24.1 Governing Law / Jurisdiction
Unless otherwise required by a mandatory law of a member state of the European Union or any other jurisdiction, the Agreements (and any non-contractual disputes/claims arising out of or in connection with them) are subject to the laws of the state or country listed below, without regard to choice or conflicts of law principles.
Further, you and PURI agree to the jurisdiction of the courts listed below to resolve any dispute, claim, or controversy that arises in connection with the Agreements (and any non-contractual disputes/claims arising out of or in connection with them). (In some cases, that jurisdiction will be “exclusive”, meaning that no other countries’ courts can preside over the matter; have jurisdiction; in other cases, the jurisdiction is “non-exclusive”, meaning that other countries’ courts may have jurisdiction as well. This is indicated in the chart as well.)
Countries: All Countries
Choice of Law: Switzerland
Jurisdiction: Basel-Stadt
PURI does not accept any codes of conduct as mandatory in connection with the services provided under these Agreements.
24.2 CLASS ACTION WAIVER
WHERE PERMITTED UNDER THE APPLICABLE LAW, YOU AND PURI AGREE THAT EACH 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 OR REPRESENTATIVE ACTION. Unless both you and PURI agree, no arbitrator or judge may consolidate more than one person’s claims or otherwise preside over any form of a representative or class proceeding.
24.3 ARBITRATION
If you are located in, are based in, have offices in, or do business in a jurisdiction in which this Section 24.3. is enforceable, the following mandatory arbitration provisions apply to you:
24.3.1 Dispute resolution and arbitration
You and PURI agree that any dispute, claim, or controversy between you and PURI arising in connection with or relating in any way to these Agreements or to your relationship with PURI as a user of the Service (whether based in contract, tort, statute, fraud, misrepresentation, or any other legal theory, and whether the claims arise during or after the termination of the Agreements) will be determined by mandatory binding individual arbitration. Arbitration is more informal than a lawsuit in court. THERE IS NO JUDGE OR JURY IN ARBITRATION, AND COURT REVIEW OF AN ARBITRATION AWARD IS LIMITED. There may be more limited discovery than in court. The arbitrator must follow this agreement and can award the same damages and relief as a court (including attorney fees), except that the arbitrator may not award declaratory or injunctive relief benefiting anyone but the parties to the arbitration. This arbitration provision will survive termination of the Agreements.
24.3.2 Exceptions
Notwithstanding clause (24.3.1) above, you and PURI both agree that nothing herein will be deemed to waive, preclude, or otherwise limit either of our rights, at any time, to (1) bring an individual action in small claims court, (2) pursue enforcement actions through applicable federal, state, or local agencies where such actions are available, (3) seek injunctive relief in a court of law, or (4) to file suit in a court of law to address intellectual property infringement claims.
24.3.3 Arbitration rules
Either you or we may start arbitration proceedings. Any arbitration between you and PURI will be finally settled under the Rules of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce (the “ICC”) then in force (the “ICC Rules”) by one or more arbitrators appointed in accordance with the ICC Rules, as modified by these Agreements, and will be administered by the International Court of Arbitration of the ICC.
Any arbitration will be conducted in the English language and unless otherwise required by a mandatory law of a member state of the European Union or any other jurisdiction, the law to be applied in any arbitration shall be the law of the Kanton of Basel-Stadt, Switzerland, without regard to choice or conflicts of law principles.
24.3.4 Time for filing
Any arbitration must be commenced by filing a demand for arbitration within ONE (1) YEAR after the date the party asserting the claim first knows or reasonably should know of the act, omission, or default giving rise to the claim; and there shall be no right to any remedy for any claim not asserted within that time period. If applicable law prohibits a one-year limitation period for asserting claims, any claim must be asserted within the shortest time period permitted by applicable law.
24.3.5 Notice; Process
A party who intends to seek arbitration must first send a written notice of the dispute to the other, by certified mail or Federal Express (signature required), or in the event that we do not have a physical address on file for you, by electronic mail (“Notice”). PURI’s address for Notice is: PURI, Attn: General Counsel, Dornacherstrasse 248, 4053 BS, Switzerland. The Notice must (1) describe the nature and basis of the claim or dispute; and (2) set forth the specific relief sought (“Demand”). We agree to use good faith efforts to resolve the claim directly, but if we do not reach an agreement to do so within 30 days after the Notice is received, you or PURI may commence an arbitration proceeding. During the arbitration, the amount of any settlement offer made by you or PURI shall not be disclosed to the arbitrator until after the arbitrator makes a final decision and award, if any. In the event our dispute is finally resolved through arbitration in your favor, PURI shall pay you (1) the amount awarded by the arbitrator, if any, (2) the last written settlement amount offered by PURI in settlement of the dispute prior to the arbitrator’s award; or (3) $1,000.00, whichever is greater. All documents and information disclosed in the course of the arbitration shall be kept strictly confidential by the recipient and shall not be used by the recipient for any purpose other than for purposes of the arbitration or the enforcement of arbitrator’s decision and award and shall not be disclosed except in confidence to persons who have a need to know for such purposes or as required by applicable law. Except as required to enforce the arbitrator’s decision and award, neither you nor PURI shall make any public announcement or public comment or originate any publicity concerning the arbitration, including, but not limited to, the fact that the parties are in dispute, the existence of the arbitration, or any decision or award of the arbitrator.
24.3.6 Modifications
In the event that PURI makes any future change to this arbitration provision (other than a change to PURI’s address for Notice), you may reject any such change by sending us written notice within 30 days of the change to PURI’s address for Notice, in which case your account with PURI shall be immediately terminated and this arbitration provision, as in effect immediately prior to the amendments you reject, shall survive.
24.3.7 Enforceability
If the class action waiver at Section 24.2 is found to be unenforceable in arbitration or if any part of this Section 24.3 is found to be invalid or unenforceable, then the entirety of this Section 24.3 shall be null and void and, in such case, the parties agree that the exclusive jurisdiction and venue described in Section 24.1 shall govern any action arising out of or related to the Agreements.