Terms of Use

Welcome to the Cleary Gottlieb Alumni Network! At Cleary Gottlieb, we owe our success to our people—present and past—and, in return, we have created this network as a valuable resource for you.  

These Terms and Conditions (the “Terms”) are entered into by and between you and Cleary Gottlieb Steen and Hamilton (referred to herein as “Cleary Gottlieb”, the “Firm”, “we,”  “us” or “our”) and set forth the terms and conditions that apply to your access and use of our website, located at www.clearyalumni.com (the “Site”).  

Please read these Terms carefully.  By accessing and using the Site, you agree to be bound by and comply with the Terms.   If you do not agree to these Terms, you will not be eligible to enroll in the Cleary Gottlieb Alumni Network and you should not use or access the Site.

These Terms state that any disputes between you and us must be resolved in small claims court or in arbitration, pursuant to the dispute resolution clause set forth in Section ‎16.

1. Acceptance of Terms.  By enrolling in the Cleary Gottlieb Alumni Network and using or accessing the Site, you agree to these Terms, as may be updated from time to time in accordance with Section ‎11 below. If you do not want to agree to these Terms, you will not be eligible to enroll in the Cleary Gottlieb Alumni Network and must not access or use the Site. To use the Site you must (i) have previously been employed by the Firm; (ii) be at least eighteen (18) years of age; (iii) have not previously had your access to the Site suspended or terminated; and (iv) do so in compliance with any and all applicable laws and regulations.  
   
   
2. Membership Registration.  To enroll in the Cleary Gottlieb Alumni Network and access and use the Site, you are required to provide us certain identifying information about yourself, including your email address, information about your time at Cleary Gottlieb (e.g., your start and end year, position at Cleary), and, assuming your eligibility to join the Cleary Gottlieb Alumni Network is confirmed, to create a user name and password (“Registration Information”).  Upon submission of your Registration Information, your eligibility to join the Cleary Gottlieb Alumni Network will be confirmed by the Firm and you will receive a link to complete your registration by creating your username and password. So that you may begin enjoying the benefits of your membership immediately, your profile will be populated with your Registration Information (and your Cleary360 photo) and, if applicable, your account settings will reflect the elections you made with respect to electronic communications and Cleary’s internal contact management system via the questionnaire provided by the Firm upon your departure.

When registering for and maintaining your membership, you agree to provide true, accurate, and current information about yourself.  You also agree not to impersonate anyone, misrepresent any affiliation with anyone, use false information, or otherwise conceal your identity from us for any purpose.   You are solely responsible for maintaining the confidentiality and security of your membership password. For your protection and the protection of other users, we ask you not to share your membership password with anyone else.  If you do share your membership password with anyone, we will consider their activities to have been authorized by you.   If you have reason to believe that your membership account is no longer secure, you must immediately notify us at global-alumnirelations@cgsh.com. 

As further described in Section ‎‎10, we have the right to disable any account, user name, password, or other identifier, whether chosen by you or provided by us, at any time, in our sole discretion for any or no reason, including if, in our opinion, you have violated any provision of these Terms.  

1. Restrictions on Use.  In connection with your access and use of the Site, you agree not to:
    
   1. Use the Site for any illegal purpose, or in violation of any local, state, national, or international law; 
   2. Violate or encourage others to violate our rights or the rights of the Firm or other third parties, including intellectual property rights, or otherwise disclose information that you do not have consent to disclose (such as confidential information of others, including your employer); 
   3. Post, or upload any content that is unlawful, defamatory, libelous, inaccurate, or that a reasonable person could deem to be objectionable, profane, indecent, defamatory, pornographic, obscene, harassing, threatening, hateful, or otherwise inappropriate;
   4. Interfere in any way with security-related features of the Site; 
   5. Interfere with the operation or any user’s enjoyment of the Site, including by uploading or otherwise disseminating viruses, adware, spyware, worms, or other malicious code, making unsolicited offers or advertisements to other users, or attempting to collect personal information about users or third parties without their consent; 
   6. Access, monitor or copy any content or information from the Site using any robot, spider, scraper, or other automated means or any similar or equivalent manual process for any purpose without our express written permission, except that operators of public search engines may use spiders to copy materials from the Site solely for the purpose of, and to the extent necessary for, the creation of publicly available searchable indices of materials;
   7. Conduct any fraudulent activity, including impersonating any person or entity, claiming false affiliations, accessing the accounts of other users without permission, or falsifying your identity or any information about you; or 
   8. Sell or otherwise transfer the access granted herein. 
      
