Legal
The terms below govern your use of POALock. Please read them carefully — by using the site you agree to them.
Effective date: ____________ · Last updated: ____________
POALock (the "Service") is operated by POA Lock Inc. ("POALock," "we," "us," or "our"). These Terms of Service ("Terms") form a binding agreement between you and POALock. By accessing or using the Service, you agree to these Terms and to our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, do not use the Service.
POALock is a registry and verification service for powers of attorney and related instruments. Through the Service you may, among other things: prepare a draft power of attorney using our builder; register an executed instrument and receive a verification code; declare and update the status of a registered instrument (for example, active or revoked); allow third parties to check that status; report the death of a principal; and, where offered, store an encrypted copy of a document for controlled retrieval.
POALock is a technology service. It does not execute, witness, notarize, or file any instrument, and it does not determine the legal validity or effect of any instrument. A registration and a verification code do not make an instrument valid, and the absence of a registration does not make an instrument invalid.
POA Lock Inc. is a technology company, not a law firm, and is not a substitute for the advice of an attorney licensed in your jurisdiction. Nothing on the Service is legal advice, and no attorney-client relationship is created by using the Service. Documents generated by the builder are drafts for review with your own attorney and are not effective until properly executed under the law of the governing state. Where an independent licensed attorney prepares or reviews a document through any attorney program offered on the Service, that relationship is between you and that attorney, not POALock.
You must be at least 18 years old and able to form a binding contract to use the Service. By using the Service you represent that you meet these requirements and that all information you provide is accurate and that you are authorized to provide it.
Registering an instrument issues a verification code (which identifies the registration to those you share it with) and a management key (the private credential that controls the registration, including declaring a revocation).
You are responsible for the accuracy of everything you register, including the parties' names, the execution date, and the declared status. POALock does not verify, and does not represent, that any registered instrument exists, was validly executed, is genuine, or is legally effective. The declared status reflects only what the principal (or a party holding the management key) has most recently stated — it is a self-declaration, not a determination by POALock.
A verification or status check reports only the status most recently declared for a registration. It is not a certification of an instrument's validity, authenticity, or legal effect; it is not an opinion as to any person's legal capacity; and it does not by itself create, revoke, or terminate any authority as a matter of law. Relying parties remain solely responsible for their own due diligence under applicable law before acting on any instrument. POALock is not a party to, and accepts no responsibility for, any transaction that a third party undertakes in reliance on a status check.
The Service allows third parties to report that a principal has died, and to attach supporting materials. A death report is an unverified statement submitted by a third party. POALock does not independently confirm death reports, and a report does not by itself revoke or terminate any instrument as a matter of law. Any person relying on the Service must independently confirm a principal's status through an authoritative source before acting. Knowingly submitting a false report, or submitting a report to harass or defraud, is prohibited and may be unlawful.
Fees for the Service are shown at the point of purchase. Payments are processed by our third-party payment processor; by paying, you also agree to that processor's terms. You authorize us (through the processor) to charge the amounts shown. Unless a specific offer or applicable law provides otherwise, fees are non-refundable, including where a registration is later revoked, corrected, or removed. We may change prices prospectively; the price in effect when you transact governs that transaction. You are responsible for any applicable taxes.
You agree not to: register an instrument you have no right to register; submit false, forged, or misleading information; impersonate any person or misrepresent your authority; use the Service to harass, defraud, or harm another; attempt to access registrations, documents, or credentials that are not yours; probe, scan, or circumvent security or access controls, including by enumerating verification codes; interfere with or overload the Service; scrape or harvest data except as expressly permitted; or use the Service in violation of any law. We may suspend or terminate access, and remove or correct any registration, if we reasonably believe these Terms have been violated.
The Service, including its software, text, design, and the POALock name and logo, is owned by POA Lock Inc. and protected by intellectual-property laws. "POALock" is a trademark of POA Lock Inc. Aspects of the Service are the subject of one or more pending patent applications ("Patent Pending"). You retain ownership of the content you submit; you grant us a limited license to host, process, encrypt, store, and display that content solely as needed to operate the Service and provide it to you and those you authorize.
The Service relies on third-party providers (for example, payment processing, email delivery, and hosting) and may link to third-party sites and, where offered, to remote-notarization services conducted on a notary's own certified platform. We are not responsible for third-party services, and your use of them is governed by their own terms and policies.
THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE," WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS, IMPLIED, OR STATUTORY, INCLUDING ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. WE DO NOT WARRANT THAT THE SERVICE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, ERROR-FREE, OR SECURE, OR THAT ANY REGISTRATION OR STATUS IS ACCURATE, GENUINE, OR LEGALLY EFFECTIVE. YOU USE THE SERVICE, AND RELY ON ANY STATUS CHECK, AT YOUR OWN RISK.
TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, POA LOCK INC. AND ITS OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, AND AGENTS WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR FOR ANY LOSS OF PROFITS, DATA, GOODWILL, OR OTHER INTANGIBLE LOSSES, ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THE SERVICE OR ANY RELIANCE ON A STATUS CHECK. IN ALL CASES, OUR TOTAL LIABILITY FOR ANY CLAIM RELATING TO THE SERVICE WILL NOT EXCEED THE GREATER OF THE AMOUNT YOU PAID US FOR THE SERVICE IN THE TWELVE MONTHS BEFORE THE CLAIM OR ONE HUNDRED U.S. DOLLARS ($100). SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW CERTAIN LIMITATIONS, SO SOME OF THE ABOVE MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.
You agree to indemnify and hold harmless POA Lock Inc. and its officers, directors, employees, and agents from any claim, loss, liability, or expense (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of your use of the Service, your content or registrations, your violation of these Terms, or your violation of any law or the rights of another.
We may modify the Service or these Terms at any time. Material changes take effect when we post the updated Terms and update the "Last updated" date, or as otherwise required by law. Your continued use after changes take effect means you accept the updated Terms.
These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of New York, without regard to its conflict-of-laws rules. The exclusive venue for any dispute that is not subject to arbitration [if arbitration is adopted] will be the state and federal courts located in [County], New York, and you consent to their jurisdiction. [Insert dispute-resolution / arbitration / class-action-waiver provisions here after review by counsel.]
Questions about these Terms: support@poalock.com · (212) 608-1660.