Terms and Conditions

D2D User Agreement

Last Updated:  October 24, 2012

The following describes the terms on which Degrees2Dreams offers you access to our sites, services, and tools (including, but not limited to, fee-based seminars).

Introduction

Welcome to Degrees2Dreams.  By using Degrees2Dreams (including Degrees2Dreams.com and its related sites, services and tools), you agree to the following terms with Degrees2Dreams Inc.

This Agreement is effective on October 24, 2012, for current users, and upon acceptance for new users.  You accept this User Agreement by clicking the purchase button when registering for a Degrees2Dreams seminar or purchasing Degrees2Dreams materials, accessing or using Degrees2Dreams’s sites, services, and tools; or as otherwise indicated on a specific site, service, or tool.

Please be advised: This User Agreement contains provisions that govern how claims you and we have against each other are resolved (see Limitation of Liability and Legal Disputes Sections below).  It also contains an Agreement to Arbitrate, which will, with limited exception, require you to submit claims you have against us to binding and final arbitration, unless you opt-out of the Agreement to Arbitrate (see Legal Disputes, Section B (“Agreement to Arbitrate”)).  Unless you opt-out: (1) you will only be permitted to pursue claims against Degrees2Dreams on an individual basis, not as part of any class or representative action or proceeding and (2) you will only be permitted to seek relief (including monetary, injunctive, and declaratory relief) on an individual basis.

Scope

By accepting this User Agreement, you agree that this User Agreement and Privacy Policy will apply whenever you use Degrees2Dreams sites or services, or when you use the tools that are made available to interact with Degrees2Dreams sites and services.  Some Degrees2Dreams sites, services, and tools may have additional or other terms, agreements, or policies that govern their availability and use.  Your use of and access to such sites, services, and tools are subject to any and all terms, agreements, or policies applicable to them.

Using Degrees2Dreams

While using Degrees2Dreams sites, services and tools, you will not:

1. post content or items in inappropriate categories or areas on our sites and services;
2. Violate any laws, third party rights or our policies;
3. Use our sites, services or tools if you are not able to form legally binding contracts or are temporarily or indefinitely suspended from using our sites, services, or tools;
4. Fail to deliver payment for items purchased by you, unless a clear typographical error is made;
5. Post false, inaccurate, misleading, defamatory, or libelous content;
6. Distribute or post spam, unsolicited or bulk electronic communications, chain letters, or pyramid schemes;
7. Distribute viruses or any other technologies that may harm Degrees2Dreams, or the interests or property of Degrees2Dreams users;
8. Copy, modify, or distribute rights or content from the Degrees2Dreams sites, services, or tools or Degrees2Dreams’s copyrights and trademarks; or
9. Harvest or otherwise collect information about users, including email addresses, without their consent.

Fees and Services

The fees we charge for our services are listed on our Fees schedule, which we may change from time to time.  Changes to that schedule are effective immediately after we publish the changes on Degrees2Dreams.com.  We may choose to temporarily change the fees for our services for promotional events or new services, and such changes are effective when we post the temporary promotional event or new service on the sites.

Unless otherwise stated, all fees are quoted in United States Dollars.  You are responsible for paying all fees and applicable taxes associated with our sites, services, and tools with a valid payment method by the payment due date.  If your payment method fails or your account is past due, we may collect fees owed using other collection mechanisms.  (This includes charging other payment methods on file with us, and retaining collection agencies and legal counsel.)  In addition, you will be subject to late fees and we may suspend or restrict you from using our sites, services, and tools until full payment is made.  Degrees2Dreams, or the collection agencies we retain, may also report information about your account to credit bureaus, and as a result, late payments, missed payments, or other defaults on your account may be reflected in your credit report.  If you wish to dispute the information Degrees2Dreams reported to a credit bureau (i.e., Experian, Equifax or TransUnion) please contact us at Degrees2Dreams Inc., 248 Highland St., Marshfield, MA 02050. If you wish to dispute the information a collection agency reported to a credit bureau regarding your Degrees2Dreams account, you must contact the collection agency directly.

