Terms of Service
Welcome to AlignPay, a payment processing platform dedicated to freedom of speech and economic interaction. We think one of humankind’s most important advances has been the creation of economies in which everyone – irrespective of their race, religion, origin, gender, or philosophy – has the right to participate within the law. Our mission is to support that progress with tools designed to enable donations, contributions, and payments to be processed in a safe, private, and secure manner with no viewpoint censorship..
To assist you in using our platform, we have prepared this important document for your review. Please read these Terms of Service (“Terms”) carefully as they contain important information about your legal rights, remedies and obligations. You may wish to consult with an attorney.
The www.AlignPay.com website (“Site”) is operated by Align, Inc. (“AlignPay”, “we”, “us” and “our”), and these legally binding Terms govern your rights and obligations regarding the use of the services made available through the Site (together with the Site and Align Content, the “Services”) and your relationship with us. By accessing or using the Site or Services, you are accepting and agreeing to these Terms with AlignPay, and you represent and warrant that you have the right, authority and capacity to do so. Please note that you may not access or use the Services if you are not at least 18 years old.
For purposes of this agreement, the word “you” refers to the user of our Services who is reading this document and to any third party on whose behalf they are using our Services (such as the user’s employer). Such third parties are bound by these Terms, it is prohibited to use our Services on behalf of such third parties absent authority from them to enter into these Terms on their behalf.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: these terms are subject to a requirement to resolve disputes with AlignPay through final and binding arbitration and a waiver of class action rights as described in section 15. Please review section 15 carefully.
We may change these Terms from time to time. If we do, we will post a revised version of the Terms on the Site and update the “Effective Date” below. To reject the updated Terms, prior to the new Effective Date you must (i) permanently discontinue use of the Services and (ii) write to us at [email protected] with a clear request to terminate your account. Otherwise, the revised version of the Terms will take effect on the updated Effective Date. If the revised version of the Terms includes a change to the substance of section 15 (“Arbitration and Class Action Waiver”), then that change will not take effect until thirty days after we announce it, as described in the “Changes to the Arbitration and Class Action Waiver Section” paragraph in section 15 below.
AlignPay facilitates the processing of a variety of transactions, including donations, contributions, and payments. We operate in strict adherence to our Free Speech Principles, which enables our tools to be used in a viewpoint neutral manner, consistent with the well-established concept in First Amendment jurisprudence We may also facilitate communications with our users and others.
Registering Your Account. In order to access certain features of the Services, you may be required to become an Authorized User. An “Authorized User” is a user who has registered an account on the Services (“Account”) or has a valid account on a social networking service (“SNS”) through which the user has connected to the Services (each such account, an “SNS Account”).
Access Through a SNS. If you access the Site through an SNS, you may link your Account with SNS Accounts by allowing us to access your SNS Account, as permitted under the applicable terms and conditions that govern your use of each SNS Account. You represent that you are entitled to grant AlignPay access to your SNS Account without breach by you of any of the terms and conditions that govern your use of the applicable SNS Account and without obligating us to pay any fees or making AlignPay subject to any usage limitations imposed by such third-party service providers. You have the ability to disable the connection between your Account and your SNS Accounts at any time by accessing the Settings section of the Site. YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH THIRD-PARTY SERVICE PROVIDERS ASSOCIATED WITH YOUR SNS ACCOUNTS IS GOVERNED SOLELY BY YOUR AGREEMENT(S) WITH SUCH THIRD-PARTY SERVICE PROVIDERS, AND WE DISCLAIM ANY LIABILITY FOR PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION THAT MAYBE PROVIDED TO US BY SUCH THIRD-PARTY SERVICE PROVIDERS IN VIOLATION OF THE PRIVACY SETTINGS THAT YOU HAVE SET IN SUCH SNS ACCOUNTS.
Registration Data. In registering an Account on the Site, you agree to (a) provide true, accurate, current and complete information about yourself as prompted by the registration form (the “Registration Data”); and (b) promptly update the Registration Data to keep it true, accurate, current and complete. You represent that you are of legal age to form a binding contract and not a person barred from using the Site under the laws of any applicable jurisdiction. You are responsible for all activities that occur under your Account. You may not share your Account or password with anyone, and you agree to notify AlignPay immediately of any unauthorized use of your password or any other breach of security. AlignPay, in its sole discretion, has the right to suspend or terminate your Account and refuse any and all current or future use of the Site. You agree not to create an Account if you have been previously removed by AlignPay.
Your Account. You have no ownership or other property interest in your Account, and all rights in and to your Account are and will forever be owned by and inure to the benefit of AlignPay.
