Terms of Service

1. About These Terms

These Terms of Service govern your use of the Better Societies website and your engagement with our EU AI Act compliance assessment and advisory services. "Better Societies" is a practice operated by Echo Collective LLC, a limited liability company organised under the laws of the State of New York, USA ("we", "us", "our"). "You" means the individual or entity accessing our services.

By submitting an assessment enquiry, signing a proposal, or engaging our services, you agree to these Terms.

2. Services

We provide EU AI Act compliance assessment and advisory services, including:

• Diagnostic Assessment (€1,000): A scoped review of your AI systems and practices against EU AI Act obligations, delivered as a written report.
• Compliance Advisory (€2,500 / €5,000): Ongoing advisory support, documentation assistance, and compliance roadmap delivery.
• Done-For-You Compliance (€25,000): Full conformity package including technical documentation, risk assessments, governance framework, vendor questionnaire, registration support, 12-month roadmap, one 90-minute call with Adrien, and 30 days of email Q&A.

Specific scope, deliverables, and timelines for each engagement are set out in a written proposal or statement of work agreed before work begins.

3. Not Legal Advice

Our services constitute professional compliance advisory services, not legal advice. Nothing we deliver should be construed as legal counsel. We strongly recommend you consult qualified legal counsel in your jurisdiction for formal legal opinions on your EU AI Act obligations. We make no representation or warranty that our assessments constitute a complete legal analysis.

4. No Guarantee of Regulatory Outcome

We do not guarantee that following our recommendations will result in full regulatory compliance, the absence of enforcement action, or any particular outcome from a supervisory authority. Regulatory interpretation evolves and enforcement is outside our control. Our assessments represent our professional judgement at the time of delivery based on the information you provide.

5. Client Responsibilities

To enable us to deliver our services effectively, you agree to:

• Provide accurate, complete, and timely information about your AI systems, business processes, and organisational structure.
• Identify and make available appropriate internal stakeholders and documentation.
• Promptly review drafts and provide feedback within agreed timelines.
• Notify us promptly of any material changes to your AI systems or business context during an engagement.

We are not liable for any deficiency in deliverables caused by inaccurate or incomplete information provided by you.

6. Fees and Payment

Fees are as set out in the applicable proposal. Unless otherwise agreed:

• Invoices are issued on engagement commencement (or as specified in the proposal).
• Payment terms are net 14 days from invoice date.
• Late payments may incur interest at the rate of 1.5% per month or the maximum rate permitted by applicable law, whichever is lower.
• All fees are exclusive of applicable taxes (VAT, sales tax, etc.), which are your responsibility where applicable.

7. Intellectual Property

Upon full payment of all fees, we grant you a perpetual, non-exclusive licence to use the deliverables we produce for your internal compliance purposes. We retain ownership of our methodologies, frameworks, templates, and pre-existing intellectual property. You may not resell or redistribute our deliverables to third parties without our prior written consent.

8. Confidentiality

Each party agrees to keep the other's confidential information strictly confidential and not to disclose it to third parties without prior written consent, except as required by law or to professional advisers bound by confidentiality obligations. This obligation survives termination of the engagement for two years.

9. Limitation of Liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law:

• Our total aggregate liability to you for any claim arising from or related to our services is limited to the fees paid by you for the specific engagement giving rise to the claim in the 12 months preceding the claim.
• We are not liable for any indirect, consequential, special, or punitive damages, including loss of profit, loss of data, or regulatory fines, even if advised of the possibility of such damages.

Nothing in these Terms limits liability for fraud, gross negligence, or wilful misconduct.

10. Termination

Either party may terminate an engagement with 14 days written notice. Upon termination, you will pay for all work completed and reasonable costs incurred to the termination date. We will deliver any completed work product up to the termination date.

11. Governing Law and Disputes

These Terms and any engagement with us are governed by the laws of the State of New York, USA, without regard to conflict of law principles. Any dispute arising from these Terms or our services shall be submitted first to good-faith negotiation. If unresolved, disputes shall be submitted to binding arbitration in New York, NY, under the rules of the American Arbitration Association, conducted in English.

12. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. The updated version will be posted on this page with a revised "Last updated" date. Continued use of our services after a change constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms.

13. Contact

Echo Collective LLC / Better Societies
8 East 96th Street, New York, NY 10128
info@bettersocieties.world