Terms of Service

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Wyoming, USA, without regard to its conflict-of-law principles. The Federal Arbitration Act, 9 U.S.C. §§ 1 et seq. (the “FAA”), governs the interpretation and enforcement of the arbitration provisions of this Section. Any dispute, claim, or controversy arising out of or relating to these Terms or the Service shall be resolved by binding arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association, “AAA,” except that either party may bring an individual action in small claims court if the dispute qualifies for that court. Notwithstanding the foregoing, either party may bring an action in court for injunctive or other equitable relief to prevent or restrain (i) actual or threatened infringement, misappropriation, or violation of the party’s intellectual property or proprietary rights, or (ii) breach of the confidentiality, license, or competitive-use restrictions of these Terms. If the claimant is a consumer, the arbitration shall be conducted under the AAA Consumer Arbitration Rules in effect at the time the claim is filed. If the claimant is a business user and the dispute does not qualify as a consumer dispute, the arbitration shall be conducted under the AAA Commercial Arbitration Rules in effect at the time the claim is filed. The arbitration shall be conducted on an individual basis only and not as a class, collective, consolidated, mass, or representative action. You and BookBeam each waive any right to a jury trial and any right to participate in a class action, class arbitration, or representative proceeding. Any disputes not subject to arbitration shall be brought exclusively in the state or federal courts located in Wyoming, and you consent to the personal jurisdiction of those courts.

Informal Dispute Resolution. Before initiating any arbitration or court proceeding (other than for the equitable relief described above or in small claims court), the party initiating the dispute must first send a written notice of dispute to the other party (a “Notice of Dispute”). A Notice of Dispute to BookBeam must be sent by email to hello@bookbeam.io and by mail to the address in the Contact Information section, must identify the claimant by name and account, describe the dispute in reasonable detail, and state the specific relief sought. The parties shall use good-faith efforts to resolve the dispute through informal negotiation for a period of thirty (30) days following receipt of the Notice of Dispute. If the dispute is not resolved within that 30-day period, either party may then initiate arbitration or, where applicable, an action in small claims court. Compliance with this informal dispute-resolution requirement is a condition precedent to commencing any arbitration; the arbitrator and any court shall enforce this requirement, and the applicable statute of limitations and any AAA filing-fee deadlines will be tolled during the 30-day informal resolution period.

Right to Opt Out of Arbitration. You may opt out of the agreement to arbitrate and the class-action waiver in this Section by sending written notice of your decision to opt out to hello@bookbeam.io within thirty (30) days after first accepting these Terms (or, for existing users, within thirty (30) days after the effective date of any amendment to this Section that materially affects your rights). Your notice must include your name, the email address associated with your account, and a clear statement that you wish to opt out of arbitration. If you opt out, neither you nor BookBeam will be required to arbitrate disputes; the remaining provisions of these Terms (including the governing law, choice of forum, jury-trial waiver, and class-action waiver to the extent permitted by law) will continue to apply. Opting out will not affect any other agreement to arbitrate you may have with BookBeam.

Arbitration Procedure; Costs. The arbitration shall be conducted before a single arbitrator. Unless the parties agree otherwise, arbitration shall take place in the U.S. county where you reside, or shall be conducted by telephone, video conference, or based on written submissions, at the user’s election. Allocation of arbitration filing fees, administrative fees, and arbitrator compensation will be governed by the AAA rules applicable to the proceeding. The arbitrator’s authority is limited to the parties’ individual claims; the arbitrator may not consolidate claims or preside over any class or representative proceeding. The arbitrator’s award shall be final and binding, and judgment on the award may be entered in any court of competent jurisdiction. The existence and content of the arbitration, including documents and information exchanged, shall be kept confidential by the parties, except as necessary to enforce the award or as required by law.

Mass Arbitration Procedures. If twenty-five (25) or more substantially similar arbitration demands are filed against BookBeam by or with the assistance of the same law firm or coordinated group of lawyers within a ninety (90)-day period, the parties agree that such demands shall be resolved in batches of not more than fifty (50) demands per batch, with each batch staged sequentially. Filing fees for the second and subsequent batches will not be due until the prior batch concludes. The parties will work in good faith with the AAA to implement these batching procedures. The statutes of limitations for all such demands shall be tolled while batching procedures are in effect.

Severability of Arbitration Provisions. If any provision of this Section (other than the class-action waiver) is held invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions shall continue in full force and effect. However, if the class-action waiver is held invalid or unenforceable as to all or part of a dispute, then the entire agreement to arbitrate (as it relates to that dispute) shall be void, and the dispute shall be resolved exclusively in the state or federal courts located in Wyoming.