You must comply with the law. You may not take any action that infringes or violates the rights of others, violates the law or breaches any contract or legal duty you owe to anyone, such as using the Services for Causes that are illegal.
You must be truthful. You may not use the Services to deceive, commit fraud, or post information you know is false, misleading, or inaccurate.
You must respect others and obey the law. You may not use the Services to assist or aid and abet crime, civil torts, or other unlawful acts, or do anything that, in our sole discretion we believe is or could be considered racist, libelous, tortious, abusive, or otherwise objectionable.
You may not spam. You may not use the Services to distribute commercial advertising or promotional material, or any junk mail, spam or chain letters.
You may not harm another person’s computer. You may not distribute software viruses, malicious code or anything that is designed to interfere with the proper function of any software, hardware or equipment.
You may not interfere with the Site. You may not bypass any measures that we have in place to secure the Services, take any actions to gain unauthorized access to our system, data, passwords or other users of the Services.
You are responsible for your content. You are solely responsible for all information, materials, communications, text, graphics, links, electronic art, animations, illustrations, artwork, audio clips, video clips, photos, images, reviews, ideas and other data, materials, and content, including the selection and arrangements thereof, that you create on the Services, upload to the Services or otherwise provide or handle using the Services, whether created by you or another person (collectively, “User Content”).
Representations and Warranties. You represent, warrant and covenant that: (a) all information and User Content you provide is accurate and complete; (b) you own all right to or have the requisite consents and licenses to post and display the User Content and to grant us the licenses granted in these Terms; (c) your User Content does not and will not infringe any third party’s intellectual property rights, proprietary rights, privacy, confidentiality, rights of publicity or otherwise violate these Terms or applicable law; and (d) we will not need to obtain any licenses, rights, consents or permissions from, or make any payment to, any party for any use of your User Content or have any liability to a third party as a result of any use of your User Content.
License to your User Content. You hereby grant AlignPay a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free, transferable, sublicensable right and license to access, use, reproduce, transmit, modify, perform, display, distribute, translate, publish and create derivative works based on your User Content, in whole or in part, in any media, for the limited purpose of permitting AlignPay, and its successors and assigns, the ability to operate and advertise the Services (the “User Content License”). The User Content License shall be irrevocable for as long as you utilize the Services. You have the right to object to the User Content License, and such objection must be made in writing to AlignPay, which shall, at its sole option and discretion, within 30 business days of receipt of your written notice, consider whether to waive, in part or in whole, the User Content License requirement.
Representations and Warranties. You represent, warrant and covenant that: (a) all funds donated to your organization or contributed to your campaign will be used as described in the materials you posted on the Services or otherwise provide; and (b) you will comply with all relevant and applicable financial reporting obligations, including but not limited to legal obligations relating to tax reporting, political contribution, charitable donations and asset disclosures for your organization or campaign.
Taxes. It is your responsibility to determine what, if any, taxes apply to the funds you receive through your use of the Services. It is solely your responsibility to assess, collect, report or remit the correct taxes, if any, to the appropriate tax authority. It is also your responsibility to remit any receipts necessary to any donor, contributor, or purchaser that has provided you with such funds.
No data of minors. You may not use the Services to collect information from, or otherwise engage with, individuals you believe are under 18 years of age.
All transactions are at your own risk. When you make a donation, contribution, or payment through the Services, it is your responsibility to understand how your money will be used. AlignPay is not responsible for any offers or promises made by the recipient of your funds. We have no obligation to verify the information that such recipients supply, and we do not represent or guarantee that the donation, contribution, or payment will be used in accordance with any purposes described by the recipient.
We do not endorse organizations, campaigns, merchants, or user content. AlignPay provides the Services for users to interact and engage in lawful economic activity. We do not endorse any organizations, campaigns, merchants, or user content.
We do not provide tax or legal advice. Our Services do not provide financial, legal, tax or other professional advice. Before making any decisions regarding any donations, contributions, or payments, you should consult your financial legal, taxor other professional advisor as appropriate.
Third-party sites. Our Site may contain links to other websites. When you access these third-party websites, you do so at your own risk. We do not control or endorse those sites.
AlignPay’s Rights Concerning Your Account.AlignPay has the right, but not the obligation, to monitor your account. Disputes relating to account ownership or compliance with any term of this agreement shall be decided through arbitration as described hereafter.