      
2. ThirdParty Content and Links to Third Party Websites.  The Site may contain links to third party websites or services.  We provide such links as a convenience, and do not control, guarantee or endorse these websites or services.  You acknowledge and agree that we have not reviewed the content, advertising, products, services, or other materials that appear on such third party websites or services, and are not responsible for the legality, accuracy, or appropriateness of any such content, and shall not be responsible or liable, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with your use of, or reliance upon, any such third party websites or services. When you access any such third party websites or services through a hyperlink posted on the Site, please carefully read the terms and conditions of use, privacy policy and other policies of such third party websites or services as these Terms do not apply to such use.
   
   
3. Intellectual Property Rights.  This Site and its entire contents and features (including all information, software, text, images, video, audio and the design, and the collection and arrangement of any of the foregoing) are owned by us, our licensors, or other providers of such material and are protected by applicable intellectual property laws.  No materials from the Site may be copied, reproduced, republished, uploaded, posted, publicly displayed or performed, downloaded, transmitted, or distributed in any way without our express permission, except as may be required for you to access and view the Site in the manner permitted hereunder.

You may not modify copies of any materials from this Site or delete or alter any copyright, trademark, or other proprietary rights notices from copies of materials from this Site.  Any use of this Site not expressly permitted by these Terms is a breach of these Terms and may violate copyright, trademark and other laws.  We intend to vigorously enforce our rights, including our intellectual property rights.     

Our name, the terms “Cleary Gottlieb”, “CG”, “CGSH”, our logo, and all related names, logos, product and service names, designs, and slogans are trademarks of us or our affiliates or licensors. You must not use such marks without our prior written permission.  

1. Feedback.  We welcome your ideas, comments, suggestions and feedback regarding the Cleary Gottlieb Alumni Network, the Site or any related services (“Feedback”).   All Feedback disclosed, submitted, or offered to us via the Site or otherwise, may be freely used by us without restriction (including without any obligation of confidentiality).  You represent and warrant that any Feedback that you submit to us are original to you, made in compliance with applicable laws and do not violate any right of any third party, including intellectual property rights.  By disclosing, submitting or offering any Feedback to us, you grant us a non-exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide, perpetual, irrevocable, fully assignable and sublicensable right to use, copy, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, process, create derivative work from, distribute and display such Feedback and derivative works thereof throughout the world in any manner and in any media.
   
   
2. User Content. This Site enables messaging and sharing of information in many ways, including through your profile, articles, group posts, job postings and other content and materials, which users are allowed to post, submit, publish, display, or transmit to other users or other persons (hereinafter, “post”) on or through the Site (collectively, “User Contributions”). Where we have made settings available we will honor the choices you make about who can see your User Contributions (e.g., message content to your addressees, restricting your profile visibility). 

By providing any User Contribution on the Site, you grant us and our affiliates and service providers, and each of their and our respective licensees, successors, and assigns the right to use, reproduce, modify, perform, display, distribute, and otherwise disclose to third parties any such material for any purpose.  You represent and warrant that (i) you own or otherwise have the right to grant the license granted above with respect to any User Contributions you post to the Site and (ii) all of your User Contributions will comply with these Terms. You can end this license for specific content by deleting such content from the Site, or generally by closing your account, except (a) to the extent you shared it with others as part of the Site and they copied, re-shared it or stored it and (b) for the reasonable time it takes to remove from backup and other systems. 

You understand and acknowledge that you are responsible for any User Contributions you post, and you, not we, have full responsibility for such content, including its legality, reliability, accuracy, and appropriateness.  We are not responsible or liable to any third party for the content or accuracy of any User Contributions posted by you or any other user of the Site.

While we may edit and make format changes to your content (such as translating or transcribing it, modifying the size or file type or removing metadata), we will not modify the meaning of your expression unless it is in clear violation of these Terms.  Accordingly, we assume no liability for any action or inaction regarding transmissions, communications or User Contributions provided by any user or third party. You understand that when using the Site, you will be exposed to User Contributions from a variety of sources, and that we are not responsible for the legality, accuracy, truthfulness, usefulness, safety, or intellectual property rights of or relating to such User Contributions. You further understand and acknowledge that you may be exposed to User Contributions that are inaccurate, offensive, indecent, untrue or objectionable, and you agree to waive, and hereby do waive, any legal or equitable rights or remedies you have or may have against the Firm with respect thereto.

