1. Introduction to these Site Terms
1.1 Mewburn Ellis LLP is a limited liability partnership registered in England and Wales under number OC306749, whose registered office is 39th Floor, 8 Bishopsgate, London EC2N 4BQ, where a list of members of Mewburn Ellis LLP (who are referred to as "partners") is open to inspection.
1.2 These terms and conditions, the privacy policy and our standard Terms and Conditions as referred to below in Clauses 6 and 7.6 respectively (referred to together as the Terms) apply to your access to, and use of, this internet-based information management site operated by Mewburn Ellis LLP (Site).
1.3 If you accept the Terms, click the "Accept" button and you will be able to use the Site. If you do not accept the Terms, then you are not authorised to use this Site.
1.4 We reserve the right to amend the Terms from time to time. Please check the Terms periodically for any changes. The Terms were last amended on 17 June 2024.
2. User authorisation and site security
2.1 Use of the Site is restricted to individuals authorised by Mewburn Ellis LLP to use the Site and who have been given a password by us unique to that user (Authorised User). Authorised Users must be sufficiently authorised to access the Site and give instructions to us on behalf of the client for whom they work (Client) and, in accessing the Site, you confirm that is the case. If you are not an Authorised User, please leave the Site immediately and contact us at Portal.Access@mewburn.com.
2.2 As an Authorised User, you are responsible for ensuring the security and proper use of your username and password (which shall include use of multifactor authentication where required by us) and must not disclose them to any unauthorised person. You should not leave your computer terminal unattended while you are logged on to the Site. You should also not enter your username and password into a computer terminal then provide an opportunity to an unauthorised person to operate your computer terminal.
2.3 You must tell us immediately by email at Portal.Access@mewburn.com if you believe that an unauthorised person knows your username or password or has access to your account, or if you suspect any form of unauthorised access.
2.4 We reserve the right to suspend your account or disallow your use of the Site if we suspect an unauthorised person is attempting to access it.
2.5 You must comply with our reasonable instructions in relation to your use of the Site. We may terminate your access to the Site if you fail to do so.
2.6 You warrant to us that you will not use this Site for any unlawful purposes or in a way that is prohibited by these Terms. We may immediately terminate your account and your ability to access this Site if you breach any of these Terms or if we believe that we or our other Site users may incur liability from your actions.
2.7 We shall not be liable for any losses you suffer as a result of unauthorised access to your account until such time as you have informed us of any unauthorised or possible unauthorised use of your username and password or of a breach of security.
2.8 If you have instructed us in writing to provide access to nominated users from your organisation, you must notify us immediately if any of your nominated users leave your employment or you believe the security of the Site is threatened in any way.
3. Use of the Site
3.1 You may use the Site to review information relating to matters on which we act for the Client. Such information may include (but is not limited to):
3.1.1 documents relating to Client matters, including relating to registered intellectual property rights (such as. patents, trade marks and designs) and applications for such rights;
3.1.2 information relating to such Client matters and intellectual property rights, including deadlines, and
3.1.3 information relating to the Client engagement.
3.2 In the future, we anticipate that we may introduce functionality to the Site which would enable you to provide us with information and to input data for the purpose of giving us certain types of instructions (Instructing Data). Where that becomes the case and you choose to use that functionality, we shall rely upon such Instructing Data as provided by you. You are solely responsible for the Instructing Data and we shall not monitor its content, nor do we accept any responsibility for, or in any way endorse the content of the Instructing Data.
3.3 You must ensure that all Instructing Data:
3.3.1 complies with all laws and regulations;
3.3.2 is not offensive, abusive, indecent, defamatory, obscene or menacing;
3.3.3 only contains information or personal data about any third party if you are permitted to provide us with the data which we will process in accordance with our Privacy Policy (see Clause 6 below);
3.3.4 does not infringe any third party's intellectual property rights; and
3.3.5 has been virus checked and does not contain a virus or any other malicious code or software.
3.4 You grant us a non-exclusive, perpetual royalty free licence to display, copy, print, save and download any Instructing Data in connection with the purpose for which you have asked us to provide you Site access and in connection with our work on your matters.
3.5 We reserve the right to remove or block access to any Instructing Data that we reasonably believe may put us at risk of a complaint or loss. You agree to provide us with reasonable assistance in this respect.
4. Confidentiality
4.1 You acknowledge that particular information on the Site is either confidential to the Client (including information and documentation relating to unpublished patent applications), or confidential to us (such as information relating to our rates or other confidential information relating to our business).
4.2 You undertake to:
4.2.1 keep any such Client confidential information confidential and only use it in connection with the purposes for which it is intended; and
4.2.2 in respect of any information that is confidential to us, not to disclose such information without our prior consent and in accordance with any other Site rules or confidentiality agreement which may have been entered into by you in respect of your use of the Site (and in the event of any conflict
4.2.3 between the Terms and any other Site rules or confidentiality agreements these Terms shall take precedence).
4.3 The provisions of Clause 4.2 shall not apply to your Instructing Data and/or confidential information to the extent that it is or was in the public domain other than as a result of a breach of this Clause 4.
