Terms of Use

Terms of Use

Last Updated February 7, 2023

These Terms of Use (“Terms”) govern your use of theballingerfamily.com and other websites (the “Site”) owned and operated by The Ballinger Family. These Terms will remain in effect as long as you access the Site. Note that The Ballinger Family online channels on social media and other platforms are subject to the terms and conditions of the applicable third-party platform, not these Terms. If you have any questions regarding our Site or these Terms, please contact us at [email protected]. 

1. ACCEPTANCE

To access the Site, we require you to be at least 18 years of age or at least 16 years of age with permission from your legal guardian’s to use the Site. You may not access or use the Site if you are barred from doing so under applicable law or have previously been suspended or removed from our Site. By using the Site, you represent and warrant that you meet all of the foregoing eligibility requirements. If you do not meet these eligibility requirements or if you do not agree to these Terms, you may not use the Site.

By accessing or using the Site in any manner, you accept and consent to these Terms and all documents incorporated herein by reference. You can also accept the Terms by clicking to accept or agree to the Terms where that option is made available to you in any agreement or electronic form, by creating an account, or by clicking “sign up” or any similar mechanism. You also acknowledge that you have read and understand our Privacy Policy, which is part of these Terms of Use. If you do not agree to these Terms, do not access or use our Site.

THESE TERMS INCLUDE A CLASS ACTION WAIVER AND AN ARBITRATION PROVISION THAT GOVERNS ANY DISPUTES BETWEEN YOU AND US.

2. REGISTRATION

To enjoy certain features on the Site, you may be required to register or create an account. You agree to provide true, accurate, current, and complete information about yourself and to maintain and promptly update your information as needed. Any information that you provide to us will also be subject to our Privacy Policy. You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of any login credentials, and you are responsible for all activities that occur using your credentials. You agree to notify us immediately of any unauthorized access to or use of your login credentials or any other breach of security. The Ballinger Family is not liable for any loss or damages caused by your failure to maintain the confidentiality of your login credentials or your choice to share any data associated with your account with others.

3. OWNERSHIP

Unless otherwise expressly indicated, the information contained on the Site, including but not limited to all images, illustrations, designs, photographs, video clips, text, graphics, icons, designs, software code, written information and screens appearing on the Site, and other materials, as well as names, logos, taglines, trade dress, and other trademarks displayed on the Site, are copyrights, trademarks, trade dress or other intellectual property owned, controlled, or licensed by the Ballinger Family (collectively, the “Contents”). The Contents are protected by U.S. and foreign copyright, trademark, trade dress, or other proprietary right laws and international conventions. 

Nothing in these Terms is intended to transfer to you any rights to the Contents or grant you any license to the Contents, except as specifically set forth in these Terms or the applicable license terms pertaining to certain Site features. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, you do not have permission to copy, reproduce, make derivative works from, distribute, republish, download, display, perform, post electronically or mechanically, transmit, record, or mirror any of the Contents without the prior written permission of the Ballinger Family. You may only display, download, and print in hard copy format the Contents for the purposes of using the Site as an internal or personal business resource.  Only a duly authorized officer of the Ballinger Family may grant permission or a license to use any of the Contents; any attempted grant or similar promise by anyone other than a duly authorized agent of the Ballinger Family is invalid.

4. LICENSE GRANT

As a Site visitor, the Ballinger Family grants you a limited, non-exclusive, nontransferable, non-sublicensable, revocable license to access the Site and use the Site features only for your own personal, non-commercial purposes and subject to these Terms. The Site (including all Site contents) is licensed to you, not sold. Nothing in these Terms is intended to, or may be construed as, conferring by implication, estoppel, or otherwise any ownership, license, or other grant of right to any copyright, trademark, or other intellectual property of the Ballinger Family or any third party, except as expressly provided in these Terms.  We reserve all rights not expressly granted in these Terms.

5. YOUR CONTENT

You may have the option to post content to the Site (“Your Content”). We do not control, endorse, or verify any of Your Content. You understand that we may use Your Content to provide the Site and for statistical, analytical, reporting, and other purposes as described in our Privacy Policy. By transmitting or submitting Your Content on the Site, you affirm, represent and warrant that such transmission or submission is: (a) accurate and not confidential; (b) not in violation of any applicable laws, contractual restrictions or other third party rights, and that you have permission from any third party whose personal information or intellectual property is comprised in Your Content; and (c) free of viruses, adware, spyware, worms or other malicious code. You further acknowledge and agree that any of your personal information within Your Content will at all times be processed by us in accordance with our Privacy Policy. If there is content that is objectionable for any of the above reasons or otherwise, please let us know by clicking on the “Contact Us” link at the bottom of any page on the Site and then send us an email to [email protected]. We will review your concerns, but we have the right in our sole discretion to make the final judgment on whether any Term has been violated and to determine what, if any, action should be taken.

