Last updated: January, 2020
Welcome to firststepsnetwork.com which, together with any First Steps-branded websites, web pages, mobile applications and mobile websites operated by us, shall be referred to herein as the “Site”. By using our Site and the services provided on the Site or via any other channels, including over the telephone (the “Services”), you are agreeing to comply with and be bound by the following terms of use, as well as any other policies, rules and terms and conditions which are set forth on the Site or in Service-related materials (collectively, the “Terms”). Please review these Terms carefully because the Terms constitute a legal agreement between you and First Steps Network, LLC, a Georgia limited liability company (“First Steps”). If you do not agree with any of these Terms, you should not use this Site or our Services. In these Terms, “you,” “your,” “user(s),” “Parent(s),” “Sitter(s)” or Member(s)” refers to you and any other user or viewer of our Site and Services. Unless otherwise stated, “we,” “us” or “our” will refer collectively to First Steps and its subsidiaries, owners, managers, employees, agents and contractors.
Acceptance of the Terms
In order to make use of the Services or access the Site, you must first agree to these Terms. These Terms shall also apply to your use of any reports, forms, applications, data, documents or other materials available via the Site or the Services. Do not use the Services or access the Site if you do not agree to these Terms. You can accept these Terms by browsing the Site or using the Services, whereby you understand and agree that we will treat your browsing or the Site or use of the Services as acceptance of these Terms. We may revise and update these Terms at any time without notice by posting such revised or updated Terms on this Site. Any changes to these Terms will become effective upon posting such revisions or updates. If you continuously use the Services or access the Site, you are required to periodically check our Terms for any changes. Your continued usage of the Services or access of the Site will mean that you accept the then-current Terms at the time of such usage or access, as the case may be. You agree that your use of the Site and our Services, and our use of your data, shall be in accordance with our Privacy Policy located on the Site. These Terms and the Privacy Policy constitute the entire and only agreement between us and you, and supersedes all prior or contemporaneous agreements, representations, warranties and understandings with respect to, your use of the Site and any content, products or services provided by or through the Site.
Membership
User Eligibility, Registration and Verification
The Site and the Services are available only to individuals who can form legally binding contracts under United States law. Further, our Site and Services are only available to individuals who are at least eighteen (18) years old, are not a competitor of First Steps or are using the Site or our Services for any reasons that are competitive with First Steps and that meet all qualifications set forth by First Steps in its sole discretion. In addition, if you are registering as a Sitter, you must be legally permitted to work within the United States. You may not use the Services or access the Site and may not accept these Terms if you are a person barred from receiving the Services or accessing the Site under the laws of the United States or other countries, including the country in which you reside or from which you use the Services and/or access the Site.
To use the Site or the Services, you may be required to provide information about yourself as part of the user registration and/or application process in order to use the Site and Services. You agree that (a) any registration or user-related information you give to us will be accurate, correct and current, (b) you are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of user names and passwords associated with any account you use to access the Site or the Services, (c) you will be responsible to us for all activities that occur under your account and/or user name, and (d) if you become aware of any unauthorized use of your account, user name and/or password, you agree to notify us immediately. You are solely responsible for providing accurate, current and complete information in connection with your application and/or registration for use of the Site and the Services.
By requesting to use, registering to use and/or using the Site or Services, you represent and warrant that you have the right, authority and capacity to enter into these Terms and you commit to abide thereby. In addition, you represent and warrant that you and each member of your household (i) have never been the subject of a complaint, restraining order or any other legal action involving, arrested for, charged with, or convicted of any felony, any criminal offense involving violence, abuse, neglect, fraud or larceny, or any offense that involves endangering the safety of others, and (ii) have not been and are not currently required to register as a sex offender with any governmental entity. You hereby authorize us to verify any and all representations and warranties you make to us, and you acknowledge that we reserve the right, though we are not obligated, to verify such representations and warranties on an ongoing basis, which may include without limitation conducting criminal background checks or obtaining data from a variety of third party sources including, without limitation, information from national criminal databases, sex offender registries, certain media streams, terrorist watch lists, criminal and fugitive watch lists, fraud watch lists, law enforcement reports, and other data. Should we determine that you have violated any representation or warranty or any other provision of these Terms, we make take any action we deem appropriate in our sole discretion, which may include but is not limited to suspending and/or terminating your membership and registration. You also hereby represent, understand and expressly agree that we do not have control over or assume any responsibility for the quality, accuracy, or reliability of the information obtained during the verification process. BY AGREEING TO THESE TERMS, YOU AGREE TO ALLOW FIRST STEPS TO PERFORM THE VERIFICATIONS DESCRIBED ABOVE. IF YOU DO NOT WANT THESE VERIFICATIONS TO BE PERFORMED, YOU SHOULD NOT USE FIRST STEPS. NO FURTHER CONSENT FROM YOU IS REQUIRED FOR THESE VERIFICATIONS TO BE PERFORMED. THOUGH FIRST STEPS PERFORMS SOME VERIFICATIONS WITH RESPECT TO PARENTS, IT DOES NOT AT THIS TIME PERFORM, NOR DOES IT CONTEMPLATE PERFORMING, BACKGROUND CHECKS ON PARENTS.