5.0 Ownership, Use and Retention of Information
5.1 Ownership of all intellectual property rights in the Site itself belong to us, and no rights to the Site are granted to you otherwise than to use it in accordance with these Terms. The Site itself and its design, excluding your Instructing Data, is protected by copyright and should not be copied, reproduced, modified, distributed, transmitted, published, licensed, used to create derivative works or resold without our prior written consent.
5.2 We reserve the right to change, update, restrict access to or close the Site or any part of it at any time. If we choose to close the Site, we will provide you notice of such closure.
5.3 Deletion of information on the Site will be managed in accordance with the retention policies of Mewburn Ellis LLP from time to time in force.
6.0 Data Protection and Privacy
6.1 Your use of the Site results in our processing any personal data you provide. Any such processing will be carried out by us in accordance with our Privacy Policy which can be found here https://www.mewburn.com/privacy.
7.0 Limitation of Liability
7.1 We do not warrant that the Site will meet your requirements or that it will be uninterrupted or error free. We will not be responsible if we are unable to provide the Site for any reason.
7.2 The Site or any part of it may not be compatible with your browser or computer configuration and we do not warrant that it is. In providing the Site we make no representations (either express or implied) or warranties as to the satisfactory quality, fitness for a particular purpose, non-infringement, compatibility and accuracy of the information you use from this Site. All implied warranties and conditions are excluded to the maximum extent permitted by law.
7.3 We shall in no circumstances be liable to you in contract, tort (including without limitation negligence) or otherwise, for any indirect, incidental, special or consequential damages (including financial losses) arising out of or in any way connected with the use of the Site or for any loss or corruption of data.
7.4 We cannot guarantee the Site or documents downloaded from the Site will be free from viruses, and you should ensure that you use up to date virus checking software when using the Site. We are not liable for any damage or loss that may be caused to any equipment or software due to any viruses or malicious code or software, defects or malfunctions in connection with the access to or use of the Site.
7.5 If you are accessing this Site otherwise than in the course of your business, your statutory rights are not and will not be affected by any statement contained in these Terms.
7.6 Without affecting the position set out in Clause 7.1 to 7.5, our liability to you arising out of or in any way connected with our work on your matters and any Instructing Data which you may provide to use through the Site shall be governed by our standard Terms and Conditions which can be found here https://www.mewburn.com/terms-and-conditions, unless otherwise agreed with Mewburn Ellis in writing.
7.7 Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits our liability for fraud or for death or personal injury arising from our negligence or that of our agents or subcontractors or for any other matter in respect of which it would be unlawful or in breach of regulation (including self-regulation) to limit or exclude liability.
8. Site user warranty and indemnity
8.1 You warrant to us that you will not use this Site for any unlawful purposes or in a way that is prohibited by these Terms. We may immediately terminate your account and your ability to access this Site if you breach any of these Terms or if we believe that we or our other Site users may incur liability from your actions.
8.2 You agree not to use the Site to circulate, send or distribute any information which breaches any regulations or legislation or which is offensive, abusive, indecent, defamatory, obscene or menacing, or which is in breach of confidence.
8.3 You agree to indemnify us and to keep us indemnified from all or any liability or damages we incur in contract, tort or otherwise towards a third party as a result of your use of this Site.
9. Hyperlinks
9.1 This Site may include hyperlinks to websites operated by other parties although their inclusion does not imply our endorsement of the material contained on such linked websites. The hyperlinks are provided for your reference only and we take no responsibility for, and will not incur any liability in respect of, the content of any website accessed through a hyperlink contained on this Site.
10. Important information
10.1 The Site is a secure application that utilises strong authentication and authorisation protocols. Access is subject to multi-factor authentication and encrypted via HTTPS. Back end data storage is secure and comprehensively backed up. Although these facilities provide a high level of protection, total security of the Site cannot be guaranteed.
10.2 It is also important that you maintain (in line with good industry practice), appropriate security measures in respect of your own systems which you use in connection with accessing the Site and you agree to do so.
10.3 Holding documents on the Site will not protect them from the normal rules of disclosure in legal proceedings or from seizure by regulatory or other authorities in any jurisdiction in which the document is held, opened or accessible, whether permanently or temporarily. Rules of legal privilege may be different in different jurisdictions.
11. General
11.1 Each of the provisions contained in these Terms shall be construed as being independent of every other and if any provision contained in the Terms is determined to be invalid or unenforceable pursuant to applicable law including, but not limited to the limitations on liability, such determination shall not affect the validity of the remainder of the Terms which shall continue in effect.
11.2 Our Site is operated and controlled from the United Kingdom and these Terms and your use of this Site are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of England and Wales. By agreeing to these Terms you consent to all disputes arising out of or relating to your use of this Site being decided only by the courts of England and Wales. If you are accessing this Site from another jurisdiction it is your responsibility to ensure compliance with the laws that apply to that jurisdiction. You are not permitted to assign your rights and obligations under these Terms. All rights under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 are excluded.
11.3 In these Terms, the heading used for each paragraph does not affect its interpretation. Except as otherwise provided in these Terms, any reference to an enactment is a reference to that enactment as amended, extended, applied or re-enacted from time to time and includes references to any subordinate legislation made under that enactment. "Enactment" includes any legislation in any jurisdiction. References to persons include an individual, a body corporate and an unincorporated association of persons.