AlignPay may make available to you features and tools that allow you to contact your donors, contributors, and purchasers, other users of the Services, or third parties through email or other communication channels. If you use those features and tools, or if you communicate through other means in connection with the Services, you represent, warrant and agree that: (a) you have all right, authority, and consent necessary to send the communication to the recipients; (b) the contact information was gathered in accordance with applicable legal requirements, including those in force where the recipient is located; (c) your communications are not sent in violation of any privacy policy or legal requirement; (d) you will only use the Services as permitted by AlignPay; (e) you will not use false or misleading headers, deceptive subject lines, or other deceptive material in your communications; (f) you will respond immediately and in accordance with instructions sent to you by AlignPay requesting you to modify and comply with a recipient’s contact preferences; and (g) you will provide an accessible and unconditional unsubscribe or opt-out link in every email and other communication where is legally required, and (h) you will not send any communication to any recipient who has opted out of such communication. When you use third-party services or encourage use of such services, you must comply with the terms and conditions of such services.
We partner with third parties to process payment card transactions. As of the Effective Date, these third parties are VeriPay and Cornerstone. When you provide or receive funds, you are interacting with a third party, not AlignPay, and you are agreeing to the third party’s terms and privacy notices. Donations, contributions, and payments will be handled and processed by the third party, and AlignPay has no liability for the donations, contributions, and payments or for any loss or damage relating to them.
General. You consent to our collection, use, disclosure and other handling of information as described in our Privacy Policy, as updated by us from time to time.
You must respect the privacy of others. When you use the Services, you may receive information, about donors, contributors, and purchasers. You may use and disclose this information only in compliance with law and not for other purposes, such as commercial marketing. You may not sell this information.
Personal data of third parties. To the extent you disclose or provide any personal data of any third party to us to use the Services, you represent and warrant that you have all rights and consents necessary and required under applicable law, to provide such data to us and allow us to use and otherwise handle such information as permitted by these Terms.
Our content. You acknowledge that the Services and all content on our Site may be protected by copyrights, trademarks, service marks, trade secrets or other intellectual property and other proprietary rights and laws. Other than your user content, the content made available through the Services (“AlignPay Content”) is the exclusive property of AlignPay or its licensors and is protected by law.
Restrictions and limitations. You may not reproduce, redistribute, transmit, assign, sell, broadcast, rent, share, lend, modify, adapt, edit, create derivative works of, license, or otherwise transfer or use any AlignPay Content unless we give you explicit permission to do so. Any rights not expressly granted herein are reserved.
AlignPay complies with applicable intellectual property laws and reserves the right to terminate the accounts of infringers. To assist with this policy, AlignPay follows a take-down procedure for purported copyright infringement. If you believe that your content has been used in a way that constitutes copyright infringement, you may invoke arbitration as provided herein to resolve the dispute. The arbitration proceeding shall include the allegedly infringing party.
You will defend and hold harmless AlignPay, its subsidiaries and affiliates and each of their respective officers, directors and employees from and against any and all claims, causes of action and proceedings brought by a third party relating to (a) your breach of these Terms, (b) your violation of any applicable laws, rules or regulations and (c) your User Content (“Indemnifiable Claim”) and indemnify such parties for any damages, losses, liabilities, costs and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) finally awarded against AlignPay as a result of such Indemnifiable Claim, and for amounts paid by AlignPay under a court-approved settlement of the Indemnifiable Claim; provided that, AlignPay: (i) promptly gives you written notice of the Indemnifiable Claim; (ii) gives you sole control of the defense and settlement of the Indemnifiable Claim (provided that you may not settle any Indemnifiable Claim without AlignPay’ written consent unless the settlement unconditionally releases AlignPay of all liability and imposes no requirement on AlignPay beyond your payment of a settlement amount) and (iii) provides to you reasonable assistance in defending such Indemnifiable Claim, at your expense.
AlignPay HAS NO FIDUCIARY DUTY TO ANY USER. THE SERVICES, AlignPay CONTENT, USER CONTENT AND ANY OTHER MATERIALS MADE AVAILBABLE ON, OR THROUGH USE OF, THE SERVICES ARE PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS WITHOUT ANY WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, NON- INFRINGEMENT OR COURSE OF PERFORMANCE. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, AlignPay AND ITS AFFILIATES DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION, IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF TITLE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, ACCURACY, MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. AlignPay AND ITS AFFILIATES DO NOT WARRANT THAT YOUR USE OF THE SERVICES WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, ERROR-FREE OR SECURE; THAT DEFECTS WILL BE CORRECTED OR THAT THE SERVICES OR THE SERVER(S) ON WHICH THE SERVICES ARE HOSTED ARE FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS. YOUR USE OF THE SERVICES ARE AT YOUR OWN RISK.