Costs of Membership
Members must pay for Services. Sitters must pay an application fee of $39.99, and $19.99 annually thereafter, which covers his or her background check and training(s) offered. Parents must pay a first year enrollment and annual fee of $249.99, and $149.99 annually thereafter. Members will be assessed a fee upon initial registration and each year thereafter. In addition, the user is responsible for any state or local sales taxes associated with the Services purchased. All payments for services and/or products are non-refundable and no refunds or credits will be given on unused or partially-used services and/or products. In the Company’s sole and absolute discretion, it may allow for a partial refund if a customer is dissatisfied with the services and/or products within the first year of customer’s use. Intent to cancel ongoing services and/or products must be provided by customer to the Company in writing no less than 60 days prior to the renewal date in order to prevent credit card authorization of fees for the following year.
By registering as a user, you authorize First Steps to charge your chosen payment provider according to the fees to which you subscribe. We reserve the right to correct any errors or mistakes that it makes even if it has already requested or received payment. If you decide to purchase additional Services and we already have your credit card on file as a result of prior purchases you have made, we may charge that credit card for such Services.
Parent subscriptions will continue for a specified subscription period. At the end of such subscription period, and again after any subsequent subscription period, your subscription will be terminated and you will be required to sign up for a subsequent subscription period in order to continue to use the Services.
Group Memberships
Group memberships to First Steps are available for hotels, registered wedding planners, condominium associations, etc. A group representative must contact First Steps Atlanta, LLC for details about these memberships and group memberships may be subject to additional agreements. These Terms are application to each member of such group in his or her capacity as a Sitter or Parent, as applicable.
Our Services
Our role is to help connect Parents and Sitters by allowing them to apply/register on our Site and providing search functionality in order for Parents and Sitters to connect and help make informed decisions regarding childcare. Our Services continue to grow and change. Please refer to our Site for further information about the Services we provide.
WE ARE NOT AN EMPLOYMENT SERVICE AND DO NOT INDEPENDENTLY CONTRACT OUT OR ENTER INTO A PARTNERSHIP OR JOINT VENTURE WITH ANY MEMBERS. THERE IS NO LEGAL AFFILIATION WITH FIRST STEPS BASED SOLELY ON MEMBERSHIP OR REGISTRATION WITH US. PARENTS ARE THE POTENTIAL EMPLOYERS OF SITTERS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR COMPLIANCE WITH ALL APPLICABLE EMPLOYMENT AND OTHER LAWS IN CONNECTION WITH ANY EMPLOYMENT RELATIONSHIP THEY ESTABLISH (FOR EXAMPLE, PAYROLL, TAX AND MINIMUM WAGE LAWS), OR SITTERS MAY BE CONSIDERED INDEPENDENT CONTRACTORS OF PARENTS AND THE PARTIES SHALL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY OBLIGATIONS IN CONNECTION WITH SUCH RELATIONSHIP. ALL RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN MEMBERS ARE MAINTAINED INDEPENDENTLY BY SUCH MEMBERS AND WE ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE OR LIABLE FOR THE ACTIONS OF ANY SUCH MEMBERS. AT ANY AND ALL TIMES, MEMBERS SHOULD ENTER INTO RELATIONSHIPS WITH ONE ANOTHER WITH REASONABLE CAUTION, EXERCISING COMMON SENSE AND REMAINING MINDFUL OF ALL POTENTIAL RISKS. WE DO NOT HAVE CONTROL OVER THE QUALITY OF THE SERVICES ACTUALLY DELIVERED BY SITTERS, NOR OF THE INTEGRITY, RESPONSIBILITY OR ACTIONS OF MEMBERS.
