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order
confirmation: PPA Kit with email support, item 1PP
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Terms of Service Agreement
DEFINITIONS.
"Website" includes any information contained in, or
accessible from, http://www.bayareaip.com or other mirror websites
thereof.
"Viewer" includes any entity or person that, in electronic
or physically printed form, views, prints, copies or otherwise
manipulates information contained on this website.
The do-it-yourself Provisional Patent Application Kit (PPA
Kit) is an electronic book, in Adobe Acrobat .pdf
format, provided free of charge, which requires internet access
or a computer with a CD-ROM drive to use.
This is an agreement between Bay
Area Intellectual Property Group, a Nevada LLC (BAIP)
and Viewer ("INVENTOR") for patent services that INVENTOR
has retained BAIP to provide.
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The scope of BAIPs services shall
be limited to delivering thePPA Kit and providing email support as
prescribed in section 8. In particular, BAIP is not a 37 CFR §1.31
representative before the USPTO, and INVENTOR is completely responsible
and liable for meeting all legal
bar dates and applying for and prosecuting INVENTORs PPA
and/or any nonprovisional patent application, even if BAIP prepares,
modifies, and/or files INVENTOR's PPA on behalf of INVENTOR.
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INVENTOR and BAIP acknowledge that
BAIP cannot make the PPA Kit available to INVENTOR until INVENTOR
execute this service agreement, and any required payment is honored
by the bank. The payment shall be deposited in BAIPs bank account
and will be used to pay BAIPs fees, charges, and expenses incurred
in connection with the services rendered hereunder.
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Fees are only for BAIPs PPA Kit
Email Support service, and do not include any other related costs
(e.g., USPTO, courier, copying, etc.). There are no additional fees if all communications are done electronically. Currently, the USPTO PPA filing fee is $80. INVENTOR agrees to pay for any work or product ordered,
and that all orders are irrevocable, and that failure to pay within
15 days of when promised shall be breach and accept judgment on the
basis of that breach; 9.5% plus APR shall be charged on all fees over
15 days late. BAIP maintains no obligation to perform additional work
once the order has been completed. Additional charges may include,
but are not limited to: copying, mailing, faxing, telephoning. BAIP
shall impose a $40 returned check charge.
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License and No Conveyance: The PPA
kit is only for personal use by the original purchaser, and may not
be copied or made available to others without written consent from
BAIP. If INVENTOR downloads the PPA Kit, INVENTORs use of that
PPA Kit is subject to the terms of this agreement. Nothing contained
in this agreement may be construed to convey to INVENTOR any interest,
title, or license in the PPA Kit. BAIP, grants INVENTOR a personal,
non-transferable and non-exclusive right and license to use the object
code of the PPA Kit on a single computer; provided that INVENTOR does
not (and do not allow any third party to) copy, modify, create a derivative
work of, reverse engineer, reverse assemble or otherwise attempt to
disable access security measures and/or make the PPA Kit accessible
to any third party, sell, assign, sublicense, grant a security interest
in or otherwise transfer any right in the PPA Kit. INVENTOR agrees
not to modify the PPA Kit in any manner or form, or to use modified
versions of the PPA Kit, including (without limitation) for the purpose
of obtaining unauthorized access to the PPA Kit by a third part. INVENTOR
agrees not to access the PPA Kit by any means other than through the
interface that is provided by Adobe Systems Inc.for use in accessing
the PPA Kit.
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The information provided in the PPA
kit does not replace legal advice from the appropriate licensed professional.
The information provided is for educational purposes only to help
inventors learn background information or prepare a draft PPA before
consulting a practitioner. INVENTORS USE OF THE PPA Kit AND/OR
BAIPS WEBSITE IS AT INVENTORS SOLE RISK. The PPA Kit and
website is provided on an "AS IS" and AS AVAILABLE
basis. BAIP EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, WHETHER
EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES
OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NON-INFRINGEMENT
except the money back guarantee in section 10.
