The purpose of the Community Forums and email platforms is to facilitate the ready exchange of information to enable members to better serve clients and meet professional obligations. The Community Forums and email platforms will not be used to send messages which include:
A. Jokes or items for sale.
B. Defamatory, abusive, profane, threatening, offensive or illegal information or materials.
C. Copyrighted materials or information without the consent of the copyright owner.
D. Content that could be viewed as anti-competitive and that may raise issues under antitrust laws. For
example, discussing any of the following subjects on the Community Forums and email platforms would
raise antitrust concerns and must be avoided:
i. Hourly rates lawyers or paralegals should establish;
ii. Salaries to be paid to new associates;
iii. Fees that should be charged for a particular service;
iv. Boycotting or exclusion from the market of lawyers who fail to insist that clients receive and pay
for a particular “package” of services in connection with a transaction; OR
v. Exclusion from the market or the injuring of non-lawyers, whose activities threaten economic
harm to lawyers.
5. It is permissible to use Community Forums and email platforms to exchange or gather information that can be
provided to the North Carolina State Bar to address concerns that may arise regarding a non-lawyer’s
unauthorized practice of law or that consumer welfare is being threatened. However, user should not use
Community Forums and email platforms as a means to police such conduct or to organize any activity other than
providing information to the North Carolina State Bar.
6. Material or information obtained via Community Forums and email platforms will not be disclosed to anyone who
is not authorized to receive such information but may be used in the user's legal practice.
7. None of the information or material obtained from Community Forums and email platforms will be sold or
distributed for profit under any circumstances.
8. All communications on Community Forums and email platforms will be used for business purposes only and in
accordance with these procedures. All Community Forums and email platforms are subject to audit and
monitoring by NCBA staff members as well as the Community Forums and email platforms contractor for
business and security purposes.
9. User may be held individually liable for any communications sent on Community Forums and email platforms,
including but not limited to defamatory, discriminatory, antitrust, anti-competitive, false or unauthorized
information. User must comply with all state and federal copyright, trademark and patent laws and regulations.
10. By using Community Forums and email platforms, user agrees to indemnify, defend and hold harmless, the North
Carolina Bar Association, the North Carolina Bar Foundation, their subsidiaries, affiliates, officers, agents,
parents, insurers, successors or assigns from and against all loss, claims, demands, causes of action, liabilities,
expenses, including reasonable attorney's fees and costs arising from any claim arising out of or resulting from in
whole or part any breach of agreement by user or any omission or act taken by user. In no event will the North
Carolina Bar Association be responsible to the user for any indirect, consequential, special or punitive damages
or losses user may incur in connection with Community Forums and email platforms or any of the data or other
materials transmitted through or residing on any Community Forums and email platforms, even if the North
Carolina Bar Association has been advised of the possibility of such damage or loss.
11. The North Carolina Bar Association may remove user from any or all Community Forums and email platforms for
violation of this agreement.
12. This agreement is effective immediately upon its posting on the NCBA's website,
https://communities.ncbar.org/termsandconditions and upon email or Community Forums and email platforms
message delivery to user.