6. Feedback

You may from time-to-time provide us materials, communications, suggestions, comments, improvements, ideas, or other feedback related to the Site (“Feedback”). You hereby additionally grant to us all rights, titles, and interests in and to any Feedback. In the event this grant is not sufficient for us to fully realize and use the Feedback, you grant us a royalty-free, worldwide, transferable, sub-licensable, irrevocable, perpetual license to use and incorporate into the Siteany of the Feedback. By providing Feedback, you are representing that the Feedback is not subject to any intellectual property claim by a third party or any license terms which would require products or services derived from that Feedback to be licensed to or from, or shared with, any third party.

7. TRADEMARKS

The Ballinger Family’s unregistered trademarks, including without limitation The Ballinger Family logo and any registered trademarks as well as trade dress, including names, logos, taglines, trade dress, and other trademarks, may not be copied, imitated, or used, whether in whole, partial or modified form, without the prior written permission of the Ballinger Family. You may not use any meta tags or any other hidden text utilizing our name, trademark, or product name without our prior written permission. Third-party trademarks and service marks used on the Site are the property of their respective owners, and we use them with their consent. The Ballinger Family and the other licensors of the marks on the Site reserve all rights with respect to all Contents and all intellectual property.

8. UNSOLICITED SUBMISSIONS

Please do not send or provide any unsolicited ideas, works, materials, proposals, suggestions, artwork, content or the like, including for advertising campaigns, promotions, products, services, technologies, product enhancements, processes, marketing strategies, product names, content or creative materials (all of the foregoing “Unsolicited Submissions”) in any form to the Ballinger Family or any of its employees or contractors. We often receive Unsolicited Submissions that duplicate efforts made previously by members of our own staff or by other third parties, or we may have already used Unsolicited Submissions similar to the material being submitted which was previously submitted by others. As a result of the legal and business complexities, we regret that it has become necessary for us to adopt a strict policy against accepting or considering any Unsolicited Submissions sent to us. The purpose of this policy is to avoid potential misunderstandings or disputes when our products, services, technologies, advertising, promotions, marketing strategies or content might seem similar to Unsolicited Submissions provided to the Ballinger Family. If, despite our request that you not send us your Unsolicited Submissions, you still submit them, then regardless of what your correspondence says, you understand and agree that the following terms will apply to your submissions: (a) your Unsolicited Submissions and their contents will automatically become the property of the Ballinger Family, without any compensation to you; (b) there is no obligation for the Ballinger Family to review, consider, or otherwise use the Unsolicited Submissions; (c) the Ballinger Family may use or redistribute the Unsolicited Submissions and their contents for any purpose and in any way; and (d) there is no obligation to keep any submissions confidential.

9. SITE USE

You agree to not rent, retransmit, disclose, publish, sell, assign, lease, sublicense, market or transfer the Site or any Site contents or use the Site in any manner not expressly authorized by these Terms. You agree not to copy, reverse engineer, translate, port, modify, or make derivative works of any portion of the Site. Tampering with the Site, conducting fraudulent activities on the Site and all other illegal activities are prohibited and may subject a user to legal action and/or termination of your access to the Site. 

You further agree not to: (a) upload any of Your Content or other data that contains software viruses or is designed to interrupt, destroy, or limit the functionality of any equipment or services, or that contains other harmful, disruptive, or destructive files or content; (b) use or attempt to use another user’s account without authorization, or impersonate any person or entity; (c) harvest, solicit, or collect information of other users for any reason whatsoever, including, without limitation, for sending unsolicited communications; (d) post, advertise, or promote products or services commercially, or upload any content that is advertising, promotional material, junk mail, spam, or a contest or sweepstake, or that furthers or promotes criminal activity; or (e) use the Site in any manner that, in our sole discretion, is objectionable or restricts or inhibits any other person from using or enjoying the Site, or which may expose us or our users to any harm or liability of any type.