PLEASE PAY CAREFUL ATTENTION TO THE FOLLOWING: ANY ISSUES CONCERNING THE CONDUCT OF A PARENT OR SITTER INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, THE SERVICES RECEIVED BY THE PARENT OR PAYMENT DUE TO THE SITTER, MUST BE RESOLVED DIRECTLY BY THE PARENT AND THE SITTER. ALTHOUGH FIRST STEPS TAKES REASONABLE STEPS TO ENSURE THE QUALITY OF SITTERS, FIRST STEPS IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY OF THE ACTIONS OF A SITTER; IF YOU ARE A MEMBER AND DO NOT AGREE TO HOLD FIRST STEPS HARMLESS FROM ANY CLAIM CONCERNING THE ADEQUACY OF A SITTER OF THE ACTIONS OF A SITTER, DO NOT USE THE SERVICES. FIRST STEPS WILL NOT BE HELD RESPONSIBLE AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY LIABILITY WHATSOEVER FOR ANY CLAIMS, DEMANDS OR DAMAGES DIRECT OR INDIRECT OF EVERY KIND AND NATURE, KNOWN AND UNKNOWN, SUSPECTED AND UNSUSPECTED, DISCLOSED AND UNDISCLOSED, ARISING OUT OF OR IN ANY WAY CONNECTED WITH SUCH ISSUES. BY USING THIS SITE OR OUR SERVICES, YOU DO HEREBY REPRESENT, UNDERSTAND, AND EXPRESSLY AGREE TO HOLD FIRST STEPS HARMLESS FOR ANY CLAIM OR CONTROVERSY THAT MAY ARISE FROM ANY DISPUTES BETWEEN YOU AND ANY PARENT, SITTER OR OTHER USER(S) OF THE SITE. YOU AGREE TO TAKE REASONABLE PRECAUTIONS IN ALL INTERACTIONS WITH PARENTS, SITTERS OR OTHER USERS OF THE SITE OR THE SERVICES, PARTICULARLY IF YOU DECIDE TO MEET OFFLINE. WE DO NOT REFER OR RECOMMEND EITHER PARENTS OR SITTERS NOR DO WE MAKE ANY REPRESENTATIONS ABOUT THE SUITABILITY, RELIABILITY, TIMELINESS, AND ACCURACY OF THE SERVICES PROVIDED BY SITTERS OR THE INTEGRITY, RESPONSIBILITY OR ACTIONS OF PARENTS OR SITTERS WHETHER IN PUBLIC, PRIVATE OR OFFLINE INTERACTIONS. ANY SCREENING OF A PARENT OR SITTER AND HIS, HER OR ITS INFORMATION BY FIRST STEPS IS LIMITED AND SHOULD NOT BE TAKEN AS COMPLETE, ACCURATE, UP-TO-DATE OR CONCLUSIVE OF THE INDIVIDUAL’S OR ENTITY’S SUITABILITY AS AN EMPLOYER OR SITTER. USERS ARE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR INTERVIEWING, PERFORMING BACKGROUND AND REFERENCE CHECKS ON, VERIFYING INFORMATION PROVIDED BY, AND SELECTING AN APPROPRIATE PARENT OR SITTER FOR THEMSELVES OR THEIR FAMILY.
Background Checks
First Steps offers background check services which must be ordered by Sitters in order to register as a user on the Site and to receive the Services. These background check services are regulated by the Fair Credit Reporting Act (the “FCRA”), and the background reports resulting from these services are considered “consumer reports” under the FCRA. Consumer reports may contain information on your character, general reputation, personal characteristics, and mode of living, including but not limited to consumer credit, criminal history, workers’ compensation, driving, employment, military, civil, and educational data and reports.
First Steps will receive a copy of each background check you authorize. You must review and approve your background check results prior to it being shared with First Steps. First Steps will not be automatically emailed a copy of the results, but may request one in writing. First Steps may, upon request of a Parent, share the results of a background check for a prospective Sitter with such Parent. By agreeing to these Terms, you hereby consent to the sharing of such information with a Parent by First Steps.