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While BAIP believes that the information
in the PPA kit is accurate and safe, INVENTOR acknowledges that BAIP cannot be held responsible
or liable for the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, reliability,
availability, or accessibility of PPA kit content (including, but
not limited to, transmission, transmission methods, or manipulation
of the information) accessed or received by INVENTOR. All responsibility
and/or liability for any damages caused by corruption, viruses, and
etcetera contained within the electronic files of the PPA kit are
disclaimed. No advice, information, or work product whether oral or
written, performed on behalf of, or obtained by INVENTOR from BAIP
will create any warranty not expressly stated in this agreement. Furthermore,
INVENTOR expressly understands and agrees that BAIP will not be liable
to INVENTOR for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential or
exemplary damages, including but not limited to, damages for loss
of profits, goodwill, use, data or other intangible losses (even if
BAIP has been advised of the possibility of such damages), resulting
from: (a) the use or the inability to use BAIP service(s), website,
and/or PPA kit; (b) the cost of procurement of substitute goods and/or
service(s) resulting from any goods, data, information or service(s)
purchased; (c) unauthorized access to or alteration of INVENTOR’s
transmissions or data; (d) failure to insure the compatibility of
INVENTOR’s system (i.e., the equipment, devices, and software that
INVENTOR provide to receive BAIP service(s) and/or PPA kit) with BAIP
service(s) and/or PPA kit; (e) action or inaction by third party service
provider(s) that BAIP relies upon (e.g., without limitation, online
payment service(s), web hosting, and the us postal service); or (f)
any other matter relating to BAIP service(s), website, and/or PPA
kit. Moreover, diligent effort has been made to make sure that the
information in this PPA kit is accurate as of the date of original
publication. However, INVENTOR should be aware that patent fees, laws,
rules, and USPTO procedures frequently change. INVENTOR should validate
that all information INVENTOR uses is accurate. INVENTOR’s sole remedy
and exclusive remedy for any dispute with BAIP in connection with
BAIP service(s) and/or PPA kit is by way of: (1) BAIP’s money back
guarantee as provided by section 10 or (2) the USPTO’s complaint resolution
procedure, which may result in a full refund of our fees in connection
with the complaint. Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion
of certain warranties or the limitation or exclusion of liability
for incidental or consequential damages. Accordingly, some of the
above limitations of this section may not apply to INVENTOR.
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If INVENTOR does not provided BAIP
a valid email address, or mail address and postage fee payment, INVENTOR
waives its right to receive the free PPA Kit with the service(s) in
section 8. The PPA kit is only for personal use by the original purchaser,
and may not be copied or made available to others without written
consent from BAIP. The information provided in the PPA kit does not
replace legal advice from the appropriate licensed professional. The
information provided is for educational purposes only to help inventors
learn background information or prepare a draft PPA before consulting
a practitioner.
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BAIPs email support
level of service, item 1PP, consists solely of answering a reasonable
quantity and nature of INVENTOR questions by email for a period of
3 weeks starting from the first email question received from INVENTOR.
INVENTOR must make reasonable efforts to answer questions by reviewing
information in the PPA Kit, and BAIPs website prior to emailing
BAIP any question. All questions must be directly related to preparing
and filing a PPA to meet minimum legal requirements as defined in
section 9. INVENTOR acknowledges that BAIP reserves the right, at
any time after sending INVENTOR a warning, as provided by section
15, to terminate or limit service to INVENTOR should INVENTOR consistently
not comply with the foregoing conditions. Service may be restored
thereafter by INVENTOR again procuring the service level desired at
the then prevailing rate.
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The quality
of an issued patent depends on some factors controlled by INVENTOR.
Such factors include a prior-art search, and the ability of the INVENTOR
to "teach," in a patent application, invention disclosure,
and/or directly to a patent practitioner, how to make and use the
invention and its differences from the prior art. There can be a vast
difference between the quality
of a "minimal cost" PPA and a well-prepared regular patent
application; e.g., because claims are not prepared in a PPA, as opposed
to regular patent applications, the scope and strength of INVENTORs
future patent protection could be compromised. BAIP makes no promises
or guarantees to INVENTOR about the outcome of INVENTOR's matter except
as described in section 10. However, if INVENTOR follows the step-by-step
instructions in the PPA kit, and follows BAIPs feedback, if
any, INVENTORs PPA is extremely likely to satisfy minimum legal
requirements. Minimum means that at least INVENTORs
exact invention may be legally claimed under 35 USC §112 (1)
in the corresponding utility application.