We have the right to cooperate fully with any law enforcement authorities or court order requesting or directing us to disclose the identity or other information of anyone posting any materials on or through the Site.  Furthermore, we have the right to disclose your identity or other information about you to any third party who claims that material posted by you violates their rights, including their intellectual property rights or their right to privacy or publicity.  We may also take any action with respect to any User Contribution that we deem necessary or appropriate, including if we believe, in our sole discretion, that such User Contribution infringes any intellectual property right or other right of any person or entity, threatens the personal safety of users of the Site or the public, or could create liability for us.  YOU WAIVE AND HOLD HARMLESS US AND OUR AFFILIATES, LICENSEES, AND SERVICE PROVIDERS FROM ANY CLAIMS RESULTING FROM ANY ACTION TAKEN BY US/ANY OF THE FOREGOING PARTIES DURING, OR TAKEN AS A CONSEQUENCE OF, INVESTIGATIONS BY EITHER US/SUCH PARTIES OR LAW ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITIES.

Copyright Infringement
If you are a copyright owner (or their authorized representative) and you believe that any content on the Site constitutes infringement of such copyright, you may contact our designated agent:

Elizabeth Claps 
Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP 
One Liberty Plaza, New York NY 10006 
Phone: +1 212 225 3164 
Email: global-alumnirelations@cgsh.com

You must provide the following information: an electronic or physical signature of the copyright owner or the person authorized to act on behalf of the copyright owner; a description of the copyrighted work that you claim has been infringed; a description of where the material that you claim is infringing is located; your address, telephone number, and email address; a written statement that you have a good faith belief that the disputed use is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and a statement by you, made under penalty of perjury, that the above information in your notice is accurate and that you are the copyright owner or authorized to act on the copyright owner’s behalf.  We have adopted and implemented a policy that provides for termination in appropriate circumstances of accounts of users who repeatedly infringe copyright or other intellectual property rights of us or others.

1. Privacy and Security. Our privacy and security practices are explained in our Privacy Statement as amended from time to time. You agree that we are entitled to monitor your use of the Site for the purpose of enforcing the restrictions in Section ‎3 and to maintain the privacy and security of the Site.
   
   
2. Termination.  If you violate these Terms, your permission to use our Site will automatically terminate.  In addition, we, in our sole discretion, may suspend or terminate your membership and/or suspend or terminate some or all of your access to the Site at any time, with or without notice to you.  You may terminate your membership at any time by contacting us at global-alumnirelations@cgsh.com. After your account is terminated, information and content previously provided by you will no longer be accessible through your account, but we may continue to store such information and content, and it may also be stored by third parties to whom it has been transferred through your use of the Site.  The following provisions shall survive any termination of these terms: Section ‎5 (Intellectual Property), Section ‎6 (Feedback), this Section ‎‎10 (Termination), Section ‎12 (Disclaimers of Warranties), Section ‎13 (Limitation of Liability), Section ‎14 (Indemnification), Section ‎15 (Governing Law), Section ‎16 (Dispute Resolution) and Section ‎18 (Miscellaneous). 
   
   
3. Modification of the Terms.  We reserve the right at any time to modify these Terms and to impose new or additional terms or conditions on your use of our Site.  Such modifications and additional terms and conditions will be effective immediately upon their posting on the Site.  We will make reasonable efforts to notify you of any material changes to the Terms, including by providing a notice to our Site or by sending an email to any address you may have provided to us.   Notwithstanding the foregoing, your continued use of the Site after any modifications to the Terms or new or additional terms or conditions are posted will be deemed acceptance of any such modifications or new or additional terms or conditions.
   
   
4. Warranty Disclaimer.  OUR SITE IS PROVIDED “AS IS” AND ON AN “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTY OR CONDITION OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED.  Although we seek to maintain safe, secure, accurate, and well-functioning services, we cannot guarantee the continuous operation of or access to our Site, and there may at times be inadvertent technical issues or factual errors or inaccuracies.  YOUR USE OF THE SITE IS AT YOUR OWN RISK.  We specifically (but without limitation) disclaim (i) any implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, quiet enjoyment, or non-infringement; and (ii) any warranties arising out of course-of-dealing, usage, or trade.  You assume all risk for any damages that may result from your use of or access to our Site.   The information presented on or through the Site is made available solely for general information purposes.   We do not guarantee the accuracy of, and disclaim all liability for, any errors or other inaccuracies in the information, content, recommendations, and materials made available through our Site.  Any reliance you place on such information is strictly at your own risk.  We disclaim all liability and responsibility arising from any reliance placed on such information by you or any other visitor to the Site, or by anyone who may be informed of any of the Site’s contents.  
   