10. PROHIBITED ACTS

You are strictly prohibited from violating or trying to violate our security features, such as by (a) accessing data not intended for you or logging onto a server or an account which you are not authorized to access; (b) attempting to probe, scan, or test the vulnerability of a system or network or to breach security or authentication measures unless we expressly authorize that you do so in writing; (c) attempting to interfere with service to any user, host, or network, such as by means of submitting a virus to the Site, overloading, “flooding,” “spamming,” “mail bombing,” or “crashing”; or (d) sending unsolicited email, including promotions and/or advertising of products or services forging any TCP/IP packet header or any part of the header information in any email or newsgroup posting. You hereby agree not to use any device, software, or routine to interfere, or try to interfere, with the proper working of our Site or any activity being conducted on the Site. You further agree not to use, or try to use, any engine, software, tool, agent, or other device or mechanism (including browsers, spiders, robots, avatars, or intelligent agents) to navigate or search the Site other than the search engine and search agents that we make available via the Site and other than the generally available third-party web browsers. If you violate our system or network security, you may face civil or criminal liability. We will investigate occurrences that may involve such violations. We may involve or cooperate with law enforcement authorities in prosecuting users who are involved in such violations.

11. THIRD PARTIES

Third-party products and services made available through the Site are made and offered directly by the applicable third party. When you pursue or purchase any such product or service, you acknowledge that your customer relationship is directly with that third party and not with the Ballinger Family. Additionally, your interaction with, or participation in promotions of, third parties found on or through the Site, including payment and delivery of goods or services, and any other terms, are solely between you and such third party. You are not obligated to use or transact business with any third party that appears on the Site. You agree that the Ballinger Family shall not be liable for any loss or damage of any kind incurred by you as a result of dealings with third party services or advertisers made available through the Site. The Site may also include links to other websites or resources. The Ballinger Family does not endorse and is not responsible or liable for any content, advertising, products, or other materials on or available from such websites or resources. You acknowledge and agree that the Ballinger Family is not responsible for the availability of such external websites or resources.

12. COMMUNICATIONS

As part of your use of the Site you may receive service notifications, alerts, emails, or other communications from the Ballinger Family or our affiliates. You agree to the receipt of these communications to use the Site, and you will not be able to opt-out from receiving necessary messages for the Site. We may also send you marketing communications by email, mail, or other methods. You can opt-out of marketing communications by adjusting your Site settings, unsubscribing from our marketing emails, or by emailing us at [email protected].

13. COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT/DMCA NOTICE

The Ballinger Family takes claims of copyright infringement seriously. It is our policy, in appropriate circumstances and at our sole discretion, to respond to notices of alleged copyright infringement in accordance with the procedure outlined in the Online Copyright Infringement Liability Limitation Act of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (17 U.S.C. § 512) (“DMCA”). Upon receipt of a DMCA compliant notice, it is our policy to expeditiously remove or disable access to the content that is the subject of the notice. If you are a copyright owner or an authorized agent thereof, and you wish to file a notice of infringement with us, then you may contact us at [email protected].

Please include the following information with your complaint (you should speak with your legal counsel or See 17 U.S.C. § 512(c)(3) to confirm these requirements): (a) a physical or electronic signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed; (b) identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed, or, if multiple copyrighted works on the Site are covered by a single notification, a representative list of such works at that site; (c) identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity and that is to be removed or access to which is to be disabled, and information reasonably sufficient to permit us to locate the material; (d) information reasonably sufficient to permit us to contact you, such as an address, telephone number, and if available, an electronic mail address at which you may be contacted; (e) a statement that you have a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and (f) a statement that the information in the notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that you are authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.

You acknowledge that if you fail to comply with all requirements of this section, your DMCA notice may not be valid. If material is believed in good faith by us to infringe a copyright or otherwise violate any intellectual property rights, we will remove or disable access to the material. Before submitting a notice of claimed copyright infringement, please note that doing so can have serious legal consequences. Be sure to consider whether the “fair use” doctrine or another similar limitation of copyright rights applies in your circumstances. Please note that under Section 512(f) of the DMCA, any person who knowingly materially misrepresents that material or activity is infringing may be subject to liability. If you are unsure whether the material available online infringes your copyright, we suggest that you contact an attorney before sending us a notice.

14. TERMINATION

These Terms remain in effect as long as you use the Site or its Contents. You may terminate these Terms at any time by notifying us in writing and ceasing all use of the Site and Contents. If you have an account, you must deactivate your account by deleting it or submitting a written request that we delete it for you. Once deactivated, your account data may not be reinstated. If you cancel or otherwise terminate these Terms, if applicable we will retain any fees or other amounts you already paid to us under these Terms.

