to-date information, Columbia Association does not warrant that any information contained in or made available through this Site (including, without limitation, any information provided directly by representatives of Columbia Association or periodically through our newsletters) is accurate, complete, reliable, current or error-free. Columbia Association assumes no liability or responsibility for any errors or omissions in the content of this Site or such other materials or communications.

Disclaimer of Warranties and Limitations of Liability. THIS SITE IS PROVIDED BY COLUMBIA ASSOCIATION ON AN “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS. USE OF THIS SITE IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK. TO THE FULL EXTENT PERMISSIBLE BY APPLICABLE LAW, COLUMBIA ASSOCIATION AND ITS AFFILIATES AND SUPPLIERS DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE AND  NONINFRINGEMENT. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, THE COLUMBIA ASSOCIATION AND ITS AFFILIATES AND SUPPLIERS MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND AS TO THE OPERATION OR AVAILABILITY OF THIS SITE OR THE INFORMATION, CONTENT, MATERIALS, PRODUCTS OR SERVICES INCLUDED ON OR MADE AVAILABLE THROUGH THIS SITE. COLUMBIA ASSOCIATION DOES NOT WARRANT THAT THIS SITE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED OR SECURE, OR THAT THIS SITE IS FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS.

COLUMBIA ASSOCIATION AND ITS AFFILIATES AND SUPPLIERS WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES OF ANY KIND ARISING FROM OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE USE OF THIS SITE, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, PUNITIVE AND CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, LOSS OF PROFITS, GOODWILL, DATA OR USE), EVEN IF SUCH PARTIES HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. THE FOREGOING LIMITATION SHALL APPLY REGARDLESS OF THE FORM OF ACTION AND WHETHER IN CONTRACT, BREACH OF WARRANTY, TORT, NEGLIGENCE, STRICT LIABILITY OR OTHERWISE, AND NOTWITHSTANDING ANY FAILURE OF ESSENTIAL PURPOSE OF ANY LIMITED REMEDY. CERTAIN STATE LAWS DO NOT ALLOW LIMITATIONS ON IMPLIED WARRANTIES OR THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF CERTAIN DAMAGES. IF THESE LAWS APPLY TO YOU, YOU MIGHT HAVE ADDITIONAL RIGHTS.

Links to Third Party Websites. For your convenience, this Site may provide hyperlinks to websites and servers maintained by third parties. Columbia Association does not control, evaluate, endorse or guarantee content found in such sites. Columbia Association does not assume any responsibility or liability for the actions, products, services or content of such sites or the parties that operate them. You should carefully review their privacy statements and conditions of use. Your use of such sites is entirely at your own risk.

Feedback and Other Submissions. All comments, feedback, suggestions, ideas and similar submissions furnished to Columbia Association in connection with your use of this Site shall be deemed assigned to and shall remain the property of Columbia Association. No such submissions shall be subject to any obligation of confidence on the part of Columbia Association, and Columbia Association shall be entitled to unrestricted use and disclosure of such submissions throughout the world for any purpose whatsoever, commercial or otherwise, without any obligation to compensate you for such use or disclosure. You represent that you have the lawful right to furnish such submissions to Columbia Association and agree that you will not submit any information unless you are legally entitled to do so.

Termination or Suspension of Access; Modifications to Site. Columbia Association reserves the right to terminate, suspend or otherwise restrict your access to this Site, or any portion hereof, with or without notice at any time for any reason whatsoever including, but not limited to, your violation of these Terms of Use or any inappropriate or unlawful behavior on your part. In addition, Columbia Association reserves the right to modify or discontinue this Site or any portion hereof at any time with or without notice. Columbia Association shall not be liable to you or any third party for any such termination, suspension, restriction, modification or discontinuance.

Dispute Resolution. Any controversy or claim arising out of or relating to these Terms of Use or the breach hereof, or otherwise arising out of or relating to your use of the Site shall be settled by arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association, and judgment on the award rendered by the arbitrator may be entered in any court having jurisdiction thereof. The arbitration shall be decided by one (1) arbitrator, who shall be an attorney having experience and familiarity with  information  technology disputes. The language of the arbitration shall be English. The place of the arbitration shall be Columbia, Maryland, USA. The arbitrator may award to the prevailing party, if any, as determined by the arbitrator, its costs and expenses, including attorneys’ fees. Except as may be required by law, neither a party nor an arbitrator may disclose the existence, content, or results of any arbitration hereunder without the prior written consent of both parties. To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, no arbitration hereunder shall be joined to an arbitration involving any other party subject to these Terms of Use, whether through class arbitration proceedings or otherwise. Each party hereby waives its right to a trial by jury for any disputes between the parties.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, nothing in these Terms of Use shall preclude Columbia Association, at its sole option, from bringing proceedings before the courts of any competent jurisdiction, for interim or conservatory measures, including but not limited to a temporary restraining order, temporary injunction, permanent injunction and/or order of specific performance, to enforce its intellectual property and propriety rights. Each party hereby irrevocably (i) submits to the exclusive jurisdiction of the federal and state courts of the State of Maryland, (ii) waives any objection which it may have at any time to the laying of venue of any proceedings brought in such courts, and (iii) waives any claim that such proceedings have been brought in an inconvenient forum.