   
5. Limitation of Liability.  IN NO EVENT WILL WE BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ANY INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES (INCLUDING PERSONAL INJURY, PAIN AND SUFFERING, EMOTIONAL DISTRESS, LOSS OF REVENUE, LOSS OF PROFITS, LOSS OF BUSINESS, LOSS OF USE, LOSS OF GOODWILL, LOSS OF DATA), WHETHER CAUSED BY OR BASED IN TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE), BREACH OF CONTRACT, WARRANTY, STATUTE OR ANY OTHER LEGAL THEORY (EVEN IF FORESEEABLE), AND WHETHER OR NOT WE HAVE BEEN INFORMED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.  Some jurisdictions do not allow the disclaimer of warranties or limitation of liability in certain circumstances.  Accordingly, some of the above limitations or the disclaimer of warranties in Section ‎12 may not apply to you.
   
   
6. Indemnity.  You agree that you will be personally responsible for your use of our Site, and you agree to defend, indemnify, and hold us, our officers, directors, employees, consultants, affiliates, subsidiaries, and agents, harmless from and against any and all claims, liabilities, damages, losses, and expenses (including attorneys’ and accounting fees and costs), arising out of or in any way connected with (i) your access to or use of our Site; (ii) your violation of the Terms or any applicable law or regulation; (iii) your violation of any third party right, including any intellectual property, publicity, confidentiality or privacy right; or (iv) any disputes or issues between you and any third party.  We reserve the right, at our own expense, to assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter otherwise subject to indemnification by you, and in such case, you agree to cooperate with our defense of such claim.
   
   
7. GoverningLaw.   These Terms shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of New York, without regard to conflict of law principles.  Subject to Section ‎16, which provides that disputes are to be resolved in small claims court or arbitration, to the extent that any lawsuit or court proceeding is permitted hereunder, you and we agree to submit to the exclusive personal jurisdiction of the state courts and federal courts located within Manhattan, New York, for the purpose of litigating all such disputes.
   
   
8. Dispute Resolution.  In the interest of resolving disputes between you and us in the most expedient and cost effective manner, you and we agree to resolve any controversy or claim arising out of or relating to this contract, or the breach thereof in small claims court in Manhattan, New York, if a claim is within such court’s jurisdiction, provided that such action may not be transferred, removed or appealed to a different court.

If a claim is not within the small claims court’s jurisdiction, any such controversy or claim shall be settled by arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association in accordance with its Commercial Arbitration Rules.  The tribunal will consist of one arbitrator.   The place of arbitration will be in the State of New York.  The language used in the arbitral proceedings will be English.  The award rendered by the arbitrator shall be final and binding on the parties.  The judgment may be entered upon the arbitration award in accordance with applicable law in any court in the State of New York having jurisdiction thereof.   The parties acknowledge that these Terms evidence a transaction involving interstate commerce.   Notwithstanding any provision in these Terms to the contrary with respect to applicable substantive law, any arbitration conducted pursuant to these Terms shall be governed by the United States Federal Arbitration Act (presently 9 U.S.C. Sec. 1-16).  Except for obtaining a judgment before a small claims court pursuant to the previous paragraph, or a judgment upon the award rendered by the arbitrator, this arbitration clause waives the parties’ right to seek relief in court.  This Section ‎16 shall not preclude the parties from seeking provisional remedies in aid of arbitration from a court of appropriate jurisdiction. 

Notwithstanding any of the above, you agree that either party may seek injunctive or other equitable relief in state or federal court located in the State of New York in the event of actual or threatened infringement or misappropriation of intellectual property rights.  You hereby expressly waive a trial by jury.  You hereby agree not to participate in a class action for any claims covered by these Terms.

1. Modification of the Site.  We reserve the right to modify or discontinue, temporarily or permanently, some or all of the Site at any time without any notice or further obligation to you.  You agree that we will not be liable to you or to any third party for any modification, suspension, or discontinuance of any of the Site.
   
   
2. Miscellaneous.  
   1. Entire Agreement.  These Terms, together with the Privacy Policy, constitute the entire and exclusive understanding and agreement between you and us regarding your use of and access to the Site, and except as expressly permitted above, may only be amended by a written agreement signed by authorized representatives of the parties. 
   2. No Waiver.  The failure to require performance of any provision shall not affect our right to require performance at any time thereafter, nor shall a waiver of any breach or default of the Terms constitute a waiver of any subsequent breach or default or a waiver of the provision itself.  
   3. Paragraph Headers.  Use of paragraph headers in the Terms is for convenience only and shall not have any impact on the interpretation of particular provisions.  
   4. Severability.  In the event that any part of the Terms is held to be invalid or unenforceable by a court of competent jurisdiction, the unenforceable part shall be given effect to the greatest extent possible and the remaining parts will remain in full force and effect.

Last updated: April 1, 2024