Authorization to Contact You; Recording Calls

You authorize Degrees2Dreams, its affiliates, agents, and independent contractors to contact you at any telephone number (including telephone numbers associated with mobile, cellular, wireless, or similar devices) you provide to us or from which you place a call to us, or any telephone number at which we reasonably believe we may reach you, using any means of communication, including, but not limited to, calls or text messages using an automatic telephone dialing system and/or prerecorded messages, even if you incur charges for receiving such communications.

You understand and agree that Degrees2Dreams may, without further notice or warning and in its discretion, monitor or record telephone conversations you or anyone acting on your behalf has with Degrees2Dreams or its agents for quality control and training purposes or for its own protection.  You acknowledge and understand that, while your communications with Degrees2Dreams may be overheard, monitored, or recorded without further notice or warning, not all telephone lines or calls may be recorded by Degrees2Dreams, and Degrees2Dreams does not guarantee that recordings of any particular telephone calls will be retained or retrievable.

Content

When providing us with content or posting content on Degrees2Dreams’s sites, you grant us a non-exclusive, worldwide, perpetual, irrevocable, royalty-free, sublicensable (through multiple tiers) right to exercise any and all copyright, trademark, publicity, and database rights you have in the content, in any media known now or in the future.

While we try to offer reliable data, we cannot promise that our materials will always be accurate and up-to-date, and you agree not to hold our content providers or us responsible for inaccuracies in content.

 

Notice for Claims of Intellectual Property Violations and Copyright Infringement Pursuant to Section 512(c) of Title 17 of the United States Code

We respond to notices of alleged copyright infringement as required by the United States Digital Millennium Copyright Act.

Limitation of Liability

We try to keep Degrees2Dreams and its sites, services, and tools safe, secure, and functioning properly.  You acknowledge that we cannot guarantee the continuous operation of or access to our sites, services, or tools.  You further acknowledge that operation of and access to our sites, services, or tools may be interfered with as a result of technical issues or numerous factors outside of our control.  You agree that you are making use of our sites, services, and tools at your own risk, and that they are being provided to you on an “AS IS” and “AS AVAILABLE” basis.  Accordingly, to the extent permitted by applicable law, we exclude all express or implied warranties, terms and conditions including, but not limited to, implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement.  In addition, to the extent permitted by applicable law, we are not liable, and you agree not to hold Degrees2Dreams responsible, for any damages or losses (including, but not limited to, loss of money, goodwill or reputation, profits, or other intangible losses or any special, indirect, or consequential damages) resulting directly or indirectly from:

1. Your use of or your inability to use our sites, services and tools;
2. Delays or disruptions in our sites, services, or tools;
3. Viruses or other malicious software obtained by accessing our sites, services, or tools or any site, services, or tool linked to our sites, services, or tools;
4. Glitches, bugs, errors, or inaccuracies of any kind in our sites, services, and tools or in the information and graphics obtained from them;
5. The content, actions, or inactions of third parties, including items listed using our sites, services, or tools or the destruction of allegedly fake items;
6. A suspension or other action taken with respect to your account;
7. The duration or manner in which your listings appear in search results as set forth in the Listing Conditions Section below;
8. Your need to modify practices, content, or behavior or your loss of or inability to do business, as a result of changes to this User Agreement or our policies; Degrees2Dreams reserves the right to modify its policies and this User Agreement at any time consistent with the provisions outlined herein.

Some jurisdictions do not allow the disclaimer of warranties or exclusion of damages, so such disclaimers and exclusions may not apply to you.

Regardless of the previous paragraphs, if we are found to be liable, our liability to you or to any third party is limited to the greater of (a) any amounts due under the Degrees2Dreams Buyer Protection Policy up to the price the item sold for on Degrees2Dreams (including any applicable sales tax) and its original shipping costs, (b) the amount of fees in dispute not to exceed the total fees, which you paid to us in the 12 months prior to the action giving rise to the liability, or (c) $100.

Release

If you have a dispute with one or more users, you release us (and our affiliates and subsidiaries, and our and their respective officers, directors, employees, and agents) from claims, demands, and damages (actual and consequential) of every kind and nature, known and unknown, arising out of or in any way connected with such disputes.  In entering into this release you expressly waive any protections (whether statutory or otherwise) that would otherwise limit the coverage of this release to include only those claims which you may know or suspect to exist in your favor at the time of agreeing to this release.