By using the Site or Services as a Sitter, you acknowledge and agree First Steps will review and use the background checks you have authorized about yourself for the legitimate business purpose of protecting the safety and integrity of our Site and its users and reserves the right to terminate your membership based on the information contained in such report, even if such information was subsequently dismissed. If First Steps terminates your membership or access to the Site on the basis of information in a background check, we will notify you and provide you the name and contact information of the consumer reporting agency that created the report. We will also provide you a copy of the report unless the consumer reporting agency has already provided you a copy or access to it. You hereby represent, understand and expressly agree that First Steps does not have control over or assume any responsibility for the quality, accuracy, or reliability of the information included in these background checks. Furthermore, any inaccuracies in the report must be addressed with the consumer reporting agency that issued it and not First Steps.
As a Parent, you hereby represent, understand and expressly agree that those checks are not always accurate or complete (or based on information that is accurate or complete) and that the specific records searched, and the comprehensiveness of the search, varies by the type of background check ordered as well as the state and county where the check is performed. For example, many jurisdictions only include felony conviction records (and not, for example, misdemeanor or arrest records) in the national criminal database, which is the only data source utilized for preliminary background checks other than the sexual offender registry. Moreover, some states include only registered sex offenders in that database. First Steps does not assume and expressly disclaims, and you hereby agree to release First Steps from, any loss, liability, damage, or costs that may result from the use of information provided in a background report including, without limitation, the inaccuracy or incompleteness of any such information.
Disclaimers; Limitation of Liability
First Steps is not responsible for the conduct, whether online or offline, of any Parent, Sitter or other user of the Site or Services. All users, including both Parents and Sitters, hereby expressly agree not to hold First Steps (or our officers, directors, shareholders, employees, subsidiaries, other affiliates, successors, assignees, agents, representatives, advertisers, marketing partners, licensors, independent contractors, recruiters, corporate partners or resellers, hereinafter “Affiliates”) liable for the actions or inactions of any Parent, Sitter or other third party or for any information, instruction, advice or services which originated through the Site, and, to the maximum extent permissible under applicable law, First Steps and its Affiliates expressly disclaims any liability whatsoever for any damage, suits, claims, and/or controversies that have arisen or may arise, whether known or unknown therefrom.
You assume any risk, take full responsibility and waive any claims of personal injury, death or damage to personal property associated with First Steps activities, events and any other act associated with First Steps. You understand that First Steps is a networking platform whereby individual agreements and relationships are conducted outside of the authority of First Steps. We do not have any liability over the control over the services conducted between the individuals that voluntarily reach an independent agreement. You agree to these Terms freely, voluntarily, under no duress or assurance of any nature and intend it to be complete and unconditional release of all liability to the greatest extent allowed by law and agree that if any portion of these Terms is held to be invalid the balance, not withstanding, shall continue in full force and effect. You certify that you fully understand the terms and conditions and completely understand the nature of these Terms.
THE SERVICES, THE SITE, ITS CONTENT AND ANY OTHER INFORMATION PROVIDED VIA THE SERVICES OR SITE ARE PROVIDED “AS IS” AND FIRST STEPS AND ITS AFFILIATES MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, ABOUT THE SERVICES, SITE, DATA, REPORTS, FORMS, APPLICATIONS OR OTHER DOCUMENTS OR MATERIALS PROVIDED VIA THE SITE OR THE SERVICES, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION (A) WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, OR NON-INFRINGEMENT, TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMISSIBLE UNDER APPLICABLE LAW; (B) THAT ACCESS TO THE SERVICES, THE SITE OR CONTENT WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR-FREE, THAT DEFECTS WILL BE CORRECTED, OR THAT THE SITE OR THE SERVER THAT MAKES THE SERVICES AVAILABLE ARE FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS; AND (C) THAT THE USE OF, OR THE RESULTS FROM THE USE OF, THE SERVICES OR THE CONTENT WILL BE CURRENT, CORRECT, COMPLETE, ACCURATE, RELIABLE OR OTHERWISE. ACCORDINGLY, YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOUR USE OF THE SITE AND THE SERVICES IS AT YOUR OWN RISK. YOU (AND NOT THE COMPANY) ASSUME THE ENTIRE COST OF ALL NECESSARY SERVICING, REPAIR, OR CORRECTION RESULTING FROM COMPUTER MALFUNCTION, VIRUSES OR OTHER ISSUES THAT MAY ARISE FROM THE DOWNLOAD OR USE OF MATERIAL OR DATA VIA THE SERVICES OR THE SITE. APPLICABLE LAW MAY NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OF SOME OF THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES, SO THE ABOVE EXCLUSION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.