Indemnification. You agree to indemnify and hold harmless Columbia Association, its affiliates and suppliers, and each of their respective directors, officers, employees and agents, from any claim or demand (including but not limited to reasonable attorneys’ fees) made by any third party due to or arising out of or in connection with any materials you submit, post, transmit or make available through the Site, your use of the Site, your violation of these Terms of Use, your violation of any rights of another or any use of your account. For purposes of these Terms of Use, “suppliers” means all parties retained by Columbia Association to provide or maintain any portion of the Site, including but not limited to any third party content providers.

Applicable Laws; Exclusive Jurisdiction. Columbia Association controls this Site from Columbia, Maryland, USA. Columbia Association makes no representation that this Site or any content on or accessed through this Site is appropriate or available for use in other jurisdictions. You are responsible for compliance with all local laws and regulations, as applicable. Use of this Site and any dispute arising therefrom shall be governed by the laws of the State of Maryland, USA, without regard to principles of conflict of laws. The parties hereby agree to waive and opt-out of any application of the Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act (UCITA), or any version thereof, adopted by any State in any form. SUBJECT TO THE DISPUTE RESOLUTION PROCEDURES SET FORTH ABOVE, ANY LEGAL ACTION OR PROCEEDING ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THESE TERMS OF USE OR YOUR ACCESS TO OR USE OF THIS SITE SHALL BE INSTITUTED ONLY IN A STATE OR FEDERAL COURT LOCATED IN THE STATE OF MARYLAND, AND YOU EXPRESSLY CONSENT TO THE EXCLUSIVE JURISDICTION OF SUCH COURTS.

Modifications. Columbia Association reserves the right to modify these Terms of Use at any time upon posting. By continuing to use this Site after any changes are posted, you acknowledge your acceptance of the revised terms and conditions. Please visit this page regularly to review the then-current terms and conditions to which you are bound, which shall be effective as of the date set forth in the then-current terms and conditions.

Consent to Electronic Delivery of Notices. To the extent Columbia Association is required to provide you with any notices, agreements or other information regarding the Site, you agree that Columbia Association may deliver such information electronically, including without limitation posting notices on the home page of the Site. To withdraw your consent to receive notices electronically, you must give notice to Columbia Association and discontinue your use of the Site.

Privacy. Please review our Privacy Policy, which also governs your visit to the Site and is incorporated herein by reference, to understand our practices.

Miscellaneous. These Terms of Use, including any specific guidelines or rules posted by Columbia Association from time to time, constitute the entire agreement between you and the Columbia Association with respect to your access to and use of the Site and supersede any prior agreements, whether written or oral, between you and Columbia Association with respect to the subject matter hereof. Notwithstanding the foregoing, you also may be subject to additional or separate terms of use, rules and/or policies that may apply when you use certain features made available through this Site. If there is a determination that any provision of these Terms of Use is invalid or unenforceable under applicable law, that determination will not affect the rest of these Terms of Use, and these Terms of Use shall be deemed amended to the minimum extent necessary to make them valid and enforceable. The failure of Columbia Association to exercise or enforce any right or provision of these Terms of Use shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision.  Regardless of any statute or law to the contrary, any claim or cause of action against Columbia Association arising out of or related to use of this Site or under these Terms of Use must be filed within one (1) year after such claim or cause of action arose or be forever barred. The section titles in these Terms of Use are for convenience only and have no legal or contractual effect.

Minors. This Site is not intended for use by or availability to minors. IF YOU ARE NOT LEGALLY AN ADULT UNDER THE LAW WHERE YOU LIVE OR IF YOU ARE UNDER 13 YEARS OF AGE, YOU MAY NOT ACCESS OR USE THIS SITE.

Contact Information. If you have any questions regarding this Site, please contact Columbia Association at communications@columbiaassociation.org.

 

Effective Date:  These Terms of Use were last updated on September 2019.