Access and Interference

Information on our sites is subject to constant updates and changes.  Some of the information on the sites is also proprietary or is licensed to Degrees2Dreams by our users or third parties.  You agree that you will not use any robot, spider, scraper, or other automated means to access our sites for any purpose without our express handwritten permission.

Additionally, you agree that you will not:

1. Take any action that imposes or may impose (to be determined in our sole discretion) an unreasonable or disproportionately large load on our infrastructure;
2. Copy, reproduce, modify, create derivative works from, distribute, or publicly display any content (except for your information) from our sites, services, or tools without the prior express written permission of Degrees2Dreams and the appropriate third party, as applicable;
3. Interfere or attempt to interfere with the proper working of our sites, services, or tools, or any activities conducted on or with our sites, services, or tools; or

Privacy

We do not sell or rent your personal information to third parties for their marketing purposes without your explicit consent.  We use your information only as described in the Degrees2Dreams Privacy Policy. We view protection of users’ privacy as a very important community principle.  We store and process your information on computers located in the United States that are protected by physical as well as technological security devices.  You can access and modify the information you provide us and choose not to receive certain communications by signing in to your account. We use third parties to verify and certify our privacy principles.  For a complete description of how we use and protect your personal information, see the Degrees2Dreams Privacy Policy.  If you object to your information being transferred or used in this way please do not use our services.

Indemnity

You will indemnify and hold us (and our affiliates and subsidiaries, and our and their respective officers, directors, employees, and agents) harmless from any claim or demand, including reasonable attorneys’ fees, made by any third party due to or arising out of your breach of this User Agreement, your improper use of Degrees2Dreams’s sites, services, or tools, and/or your violation of any law or the rights of a third party.

No Agency

No agency, partnership, joint venture, employee-employer, or franchiser-franchisee relationship is intended or created by this User Agreement.

Notices

Except as explicitly stated otherwise, legal notices shall be served on Degrees2Dreams’s national registered agent (in the case of Degrees2Dreams) or to the email address you have designated on your account (in your case).  Notice to you shall be deemed given 24 hours after the email is sent.

Legal Disputes

You and Degrees2Dreams agree that any claim or dispute at law or equity that has arisen or may arise between us will be resolved in accordance with the provisions set forth in this Legal Disputes Section. Please read this Section carefully.  It affects your rights and will have a substantial impact on how claims you and we have against each other are resolved.

A. Applicable Law

You agree that the laws of the State of Massachusetts, without regard to principles of conflict of laws, will govern this User Agreement and any claim or dispute that has arisen or may arise between you and Degrees2Dreams, except as otherwise stated in this User Agreement.

B. Agreement to Arbitrate

You and Degrees2Dreams each agree that any and all disputes or claims that have arisen or may arise between you and Degrees2Dreams shall be resolved exclusively through final and binding arbitration, rather than in court, except that you may assert claims in small claims court, if your claims qualify.  The Federal Arbitration Act governs the interpretation and enforcement of this Agreement to Arbitrate.

1. Prohibition of Class and Representative Actions and Non-Individualized Relief


YOU AND DEGREES2DREAMS AGREE THAT EACH OF US MAY BRING CLAIMS AGAINST THE OTHER ONLY ON AN INDIVIDUAL BASIS AND NOT AS PART OF ANY PURPORTED CLASS OR REPRESENTATIVE ACTION OR PROCEEDING.  UNLESS BOTH YOU AND DEGREES2DREAMS AGREE OTHERWISE, THE ARBITRATOR MAY NOT CONSOLIDATE OR JOIN MORE THAN ONE PERSON’S OR PARTY’S CLAIMS, AND MAY NOT OTHERWISE PRESIDE OVER ANY FORM OF A CONSOLIDATED, REPRESENTATIVE, OR CLASS PROCEEDING.  ALSO, THE ARBITRATOR MAY AWARD RELIEF (INCLUDING MONETARY, INJUNCTIVE, AND DECLARATORY RELIEF) ONLY IN FAVOR OF THE INDIVIDUAL PARTY SEEKING RELIEF AND ONLY TO THE EXTENT NECESSARY TO PROVIDE RELIEF NECESSITATED BY THAT PARTY’S INDIVIDUAL CLAIM(S).  ANY RELIEF AWARDED CANNOT AFFECT OTHER DEGREES2DREAMS USERS.

