Terms and conditions
Legal clause
The information on this page is only a general, high-level explanation of how to write your own terms and conditions document. You should not rely on this article as legal advice or as a recommendation as to what you should actually do, as we cannot know in advance what the specific terms and conditions you wish to establish between your business and your customers and visitors are. We recommend that you seek legal advice to help you understand and assist you in creating your own terms and conditions.
Basics of business terms and conditions
However, the Terms and Conditions (“TOS”) are a set of legally binding terms and conditions that you, as the owner of this website, have defined. The TOS set out the legal boundaries governing the activities of website visitors or your customers when they visit or engage with this website. The TOS are intended to establish the legal relationship between website visitors and you, as the owner of the website.
TOS should be defined according to the specific needs and nature of each website. For example, a website offering products to customers in an e-commerce transaction requires TOS that are different from the TOS of a website providing only information (such as a blog, landing page, etc.). TOS allow you as the website owner to protect yourself from potential legal exposure, but this may vary by legal jurisdiction, so be sure to obtain local legal advice if you are seeking to protect yourself from legal exposure.
What to include in an OP document
In general, TOS often address these types of questions: Who is allowed to use the website; possible payment methods; a statement that the website owner may change its offering in the future; the types of guarantees the website owner provides to its customers; a reference to intellectual property or copyright issues, if relevant; the website owner's right to suspend or cancel a member's account; and much, much more.
For more information, see our article "Creating a Terms of Service Policy."