Terms of Service

I.  Arbitration Agreement – Binding Individual Arbitration & Class Action/Jury Trial Waiver (“Arbitration Agreement”)

Mandatory Binding Arbitration of Disputes.  By agreeing to these Terms, you agree that any dispute, claim or controversy arising out of or relating to these Terms or the breach, termination, enforcement, interpretation or validity thereof or the use of the Websites (collectively, “Disputes”) will be resolved solely by binding, individual arbitration and not in a court of law in any jurisdiction and not in a class, collective, aggregate, mass, representative, or consolidated action or proceeding, as set forth further below.

You and the Company agree that the U.S. Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”) governs the interpretation, applicability, enforceability or formation of this Arbitration Agreement, including any claim that all or any part of this Arbitration Agreement is void or voidable, notwithstanding any choice of law or other provision in these Terms.  It is the intent of the parties that the FAA and the rules of the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”) described below shall preempt all state laws to the fullest extent permitted by law.  If the FAA and the AAA’s rules are found to not apply to any issue that arises under this Arbitration Agreement or the enforcement thereof, then that issue shall be resolved under the laws of New Jersey, without regard to its conflict of laws provisions.

You and the Company further agree that the arbitrator (“Arbitrator”), and not any federal state, or local court or agency, shall have exclusive authority to resolve any disputes concerning the interpretation, applicability, enforceability or formation of these Terms or this Arbitration Agreement.  The Arbitrator shall also be responsible for determining all threshold arbitrability issues, including issues relating to whether these Terms are unconscionable or illusory and any defense to arbitration, including waiver, delay, laches, or estoppel.

Class Action Waiver.  You and the Company agree that each party is waiving the right to a trial by jury or to participate in any purported class, collective, aggregate, mass, representative, or consolidated action or proceeding.  Unless both you and the Company agree in writing, you and the Company may bring claims against the other only in your or its individual capacity, and not as a plaintiff or class member in any purported class, collective, aggregate, mass, consolidated, or representative proceeding.  Further, if the parties’ Dispute is resolved through arbitration, the Arbitrator may not consolidate another person’s claims with your claims, and may not otherwise preside over any form of a representative or class proceeding.  If the foregoing sentence is found to be unenforceable, then the entirety of this Arbitration Agreement section shall be null and void.  This arbitration provision shall survive termination of these Terms.

Exceptions & Opt-Out Procedures.  As limited exceptions to this Arbitration Agreement, (i) you may seek to resolve a Dispute in small claims court if it qualifies; and (ii) you and the Company each retains the right to seek injunctive or other equitable relief from a court to prevent (or enjoin) the actual or threatened infringement or misappropriation of Our intellectual property rights.

You can choose to reject this Arbitration Agreement by sending Us a written opt-out notice (“Opt-Out Notice”) within thirty (30) days following the date you first agree to these Terms by email at optoutnotice@plannedcompanies.com or by mail at 150 Smith Road Parsippany, NJ 07054.  If mailed, the Opt-Out Notice must be postmarked no later than 30 days following the date you first agree to these Terms.  To be effective, the Opt-Out Notice must contain your name, address, and signature.  If you opt-out of the Arbitration Agreement, all other parts of these Terms will continue to apply to you.  Opting out of this Arbitration Agreement has no effect on any previous, other, or future arbitration agreements that you may have with the Company.

Conducting Arbitration & Arbitration Rules.  The arbitration will be administered by the AAA under its Consumer Arbitration Rules and any supplementary rules (the “AAA Rules”) then in effect, except as modified by these Terms.  The AAA Rules are available at www.adr.org or by calling the AAA at 1-800-778-7879.  The rules of the arbitral forum will govern all aspects of this arbitration, except to the extent those rules conflict with these Terms.

A party who wishes to start arbitration must submit a written Demand for Arbitration to AAA and give notice to the other party as specified in the AAA Rules.  The AAA provides a form Demand for Arbitration at www.adr.org.  You can contact the AAA for more information on how to commence an arbitration proceeding at www.adr.org or 1-800-778-7879.