2. Arbitration Procedures

Arbitration is more informal than a lawsuit in court.  Arbitration uses a neutral arbitrator instead of a judge or jury, and court review of an arbitration award is very limited.  However, an arbitrator can award the same damages and relief on an individual basis that a court can award to an individual.  An arbitrator also must follow the terms of this User Agreement as a court would.
The arbitration will be conducted by the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”) under its rules and procedures, including the AAA’s Supplementary Procedures for Consumer-Related Disputes (as applicable), as modified by this Agreement to Arbitrate.  The AAA’s rules are available at www.adr.org.  A form for initiating arbitration proceedings is available on the AAA’s website at http://www.adr.org. 
The arbitration shall be held in the county in which you reside or at another mutually agreed location.  If the value of the relief sought is $10,000 or less, you or Degrees2Dreams may elect to have the arbitration conducted by telephone or based solely on written submissions, which election shall be binding on you and Degrees2Dreams subject to the arbitrator’s discretion to require an in-person hearing, if the circumstances warrant.  Attendance at an in-person hearing may be made by telephone by you and/or Degrees2Dreams, unless the arbitrator requires otherwise.  
The arbitrator will decide the substance of all claims in accordance with the laws of the State of Massachusetts, including recognized principles of equity, and will honor all claims of privilege recognized by law.  The arbitrator shall not be bound by rulings in prior arbitrations involving different Degrees2Dreams users, but is bound by rulings in prior arbitrations involving the same Degrees2Dreams user to the extent required by applicable law.  The arbitrator’s award shall be final and binding and judgment on the award rendered by the arbitrator may be entered in any court having jurisdiction thereof.

3.Costs of Arbitration

Payment of all filing, administration and arbitrator fees will be governed by the AAA’s rules, unless otherwise stated in this Agreement to Arbitrate.  If the value of the relief sought is $10,000 or less, at your request, Degrees2Dreams will pay all filling, administration, and arbitrator fees associated with the arbitration.  Any request for payment of fees by Degrees2Dreams should be submitted by mail to the AAA along with your Demand for Arbitration and Degrees2Dreams will make arrangements to pay all necessary fees directly to the AAA.  If the value of the relief sought is more than $10,000 and you are able to demonstrate that the costs of arbitration will be prohibitive as compared to the costs of litigation, Degrees2Dreams will pay as much of the filing, administration, and arbitrator fees as the arbitrator deems necessary to prevent the arbitration from being cost-prohibitive.  In the event the arbitrator determines the claim(s) you assert in the arbitration to be frivolous, you agree to reimburse Degrees2Dreams for all fees associated with the arbitration paid by Degrees2Dreams on your behalf, which you otherwise would be obligated to pay under the AAA’s rules.

4.Severability


With the exception of any of the provisions in Section 1 of this Agreement to Arbitrate (“Prohibition of Class and Representative Actions and Non-Individualized Relief”), if a court decides that any part of this Agreement to Arbitrate is invalid or unenforceable, the other parts of this Agreement to Arbitrate shall still apply. If a court decides that any of the provisions in Section 1 of this Agreement to Arbitrate (“Prohibition of Class and Representative Actions and Non-Individualized Relief”) is invalid or unenforceable, then the entirety of this Agreement to Arbitrate shall be null and void.  The remainder of the User Agreement and its Legal Disputes Section will continue to apply.