You acknowledge that AlignPay has no control over and does not guarantee the quality, safety, accuracy or legality of any use of the Services, or the truth or accuracy of any information provided by users. AlignPay has no responsibility for, and hereby disclaims all liability arising from, the acts or omissions of any third parties that AlignPay requires to provide the Services.
AlignPay may terminate your right to use the Services at any time if: (a) you violate or breach these Terms; (b) you misuse or abuse the Services or use the Services in a way not intended or permitted by AlignPay or (c) allowing you to access and use the Services would violate any applicable local, state, provincial, national and other laws, rules and regulations, would expose us to legal liability or could harm our reputation.
Any dispute over our right to terminate shall be subject to arbitration at the initiation of the user. Termination shall be stayed pending a decision by the arbitrator.
IMPORTANT: PLEASE READ THIS SECTION CAREFULLY. IT AFFECTS YOUR RIGHTS, INCLUDING BY LIMITING YOUR RIGHT TO FILE A LAWSUIT IN COURT.
a. You and AlignPay agree that these Terms affect interstate commerce and that the Federal Arbitration Act governs the interpretation and enforcement of these arbitration provisions.
b. This Section is intended to be interpreted broadly and governs any and all dispute.
c. Initial Dispute Resolution: Except for intellectual property and small claims court claims, (i) the parties agree to use good-faith efforts to settle any Dispute directly through consultation with the AlignPay support department, and (ii) a good faith attempt to resolve the Dispute through such consultation shall be a condition to either party initiating a lawsuit or arbitration. You can reach AlignPay’s support department at [email protected].
d. Binding Arbitration. If the parties do not reach an agreed-upon solution within a period of thirty (30) days from the time informal dispute resolution is initiated under the Initial Dispute Resolution provision above, then either party may initiate binding arbitration as the sole means to resolve claims, subject to the terms set forth below. Specifically, all Disputes (including, for example, Disputes relating to our Privacy Notice, Disputes relating to our agreement regarding how Disputes will be resolved, and Disputes relating in any other way to these Terms) shall be finally settled by binding arbitration, as described below. Arbitration ordinarily is swifter and less expensive than judicial proceedings. The latter, however, provide greater discovery rights and procedural protections that may delay justice and escalate litigation costs.
e. Disputes shall be resolved before a single arbitrator administered by JAMS in accordance with the JAMS Streamlined Arbitration Procedure Rules for claims that do not exceed $250,000 and the JAMS Comprehensive Arbitration Rules and Procedures for claims exceeding $250,000 in effect at the time the arbitration is initiated, excluding any rules or procedures governing or permitting class actions. The arbitrator, and not any federal, state, or local court or agency, shall have exclusive authority to resolve all disputes arising out of or relating to the interpretation, applicability, enforceability, or formation of these Terms or the Privacy Policy, including but not limited to any claim that all or any part of these Terms or Privacy Policy is void or voidable, whether a claim is subject to arbitration, or the question of waiver by litigation conduct. The arbitrator shall be empowered to grant whatever relief would be available in a court under law or in equity. The arbitrator’s award shall be written and shall be binding on the parties and may be entered as a judgment in any court of competent jurisdiction. To start an arbitration, you must do the following: (a) write a Demand for Arbitration that includes a description of the claim and the amount of damages you seek to recover (you may find a copy of a Demand for Arbitration at www.jamsadr.com ); (b) send three copies of the Demand for Arbitration, plus the appropriate filing fee, to JAMS, 620 Eighth Ave., 34th Floor, New York, NY 10018 USA; and (c) send one copy of the Demand for Arbitration to AlignPay at [email protected]. Fees invoiced by JAMS, including filing fees and arbitrator and hearing expenses, will be governed by the JAMS arbitration rules and standards, including, if applicable, the JAMS Consumer Arbitration Minimum Standards. Each party is responsible for your own attorneys' fees unless the arbitration rules and/or applicable law provide otherwise. You understand that, absent this mandatory arbitration provision, you would have the right to sue in court and have a jury trial. You further understand that, in some instances, the costs of arbitration could exceed the costs of litigation. The arbitration will allow for certain discovery or exchange of non-privileged information relevant to the Dispute, but this right may be more limited in arbitration than in court. If you are a party to the arbitration in your individual capacity and the Consumer Arbitration Minimum Standards apply (as opposed to a situation in which, for example, the arbitration is between AlignPay and an entity), arbitration may take place in the county where you reside at the time of filing. Otherwise, arbitration will take place in Richmond, Virginia. You and AlignPay further agree to submit to the personal jurisdiction of any federal or state court in Richmond, Virginia in order to compel arbitration, to stay proceedings pending arbitration, or to confirm, modify, vacate, or enter judgment on the award entered by the arbitrator. If any clause within these arbitration provisions is found to be illegal or unenforceable, that specific clause will be severed from these arbitration provisions, and the remainder of the arbitration provisions will be given full force and effect.
