This Agreement and your activities under it, are governed solely by and shall be construed solely in accordance with the laws of the United States and the State of Texas, U.S.A., without regard to its principles of conflicts of law regardless of your location.
ANY CONTROVERSY OR CLAIM ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO THIS AGREEMENT OR ANY ASPECT OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN YOU AND US, WHETHER BASED IN CONTRACT, TORT, STATUTE, FRAUD, MISREPRESENTATION OR ANY OTHER LEGAL THEORY (“Dispute”), WILL BE RESOLVED VIA ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION INSTEAD OF IN COURT BY A JUDGE OR JURY.
In the event of a Dispute, each Party will promptly appoint a knowledgeable, responsible, and authorized representative to meet and negotiate in good faith to resolve the dispute. The location, form, frequency, duration, and conclusion of these discussions will be left to the discretion of the representatives during the ninety (90) days following appointment of the representatives for the Parties. Discussions and correspondence among the representatives are solely for purposes of a prospective settlement of the Dispute and are exempt from any discovery and/or production in any future proceedings and will not be admissible therein without the concurrence of the Parties.
If a Dispute cannot be settled through these discussions, the Parties agree to attempt to settle the dispute by mediation administered by the American Arbitration Association under its Commercial Mediation Procedures during the ninety (90) days following termination of the discussions of the representatives for the Parties. Mediation shall be in Austin, TX U.S.A. The Parties will cooperate with one another in selecting a mediation service and will cooperate with the mediation service, and with one another, in selecting a neutral mediator and in scheduling the mediation proceedings. The mediator’s fees and expenses will be shared equally between the Parties.
The Parties further agree that any unresolved Dispute following mediation shall be settled by arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association in accordance with its Commercial Arbitration Rules and judgment on the award rendered by the arbitrator(s) may be entered in any court having jurisdiction thereof. Claims shall be heard by a single arbitrator. The place of arbitration shall be Austin, Texas U.S.A.
Time is of the essence for any arbitration under this Agreement and all arbitration hearings shall take place within one hundred fifty (150) days of filing and any final award rendered within one hundred eighty (180) days of filing, with the arbitrator agreeing to these limits prior to accepting appointment. In making determinations regarding the scope of exchange of electronic information, the arbitrator and the Parties shall be guided by The Sedona Principles, Third Edition: Best Practices, Recommendations & Principles for Addressing Electronic Document Production.
The arbitrator will have no authority to award punitive or other damages not measured by the prevailing Party's actual damages, except as may be required by statute. The arbitrator shall award to the prevailing Party, if any, as determined by the arbitrator, all of their costs and fees (e.g., reasonable pre-award expenses of the arbitration, including arbitrator fees, administrative fees, travel expenses, out-of-pocket expenses such as copying and telephone charges, witness fees, and attorneys' fees). Except as may be required by law, neither a Party nor an arbitrator may disclose the existence, content, or results of any arbitration hereunder without the prior written consent of both Parties. The Parties agree that failure or refusal of a Party to pay its required share of the deposits for arbitrator compensation or administrative charges shall constitute a waiver by that Party to present evidence or cross-examine witnesses.
YOU FURTHER AGREE THAT ANY ARBITRATION UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL TAKE PLACE ON AN INDIVIDUAL BASIS; CLASS ARBITRATIONS AND CLASS ACTIONS ARE NOT PERMITTED. YOU AGREE THAT WE AND YOU ARE EACH WAIVING THE RIGHT TO TRIAL BY A JURY, AND YOU ARE AGREEING TO GIVE UP ANY LEGAL RIGHT YOU MAY HAVE TO PARTICIPATE IN A CLASS ARBITRATION OR CLASS ACTION.