5. Opt-Out Procedure


You can choose to reject this Agreement to Arbitrate (“opt-out”) by mailing us a written opt-out notice (“Opt-Out Notice”).  For new Degrees2Dreams users, the Opt-Out Notice must be postmarked no later than 30 days after the date you accept the User Agreement for the first time.   If you are already a current Degrees2Dreams user and previously accepted the User Agreement prior to the introduction of this Agreement to Arbitrate, the Opt-Out Notice must be postmarked no later than April 24, 2012.  You must mail the Opt-Out Notice to Degrees2Dreams Inc., 248 Highland St., Marshfield, MA 02050. The Opt-Out Notice must state that you do not agree to this Agreement to Arbitrate and must include your name, address, and email address(es). You must sign the Opt-Out Notice for it to be effective. This procedure is the only way you can opt-out of the Agreement to Arbitrate. If you opt-out of the Agreement to Arbitrate, all other parts of the User Agreement and its Legal Disputes Section will continue to apply to you.  Opting out of this Agreement to Arbitrate has no effect on any previous, other, or future arbitration agreements that you may have with us.

6. Future Changes to the Agreement to Arbitrate

Notwithstanding any provision in the User Agreement to the contrary, you and we agree that if we make any change to this Agreement to Arbitrate (other than a change to any notice address or website link provided herein) in the future, that change shall not apply to any claim of which you provided Degrees2Dreams with written notice prior to the effective date of the change.  Moreover, if we seek to terminate the Agreement to Arbitrate as included in the User Agreement, any such termination shall not be effective until 30 days after the version of the User Agreement not containing the Agreement to Arbitrate is posted to http://Degrees2Dreams.com, and shall not be effective as to any claim of which you provided Degrees2Dreams with written notice prior to the date of termination.

C. Judicial Forum for Legal Disputes

Unless you and we agree otherwise, in the event that the Agreement to Arbitrate above is found not to apply to you or to a particular claim or dispute, either as a result of your decision to opt-out of the Agreement to Arbitrate or a court order, you agree that any claim or dispute that has arisen or may arise between you and Degrees2Dreams must be resolved exclusively by a state or federal court located in Plymouth County, Masachusetts.  You and Degrees2Dreams agree to submit to the personal jurisdiction of the courts located within Plymouth County, Massachusetts for the purpose of litigating all such claims or disputes.

Additional Terms

You agree to abide by all policies posted on our sites.  Such policies are part of this User Agreement and provide additional terms and conditions related to specific services offered on our sites

The policies posted on our sites may be changed from time to time.  Changes take effect when we post them on the Degrees2Dreams sites.  When using particular Degrees2Dreams services or tools, you are subject to any posted policies or rules applicable to services or tools you use, which may be posted from time to time.  All such policies or rules are hereby incorporated into this User Agreement.

General

Degrees2Dreams Inc. is located at 248 Highland St., Marshfield, MA, USA.  Unless stated otherwise in this User Agreement, if any of the provisions in this User Agreement shall be deemed invalid, void, or for any reason unenforceable, such provisions shall be deemed severable and shall not affect the validity and enforceability of any remaining provision.  In our sole discretion, we may assign this User Agreement, by providing notice of such assignment in accordance with the Notices Section. Headings are for reference purposes only and do not limit the scope or extent of such Section.  Our failure to act with respect to a breach by you or others does not waive our right to act with respect to subsequent or similar breaches.  We do not guarantee we will take action against all breaches of this User Agreement.

We may amend this User Agreement at any time by posting the amended terms on Degrees2Dreams.com.  Our right to amend the User Agreement includes the right to modify, add to, or remove terms in the User Agreement.  Except as stated otherwise in this User Agreement or elsewhere, all amended terms shall automatically be effective 30 days after they are initially posted. This User Agreement may not be otherwise amended except in a writing hand signed by you and us.  For purposes of this provision, a “writing” does not include an email message and a signature does not include an electronic signature.

This User Agreement (including incorporated policies and rules) sets forth the entire understanding and agreement between us with respect to the subject matter hereof.  The following Sections survive any termination of this User Agreement: Fees and Services, Release, Content, Limitation of Liability, Indemnity and Legal Disputes.

If you are a California resident, in accordance with Cal. Civ. Code §1789.3, you may report complaints to the Complaint Assistance Unit of the Division of Consumer Services of the California Department of Consumer Affairs by contacting them in writing at 400 R Street, Sacramento, CA 95814, or by telephone at (800) 952-5210.