f. Class Action Waiver. The parties further agree that the arbitration shall be conducted in their individual capacities only and not as a class action or other representative action, and the parties expressly waive their right to file a class action or seek relief on a class basis. YOU AND AlignPay 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 PROCEEDING. If any court or arbitrator determines that the class action waiver set forth in this paragraph is void or unenforceable for any reason or that an arbitration can proceed on a class basis, then the arbitration provisions set forth above shall be deemed null and void in their entirety and the parties shall be deemed to have not agreed to arbitrate disputes.
g. Exception for Litigation of Intellectual Property and Small Claims Court Claims. Notwithstanding the parties' decision to resolve all Disputes through arbitration, either party may bring enforcement actions, validity determinations or claims arising from or relating to theft, piracy or unauthorized use of intellectual property in state or federal court or in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to protect its intellectual property rights (“intellectual property rights” means patents, copyrights, moral rights, trademarks, and trade secrets, but not privacy or publicity rights). Either party may also seek relief in a small claims court for Disputes within the scope of that court’s jurisdiction.
h. 30-Day Right to Opt Out. You have the right to opt out and not be bound by this Section by sending (from the email address you used to create your AlignPay account) written notice of your decision to opt out to [email protected] with the subject line “ARBITRATION AND CLASS ACTION WAIVER OPT-OUT.” To be effective, the notice must be sent within thirty days of your first use of the Site or the Effective Date of the first version of these Terms to which you were subject, whichever is later. If you opt out of these arbitration and class action provisions as described above, AlignPay also will not be bound by them with respect to any Disputes with you.
i. Changes to the Arbitration and Class Action Waiver Section. AlignPay will provide thirty days' notice of any changes affecting the substance of this Arbitration and Class Action Waiver section by posting on these Terms, or otherwise notifying you. Amendments will become effective thirty days after such notification, regardless of the Effective Date for the rest of these Terms. Changes to this section will otherwise apply prospectively only to claims arising after such thirtieth day. If a court or arbitrator decides that this "Changes to the Arbitration and Class Action Waiver Section" subsection on is not enforceable or valid, then this subsection shall be severed from the section entitled “Arbitration and Class Action Waiver,” and the court or arbitrator shall apply the first Arbitration and Class Action Waiver section in existence after you began using the Services.
j. Jurisdiction. For any Disputes not subject to arbitration or resolution in small claims court, you and AlignPay agree to submit to the personal jurisdiction of a federal or state court selected by AlignPay.
k. If there is a dispute, claim, question, or disagreement between you and another user of the Services, or between you and any other third party, AlignPay is under no obligation to become involved. In the event of such conflict, you release AlignPay, its officers, employees, agents, and successors from claims, demands, and damages of every kind or nature, known or unknown, suspected or unsuspected, disclosed or undisclosed, arising out of or in any way related to such matter. If you are a California resident, you shall and hereby do waive California Civil Code Section 1542, which says: “A general release does not extend to claims that the creditor or releasing party does not know or suspect to exist in his or her favor at the time of executing the release and that, if known by him or her, must have materially affected his or her settlement with the debtor or released party.”
l. Survival. This Section shall survive any termination of your account or the Services.
Subcontracting. AlignPay may subcontract all or part of its obligations under these Terms and may share any information AlignPay collects under these Terms with the subcontractor for such purpose.
Assignment. AlignPay may assign these Terms, and any right or interest under these Terms, in its sole discretion. AlignPay may transfer the information it collects under these Terms in connection with such an assignment. Without limiting the foregoing, AlignPay may share information in connection with an actual or contemplated business sale, merger, consolidation, change in control, transfer of substantial assets, or reorganization.
Governing Law. The Terms and relationship between you and AlignPay shall be governed in all respects by the laws of the State of Delaware without regard to its conflict of laws provisions.
Entire Agreement. These Terms are the entire agreement between you and AlignPay with respect to User Content and the Services. They supersede all other communications and proposals (whether oral, written or electronic) between you and AlignPay with respect to such matters and govern our relationship. If any provision of these Terms is deemed invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, the invalidity of such provision shall not affect the validity of the remaining provisions of these Terms, which shall remain in full force and effect. AlignPay’s failure to assert any right or provision under these Terms shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision.
Effective Date: December 30, 2021