If your claim is for $10,000 or less, you may choose whether the arbitration will be conducted solely on the basis of documents submitted to the Arbitrator, through a telephonic or video-conference hearing, or in-person hearing as established by the AAA Rules.  If your claim exceeds $10,000, the right to a hearing will be determined by the AAA Rules.  Any arbitration hearings will take place in the county (or parish) where you live, unless you and the Company both agree to a different location.

Arbitration Costs.  Payment of all filing, administration and arbitrator fees will be governed by the AAA Rules.  The Company will pay for all filing, administration and arbitrator fees and expenses if your Dispute is for $10,000 or less, unless the Arbitrator finds your Dispute frivolous.  If the Company prevails in arbitration, it will pay all of its attorneys’ fees and costs and will not seek to recover them from you.

Changes to Arbitration Agreement.  Notwithstanding the provisions of Section V “Changes to Terms” below, if the Company changes any of the terms of this Section after the date you first accepted these Terms (or accepted any subsequent changes to these Terms), you may reject any such change by sending Us written notice of such rejection within 30 days of the date such change became effective, as indicated in the “Last Modified” date below.  The written notice must be provided either by email arbitration-inquiries@plannedcompanies.com, or by mail at 150 Smith Road Parsippany, NJ 07054.  To be effective, your notice must include your full name and clearly indicate your intent to reject changes to this Arbitration Agreement.  By rejecting any change, you are agreeing that you will arbitrate any Dispute between you and the Company in accordance with the terms of this Section as of the date you first accepted these Terms (or accepted any subsequent changes to these Terms).

II.  Intellectual Property Rights

All content contained on the Company’s Websites (“Content”), such as text, graphics, logos, icons, photographs, images, audio and video clips, digital downloads, data compilations, software, and other materials including Our trademarks is Our property or the property of Our licensors, and the compilation of the Content on the Website is Our exclusive property, protected by United States and international copyright laws, treaties and conventions.

We grant you a personal, limited, non-exclusive and revocable license to access and make personal use of the Content in conjunction with your use of the Company’s Websites.  No other uses of the Content are authorized or permissible without Our express written consent.

You represent, warrant and agree that: you own or otherwise control all of the rights to all data and information that you post or send to Us; that all such information is accurate; use of such information does not violate these Terms  or the rights of any third party and will not cause injury to anyone; and, you will indemnify Us and Our affiliates and designees from and against all claims arising out of, resulting from or relating to any such information.  We have the right (but no obligation) to monitor, edit or remove any activity or content involving you.  We have no responsibility, and assume no liability, for any information or data posted or sent by you or by anyone else.

III.  Limitation of Liability & Disclaimers

The content is provided “as is” and without warranty of any kind, expressed or implied.  To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, We disclaim any and all warranties, expressed or implied, including, but not limited to, implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose and non-infringement.  We do not warrant that the functions or features contained in any Website or that the Content will be free of viruses or other harmful components.  We make no representations or warranties regarding the use, or the results of use, of any Content, product or service displayed on, offered, made available through, or otherwise related in any way to any Website.

Our Website may offer users the ability to utilize the services of third party providers, such as credit card processing services that are necessary to complete association-related dues or payments through the Website.  All issues involving transactions between a third party service provider and you must be handled with the applicable provider.  The Company may try to facilitate the resolution of any such issues, however, you understand and agree that the Company has no control over, or liability for, the acts or omissions of third party providers.  You hereby irrevocably and unconditionally waive any and all claims against Us with respect to information, Content and materials contained on or accessible through the Company’s Websites and any third party sites and services.   We strongly encourage you to make whatever investigation you feel necessary or appropriate before proceeding with any online or offline transaction.

UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE) SHALL WE BE LIABLE TO YOU OR ANYONE ELSE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING LOST PROFITS), PERSONAL INJURY (INCLUDING DEATH) OR PROPERTY DAMAGE OF ANY KIND OR NATURE WHATSOEVER THAT ARISE OUT OF OR RESULT FROM: (A) THE USE OF, OR ANY INABILITY TO USE, THE COMPANY’S WEBSITES OR ANY CONTENT OR FUNCTIONS THEREOF, OR (B) ANY PRODUCTS OR INFORMATION OBTAINED ON OR THROUGH THE COMPANY’S WEBSITES, EVEN IF WE HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, DAMAGES FROM: PERSONAL INJURY; DOWNLOADING ANY MATERIAL CONTAINED ON OR ACCESSED THROUGH THE COMPANY’S WEBSITES; ANY UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO ANY INFORMATION ON THE COMPANY’S WEBSITES AND/OR SUBMITTED BY YOU TO OR THROUGH THE COMPANY’S WEBSITES; AND/OR LOSS OF PROFITS, USE, DATA OR OTHER INTANGIBLE LOSSES. IN NO EVENT SHALL OUR TOTAL LIABILITY TO YOU FOR ALL LOSS, COST, DAMAGE, LIABILITY OR EXPENSE (INCLUDING ATTORNEYS FEES AND COSTS) THAT YOU MAY SUFFER OR INCUR, UNDER ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, IN CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, NEGLIGENCE) OR OTHERWISE, EXCEED THE LESSER OF THE AMOUNT PAID BY YOU, IF ANY, FOR THE RIGHT TO ACCESS OR PARTICIPATE IN ANY ACTIVITY RELATED TO THE COMPANY’S WEBSITES OR $100.00.

THE LIMITATIONS AND DISCLAIMERS IN THESE TERMS DO NOT PURPORT TO LIMIT LIABILITY OR ALTER YOUR RIGHTS AS A CONSUMER THAT CANNOT BE EXCLUDED OR LIMITED UNDER APPLICABLE LAW, INCLUDING NEW JERSEY LAW.

IV.  Governing Law & Jurisdiction

The interpretation and enforcement of these Terms and Our Privacy Policy shall be governed under the laws of the State of New Jersey, which shall apply without regard to its conflict of laws provisions.  Except as otherwise expressly set forth in Section I, the sole and exclusive venue for any and all issues, claims or causes of action arising from or related to these Terms or Our Privacy Policy shall be Morris County, New Jersey.

V.   Changes to Terms

We may revise the Terms at any time, in Our sole discretion.  If We do so, We’ll let you know either by posting the revised Terms on the Website or through other communications.  It is important that you review the Terms whenever We revise them.  By continuing to use the Websites after any revisions to these Terms become effective, you agree to be bound by the revised Terms.  If you don’t agree to be bound by the revised Terms, then, except as otherwise provided in Section I above, you may not use the Websites.

VI.  Severability & Survival

Except as set forth in Section I, if any provision or portion thereof of these Terms is determined to be unlawful, void, or unenforceable, such provision or portion thereof shall be deemed severed and shall not affect the validity and enforceability of any other remaining provisions, which shall remain in full force and effect.

VII.  Other General Terms

Entire Agreement.  These Terms constitute the entire and exclusive understanding and agreement between you and the Company regarding the Websites, and these Terms supersede and replace any and all prior oral or written understandings or agreements between you and the Company regarding the use of our Websites.  You may not assign or transfer these Terms, by operation of law or otherwise, without Our prior written consent.  Any attempt by you to assign or transfer these Terms, without such consent, will be null.  We may freely assign or transfer these Terms without restriction.  Subject to the foregoing, these Terms will bind and inure to the benefit of the parties, their successors and permitted assigns.

Notices.  Any notices or other communications provided by Us under these Terms, including those regarding modifications to these Terms, will be given by email or by posting to the Websites.  For notices made by email, the date of receipt will be deemed the date on which such notice is transmitted.

Waiver of Rights.  The Company’s failure to enforce any right or provision of these Terms will not be considered a waiver of such right or provision.  The waiver of any such right or provision will be effective only if in writing and signed by a duly authorized representative of the Company.  Except as expressly set forth in these Terms, the exercise by either party of any of its remedies under these Terms will be without prejudice to its other remedies under these Terms.

Last Modified: April 20, 2023