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MONEY BACK GUARANTEE: If INVENTOR prepares
and files a PPA in accordance with all instructions provided by the
PPA kit, and from BAIP, if any, BAIP guarantees that INVENTORs
PPA will at least meet the legal minimum filing requirements, and
will support at least one claim under 35 USC §112 (1) in a utility
patent application receiving 35 USC §119 (e) priority to, and
describing the same invention as in the PPA. Otherwise, BAIP will,
at our discretion, either overcome the USPTO rejection free of charge,
or refund INVENTORs purchase price upon receiving proof of purchase,
a valid explanation of our error, and proof of USPTO refusal to accord
INVENTORs PPA a filing date, or rejection of the utility application
under 35 USC §112 (1) and that a registered patent practitioner
was unable to draft a claim to overcome this rejection. In no event
shall BAIPs total liability to INVENTOR for all damages, losses,
and causes of action (whether in contract, tort (including negligence)
or otherwise) exceed the amount paid by INVENTOR for the PPA kit or
supporting service(s) as set forth in section 8.
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INVENTOR shall fully keep BAIP informed
of all relevant facts and changes and INVENTOR's address and telephone
number, cooperate with BAIP in pursuing the matter, and pay BAIPs
bills on time.
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INVENTOR is informed that BAIP may
represent or provide consultation to Clients that have products and/or
businesses that generally may have activities in the field of INVENTORs
invention and/or may compete with INVENTOR in certain business lines.
By signing this agreement, INVENTOR waives any potential conflicts
that INVENTOR may have with BAIPs consultation or representation
of such Clients and agrees that BAIP may continue to work with such
Clients in any way that does not directly technically conflict with
the specific work that is being undertaken pursuant to this agreement.
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INVENTOR acknowledges that BAIPs
PPA kit related, flat-fee services are conditioned as described in
this agreement, and should those conditions not be met by INVENTOR,
BAIP will notify and wait for INVENTOR to correct all inadequacies.
However, if BAIP, in good faith, determines INVENTOR cannot sufficiently
correct inadequacies, BAIP may terminate work on INVENTORs case
and charge INVENTOR for reasonable time spent on the case and refund
the unused portion of the retainer, if any. Alternatively, BAIP, at
its discretion, may request reasonable fees, e.g., flat-rate or hourly-rate
fees, for BAIP to continue work on the case.
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The PPA Kit and/or website may provide
references to third parties and/or links to other World Wide Web sites
or resources. Because BAIP has no control over such entities and/or
sites and resources, INVENTOR acknowledges and agrees that BAIP is
not responsible for the availability of such external sites or resources,
and does not endorse and is not responsible or liable for any Content,
advertising, products, services, or other materials on or available
from such their parties, sites or resources. INVENTOR further acknowledges
and agrees that BAIP will not be responsible or liable, directly or
indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused
by or in connection with use of or reliance on any such Content, goods
or services available on or through any such third party, site or
resource.
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NOTICE: Notices to INVENTOR may be
made via either email or regular mail. BAIP may also provide notices
of general matters by sending email, or by posting material on http://www.bayareaip.com.
Notices by INVENTOR to BAIP must be given by calling: 1-415-515-3005;
LEGAL NOTICES must be given by letter delivered by first class US
mail to Bay Area IP, P.O. Box 210459, San Francisco CA, 94121-0459.
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We do not anticipate having any disagreements with INVENTOR about the quality, cost or appropriateness of our product or services, but if any concerns about these matters arise, please notify us immediately. We would endeavor to resolve any disagreements in a fair and amicable manner. If, for some reason, we were not able to resolve any disputes ourselves,, the parties will try in good faith to
settle it through mediation conducted by a mediator to be mutually
selected. The parties will share the costs of the mediator equally.
Each party will cooperate fully and fairly with the mediator and will
attempt to reach a mutually satisfactory compromise to the dispute.
If the dispute is not resolved within 30 days after it is referred
to the mediator, it will be arbitrated by an arbitrator to be mutually
selected. Judgment on the arbitration award may be entered in any
court that has jurisdiction over the matter. Costs of arbitration,
including lawyers' fees, will be allocated by the arbitrator.
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The validity, interpretation, and performance
of this Agreement will be controlled and construed under the laws
of the State of Nevada. Venue in any action in law or equity arising
from the terms of this Agreement shall be the court of appropriate
jurisdiction nearest to Reno and within Nevada. Any and all clauses,
or parts of this Agreement found by a court of law to be unenforceable
shall not affect the enforceability of the rest of this Agreement.
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