Neither First Steps, nor its Affiliates, shall be responsible or liable to you for any direct, indirect, incidental, special consequential or exemplary damages of any kind which may be incurred by you, however caused and under any theory of liability, including, without limitation, lost business or profits, loss of goodwill or business reputation, loss of data suffered, cost of procurement of substitute goods or services, or other intangible loss that may result from your use of the Services or the Site. The limitations on our liability to you shall apply whether or not First Steps has been advised or should have been aware of the possibility of any such losses arising.
Acceptable Use of Site and Services
We authorize you, and you agree, to use the Site and the Services solely for purposes permitted in these Terms and any applicable laws or regulations. The Site and the Services may be used only for lawful purposes.
The Site and the Services are protected under United States and foreign copyright, trademark (and other) laws. Unauthorized use of the Site or the Services may violate these laws, and is strictly prohibited. You acknowledge and agree that First Steps (or our licensors) own all legal right, title and interest in and to the Site and the Services, including any intellectual property rights related thereto. You agree, (a) not to remove, obscure, or alter any proprietary rights notices (including copyright and trade mark notices) that may be affixed to or contained within the Site or the Services and (b) not to sell, reproduce, display, publicly perform, distribute, or otherwise use the Site or the Services in any other manner that is likely to cause confusion among consumers, that disparages or discredits First Steps or its licensors, that dilutes the strength of our or our licensors’ property, or that otherwise infringes our or our licensors’ intellectual property rights.
Prohibited Use of Site and Services
Unless you have agreed otherwise in a separate written agreement with us, you agree not to (a) access (or attempt to access) the Site or any of the Services by any means other than through the user interface that is provided by us, (b) use any of our trade names, trademarks, service marks, logos, domain names, or brands, or (c) sell, resell, reproduce, duplicate, copy, transfer or trade the Site, the Services or information provided by First Steps for any purpose.
Except as otherwise set forth herein, First Steps specifically prohibits any other use of the Site or the Services, and you agree not to do any of the following: (i) use the Services or the Site for any purpose other than their intended purpose, (ii) take any action that imposes an unreasonable or disproportionately large load on the Services’ or the Site’s infrastructure, (iii) notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained herein, use or attempt to use any engine, software, tool, agent or other device or mechanism (including without limitation browsers, spiders, robots, avatars or intelligent agents) to navigate or search the content of the Services or the Site, (iv) aggregate, copy or duplicate in any manner any of the content or information available from the Services or the Site, without express written consent from First Steps, or (v) frame or link to any content or information available from the Services or the Site.
You are also prohibited from violating or attempting to violate the security of the Site or the Services, including without limitation, the following activities: (1) accessing data not intended for you or logging into a server or account which you are not authorized to access, (2) attempting to probe, scan or test the vulnerability of a system or network or to breach security or authentication measures without written authorization from First Steps, (3) attempting to interfere with service to any other user of the Site or the Services including, without limitation, via means of submitting a virus to our Sites, overloading, “flooding”, “spamming”, “mailbombing” or “crashing”, (4) forging any TCP/IP packet header or any part of the header information in any e-mail or newsgroup posting, (5) taking any action in order to obtain Services to which you are not entitled, or (6) using the Site or the Services to create, transmit, distribute, or store material that (A) violates the intellectual property rights of third parties, (B) violates the privacy, publicity, or other personal rights of third parties, (C) impairs the privacy of communications of any party, or (D) assists or permits any persons in engaging in any of the activities described above. Violations of system or network security may result in civil and/or criminal liability.
The Site and related services may not be used by any person or organization to recruit, solicit, or contact in any form Members for employment or contracting for a business not affiliated with First Steps without written permission from us.
User Provided Content
Our content is primarily user generated, and we do not control or vet user generated content for accuracy as a general matter. First Steps does not assume any responsibility for the accuracy or reliability of any information provided by Sitters or Parents on or off this Site. We may offer certain users the opportunity to verify certain information. If we indicate that a user has verified certain information, it means that the user has complied with the process we have established for verifying such information. However, we do not guarantee, nor do we represent or warrant as to, the accuracy of such information.
We are not responsible for any claims related to inaccurate or incomplete information provided by users of the Site. You are solely responsible for any content that you publish or display on the Site or transmit to other users of the Site or Services. You will not post, or transmit to other users, any defamatory, inaccurate, abusive, obscene, profane, offensive, sexually oriented, threatening, harassing, racially offensive, or illegal material, or any material that infringes or violates another party’s rights (including, but not limited to, intellectual property rights, and rights of privacy and publicity). You will not provide inaccurate, misleading or false information to First Steps or to any other user of the Site or the Services. You understand and agree that First Steps may, in its sole discretion, review and delete any content, in each case in whole or in part, that in the sole judgment of First Steps violates these Terms or which First Steps determines in its sole discretion might be offensive, illegal, or that might violate the rights, harm, or threaten the safety of users of the Site or others.