We may terminate your use of the Site and these Terms immediately upon giving notice to you if you breach any of these Terms or any other agreement between you and us. In addition, we may terminate your use of the Site and these Terms at any time and for any other reason. Cause for such termination includes, but is not limited to, (a) breaches or violations of these Terms or any agreement or policy incorporated herein; (b) requests by law enforcement or other government agencies; (c) a request by you (self-initiated account deletions); (d) discontinuance or material modification to the Site (or any portion thereof); (e) unexpected technical or security issues or problems; (f) extended periods of inactivity; and/or (g) nonpayment of any fees owed by you in connection with the Site. Termination of your account may include (i) removal of access to all offerings within the Site; (ii) deletion of your data and User Content; and (iii) barring of further use of the Site. You agree that all terminations for cause shall be made in the Ballinger Family’s sole discretion and that the Ballinger Family shall not be liable to you or any third party for any termination of your account or access to the Site. Sections 2, 6, 7, 9, 10, and 15 through 19 shall survive termination of your account and/or the Terms.

Upon termination of these Terms (x) the rights and licenses granted to you herein shall terminate as to the terminated rights; (y) you shall cease all use of the Site that have been terminated; and (z) the Ballinger Family may at its own discretion remove and/or purge data, Account information, and any other information obtained by us in connection with providing you the Site. We reserve the right to disable any username, password, or other identifier, whether chosen by you or provided by us, at any time in our sole discretion for any or no reason, including if, in our opinion, you have violated any provision of these Terms. 

15. DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES

YOU USE THE SITE AT YOUR OWN RISK. THE SITE AND CONTENTS THEREOF ARE PROVIDED TO YOU “AS IS,” WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, THE BALLINGER FAMILY AND ITS AFFILIATES, OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, PARTNERS AND LICENSORS EXPLICITLY DISCLAIM ALL EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO THESE TERMS OR THE SITE, INCLUDING ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, QUIET ENJOYMENT OR NON-INFRINGEMENT, AND ANY WARRANTIES ARISING OUT OF COURSE OF DEALING OR USAGE OF TRADE. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, we make no warranty that the Site or Contents will meet your requirements or be available on an uninterrupted, secure, or error-free basis. We make no warranty regarding the quality, accuracy, timeliness, truthfulness, completeness, or reliability of the Site or any Contents.

16. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY

NEITHER THE BALLINGER FAMILY NOR ANY OTHER PARTY INVOLVED IN CREATING, PRODUCING, OR DELIVERING THE SITE WILL BE LIABLE FOR ANY INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, INCLUDING PERSONAL INJURY, LOST PROFITS, LOSS OF DATA OR GOODWILL, SERVICE INTERRUPTION, COMPUTER DAMAGE, OR SYSTEM FAILURE OR THE COST OF SUBSTITUTE SERVICES ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THESE TERMS OR FROM THE USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE THE SITE, WHETHER BASED ON WARRANTY, CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE), PRODUCT LIABILITY, OR ANY OTHER LEGAL THEORY, AND WHETHER OR NOT THE BALLINGER FAMILY HAS BEEN INFORMED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE, EVEN IF A LIMITED REMEDY SET FORTH HEREIN IS FOUND TO HAVE FAILED OF ITS ESSENTIAL PURPOSE.

IN NO EVENT WILL THE BALLINGER FAMILY’S TOTAL LIABILITY ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THESE TERMS OR FROM THE USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE THE SITE EXCEED THE AMOUNT of MONIES YOU HAVE PAID TO US TO USE THE SITE OR, IF YOU HAVE NOT PAID ANY MONIES TO US RELATED TO THE SITE, ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS ($100). THE EXCLUSIONS AND LIMITATIONS OF DAMAGES SET FORTH HEREIN ARE FUNDAMENTAL ELEMENTS OF THE BASIS OF THE BARGAIN BETWEEN THE BALLINGER FAMILY AND YOU. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF LIABILITY FOR CONSEQUENTIAL OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES, SO THE ABOVE LIMITATION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.

17. INDEMNIFICATION

You agree to indemnify and hold THE BALLINGER FAMILY and its subsidiaries, affiliates, officers, agents, representatives, employees, partners and licensors harmless from any claims, suits, actions, demands, disputes, allegations, or investigations brought by any third party, governmental authority, or industry body, and all liabilities, damages, losses, costs, and expenses, including without limitation reasonable attorneys’ fees, arising out of Content you submit, post, transmit or otherwise seek to make available through the Site, your use of the Site, your activities THAT generate the USER Content you post or seek to post on the Site, your connection to the Site, your violation of theSE Terms, or your violation of any rights of another person or entity.