You understand that all information, data, text, documents, software, graphics, video, advertisements, messages, files, third party links or other materials which you may have access to as part of the Services are the sole responsibility of the person from which such content originated, including without limitation any and all data, forms, applications and documents from third party sources. We do not guarantee that any such material provided obtained from third parties is current, complete, accurate or truthful or that such third party has the requisite permissions and authorizations to upload such content.
You acknowledge that any reliance on such material will be at your own risk. Further, you acknowledge and agree that we are not responsible for any decisions you make based upon content and the Site or Services, including but not limited to decisions based upon your use of reports, data, documents or other information made available via the Services or the Site.
You have the right, and hereby grant, to First Steps, its Affiliates, licensees and successors, an irrevocable, perpetual, non-exclusive, fully paid, worldwide license to use, copy, perform, display, reproduce, adapt, modify and distribute your content and to prepare derivative works of, or incorporate into other works, such content, and to grant and authorize sublicenses of the foregoing. You further represent and warrant that public posting and use of your content by First Steps will not infringe or violate the rights of any third party. Your use of the Site and the Services, including but not limited to the content you post on the Service, must be in accordance with any and all applicable laws and regulations.
To the maximum extent permitted by law, First Steps disclaims any liability whatsoever for any misstatements and/or misrepresentations made by any users of the site. Users do hereby represent, understand and agree to hold First Steps harmless for any misstatements and/or misrepresentations made by or on behalf of them on this site or in any other venue.
Incidental Charges
You may incur charges incidental to using the Services or accessing the Site, for example, charges for Internet access, international and/or long distance phone service, text messaging, or other data transmission. You are responsible for the payment of any and all such charges.
Indemnification
In the event that you use the Site, content or Services, or any portion thereof, in any manner not authorized by us, or if you otherwise infringe any intellectual property rights or any other rights relating to other users, you agree to indemnify and hold First Steps, its subsidiaries, affiliates, licensors and representatives, harmless against any losses, expenses, costs or damages, including attorneys’ fees, incurred by them as a result of unauthorized use of the Services and/or your breach or alleged breach of these Terms.
Linking
The Site may provide links to other sites by allowing the user to leave the Site or the Services to access third-party material or by bringing the third-party material into the Services or the Site via “inverse” hyperlinks and framing technology (a “Linked Site”). We have no ability or discretion to alter, update, or control the content on a Linked Site. You acknowledge and agree that First Steps is not responsible for the availability of any such external sites or resources, and does not endorse any advertising, products or other materials on or available from such Linked Site. The fact that we have provided Linked Site is not an endorsement or sponsorship of such site, its owners or its providers. You acknowledge and agree that First Steps is not liable for any loss or damage which may be incurred by you as a result of the availability of those external sites or resources, or as a result of any reliance placed by you on the completeness, accuracy or existence of any advertising, products or other materials on, or available from, such Linked Site. There are inherent risks in relying upon using or retrieving any information found on the Internet, and we urge you to make sure you understand these risks before relying upon, or retrieving any such information on a Linked Site. It is your responsibility to become familiar with each Site’s privacy and other policies and terms of service, and to contact that Site’s webmaster or site administrator with any concerns. We prohibit caching unauthorized hypertext links to the Site and the framing of any content available through the Services or via the Site. We reserve the right to disable any unauthorized links or frames, and specifically disclaim any responsibility for the content available on any other Internet sites linked to the Site. You may not create a link to the Site without our express written permission.