18. dispute resolution

PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING SECTION CAREFULLY BECAUSE IT CONTAINS A CLASS ACTION WAIVER, REQUIRES YOU TO ARBITRATE CERTAIN DISPUTES, AND CLAIMS AND LIMITS THE MANNER IN WHICH YOU CAN SEEK RELIEF FROM US. You agree that any dispute, controversy or claim between you and the Ballinger Family arising out of or relating to: (a) these Terms, or the breach thereof; (b) our provision of the Site; (c) your access to or use of the Site; or (d) any alleged violation of any federal, state, or local law, statute, or ordinance (each such dispute, controversy or claim, a “Dispute”) will be governed by the arbitration procedure outlined below.

1. Informal Dispute Resolution. We want to address your concerns without the necessity of a formal legal case. Before filing a claim against the Ballinger Family, you agree to try to resolve the Dispute informally by contacting [email protected]. The Ballinger Family will contact you by email as part of a good faith effort to resolve the Dispute informally. If a Dispute is not resolved within 30 days after submission, you or the Ballinger Family may bring a formal proceeding.
2. Arbitration Agreement. You and the Ballinger Family each agree to resolve any Disputes through final and binding arbitration administered by JAMS Mediation, Arbitration and ADR Site. The arbitration will be held in Santa Barbara, California, United States, or any other location we agree to. The JAMS rules will govern payment of all arbitration fees. Either party may bring a lawsuit solely for injunctive relief to stop unauthorized use or abuse of our Site, or infringement of intellectual property rights (for example, trademark, trade secret, copyright, or patent rights) without first engaging in arbitration or the informal dispute resolution process described above.
3. Class Action Waiver. You may only resolve Disputes with the Ballinger Family on an individual basis and may not bring a claim as a plaintiff or a class member in a class, consolidated, or representative action. Class arbitrations, class actions, private attorney general actions, and consolidation with other arbitrations are not allowed under these Terms.
4. Governing Law. Except as otherwise required by applicable law, the Terms and the resolution of any Disputes shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of California without regard to its conflict of laws principles. The Federal Arbitration Act, California state law, and applicable U.S. federal law, without regard to the choice or conflicts of law provisions, will govern these Terms. Foreign laws do not apply. The United Nations on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods and any laws based on the Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act (UCITA) shall not apply to these Terms. You hereby consent to the exclusive jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in Santa Barbara, California, USA to enforce these Terms or adjudicate any other Dispute, and you and the Ballinger Family each agree to waive the right to a jury trial. Except as otherwise required by applicable law, if the agreement to arbitrate is found not to apply to you or your claim, you and the Ballinger Family agree that any judicial proceeding (other than small claims actions) will be brought in the federal or state courts in Santa Barbara, California. 
5. Limitation on Claims. Regardless of any statute or law to the contrary, any claim or cause of action arising out of or related to your use of the Site must be filed within one (1) year after such claim or cause of action arose, or else that claim or cause of action will be barred forever.
6. MISCELLANEOUS

You may not assign, delegate, or transfer these Terms or your rights or obligations hereunder in any way (by operation of law or otherwise) without prior written consent from the Ballinger Family. We may transfer, assign, or delegate these Terms and our rights and obligations without consent. These Terms constitute the entire agreement between the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof. If any provision of these Terms is held by a court of competent jurisdiction to be contrary to law, the provision shall be modified by the court and interpreted so as to best accomplish the objectives of the original provision to the fullest extent permitted by law, and the remaining provisions of these Terms shall remain in effect. Our failure to enforce any provision of these Terms will not be deemed a waiver of that provision or any other provision of these Terms. If any provision of these Terms is held invalid or unenforceable under applicable law, that portion shall be construed in a manner consistent with applicable law to accomplish, as nearly as possible, the objective thereof, or shall be severed from the document if, and solely, to the limited extent such construction is not possible, and the remaining portion of these Terms shall remain in full force and effect. No joint venture, partnership, employment, or agency relationship exists between you and us as a result of these Terms or your use of the Site.

20. Changes to These Terms

We are constantly trying to improve our Site, so these Terms may need to change from time to time. We reserve the right to modify these Terms at any time by updating this posting without notice. All changes are effective immediately when posted. If you use the Site in any way after a change to the Terms is effective, that means you agree to those changes.