Arbitration
You agree that any dispute, claim or controversy arising hereunder or relating in any way to these Terms, shall be settled by binding arbitration in Fulton County, Georgia, in accordance with the commercial arbitration rules of Judicial Arbitration and Mediation Services (“JAMS”). The arbitrator shall issue a written decision specifying the basis for the award made. The party filing a claim or counterclaim in the arbitration proceeding shall pay the deposit(s) determined by JAMS with respect to such claim or counterclaim. All other costs associated with the arbitration and imposed by JAMS shall be paid as determined by the arbitrator(s) and, in absence of such determination, equally by each party to the arbitration. In addition, unless the arbitrator awards payment of reasonable attorney and other fees to a party, each party to the arbitration shall be responsible for its own attorneys’ fees and other professional fees incurred in connection with the arbitration. Determinations of the arbitrator will be final and binding upon the parties to the arbitration, and judgment upon the award rendered by the arbitrator may be entered in any court having jurisdiction, or application may be made to such court for a judicial acceptance of the award and an order of enforcement, as the case may be. The arbitrator shall apply the substantive law of the State of Georgia, without giving effect to its conflict of laws rules. The parties hereto hereby waive their respective right to trial by jury of any cause of action, claim, counterclaim or cross-complaint in any action, proceeding and/or hearing brought by any party against another on any matter whatsoever relating to, resulting from, arising out of, or in any way connected with these Terms, or any amendment or breach hereof, including, without limitation, any claim or injury or damage, or the enforcement of any remedy under any law, statute, or regulation, emergency or otherwise, now or hereafter in effect.
You agree that the following will not be subject to arbitration: (a) any dispute over the validity of any party’s intellectual property rights, and (b) any dispute related to or arising from allegations associated with unauthorized or prohibited use of the Services or the Site.
DMCA Notice
We respect the intellectual property rights of others and require users to do the same. In accordance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998, the text of which may be found on the U.S. Copyright Office Site at http://www.copyright.gov/legislation/dmca.pdf, we will address the claims of copyright infringement committed using our Services or via the Site if such claims are reported to our designated DMCA Copyright Agent identified below. If we believe that any posted material violates any applicable law, we will remove or disable access to any such material.
Our DMCA Copyright Agent to receive notices of infringing material is:
First Steps Atlanta, LLC
2405 Hyde Manor Drive NW
Atlanta, GA 30327, USA
In notifying us of alleged copyright infringement, the DMCA requires that you include the following information: (a) description of the copyrighted work that is the subject of claimed infringement, (b) description of the infringing material and information sufficient to permit us to locate the alleged material, (c) contact information for you, including your address, telephone number and/or e-mail address, (d) a statement by you that you have a good faith belief that the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, or its agent, or by the operation of any law, (e) a statement by you, signed under penalty of perjury, that the information in the notification is accurate and that you have the authority to enforce the copyrights that are claimed to be infringed, and (f) a physical or electronic signature of the copyright owner or a person authorized to act on the copyright owner’s behalf. Failure to include all of the above-listed information may result in the delay of the processing of your complaint.
Termination
These Terms will continue to apply until terminated by either you or First Steps as set forth herein; provided, however that these Terms will continue to apply after such termination with respect to (A) any content you have downloaded from or provided to the Site or via the Services or (B) any other legal rights, obligations and liabilities that you have been subject to (or which have accrued over time while these Terms have been in force) or which are expressed herein to continue indefinitely. The “Jurisdiction” section below shall continue to apply to all such rights, obligations and liabilities indefinitely.
You may cancel your legal agreement with us at any time by (a) notifying First Steps in writing, and (b) ceasing to use the Services and access the Site. At such time as you or First Steps terminates these Terms, your login credentials will be de-activated. First Steps may terminate its legal agreement with you if (i) you have breached any provision of these Terms (or have acted in manner which demonstrates, in our sole discretion, that you do not intend to, or are unable to comply with these Terms), (ii) First Steps is required to do so by law (for example, where the provision of the Services to, or access to the Site by, you is, or becomes, unlawful), (iii) First Steps is transitioning to no longer providing the Services or the Site to users in the country in which you reside or from which you use the Services or access the Site, or (iv) the provision of the Services or access to the Site to you by First Steps is, in our opinion, no longer commercially viable.
Jurisdiction; International Use
The Terms, and your relationship with First Steps under these Terms, shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Georgia, without giving effect to any principles of conflicts of law. You agree that any action at law or in equity arising out of or relating to these Terms shall be filed only in the local, state, or federal courts located in Fulton County, Georgia and you hereby consent and submit to the personal jurisdiction of such courts for the purposes of litigating any such action. Notwithstanding this, you agree that First Steps shall be permitted to apply for injunctive remedies (or an equivalent type of urgent legal relief) in any jurisdiction. First Steps makes no representation that the Site or the Services are appropriate or available for use in locations outside the United States. Accessing them from territories where their contents are illegal is prohibited. Those who choose to access this site from other locations do so on their own initiative and are responsible for compliance with local laws.