Terms of Use 

The use of the Delta Dental Institute web site (the “Web Site”) is subject to the terms and conditions stated herein (“Terms of Use”). By your use of this Web Site, you agree to these Terms of Use. Your breach of these Terms of Use may jeopardize your continued use of the Web Site. The Delta Dental Institute website is operated by Delta Dental Plans Association, an Illinois not-for-profit organization (“DDPA”). LICENSE AND RESTRICTIONS

You are hereby granted a personal, non-exclusive, revocable, non-transferrable license to use the Web Site and view the content, materials, and information available on the Web Site for your personal and non-commercial purposes. In connection with this license, you may download one copy of the materials on the Web Site; provided that you do not modify or alter the materials in any way, nor delete or change any copyright or trademark notice. Neither title nor intellectual property rights are transferred to you, but remain with DDPA and its independent member companies (the “Delta Dental Companies” and collectively with DDPA and DDPA’s subsidiaries, “Delta Dental”) or the applicable third party, who is (are) the exclusive owner(s) of all rights, title and interest therein. Except as otherwise expressly provided, all rights are reserved to Delta Dental.

You will not copy, reproduce, modify, use, republish, upload, post, transmit, sell, resell, license, otherwise distribute or commercially exploit in any way, decompile, reverse engineer, disassemble, otherwise attempt to derive source code from, or modify or create derivative works based on, the Web Site or any software or materials obtained from or through the Web Site. You may not rent, lease, lend, redistribute, sublicense or transfer the Web Site. You acknowledge that the terms of this Section are reasonable and necessary and you agree that actual or threatened breach by you of said terms will entitle DDPA to immediate injunctive and other equitable relief without bond and without the necessity of showing actual monetary damages. DDPA reserves the right to terminate your access to the Web Site for any violation of these Terms of Use in DDPA’s sole discretion.

You agree to comply with all applicable laws in connection with your use of the Web Site. You will not use the Web Site for any unlawful or abusive purposes, including but not limited to the violation of any Delta Dental or third-party intellectual property rights, and the posting or distribution of any “harmful” or “malicious” code or programming devices (e.g., viruses, corrupted files, key locks, back doors, trap doors, timers or other disabling devices) or any other similar software or programs that may adversely affect the operation of the Web Site or any other software or hardware.

You certify that you are either 18 years old or older, or, if you are between the ages of 13 and 17, you have obtained the consent of your parents or legal guardian and are able and competent to give DDPA rights as detailed in these Terms of Use, and to comply with these Terms of Use. The Web Site is not intended for children under the age of 13, and children under the age of 13 are not permitted to use the Web Site.

This Web Site does not offer dental or other medical advice. The content, information and materials provided through the Web Site cannot, and are not intended to, replace the relationship that you have with your health care providers; are for general informational purposes only; and shall not be construed, directly or indirectly, as the practice of medicine or dentistry or the dispensing of any medical or dental advice. You should always talk to your health care providers for diagnosis and treatment, including information regarding which drugs or treatment may be appropriate for you. Further, any such content or information is not intended to be instructional for medical or dental diagnosis or treatment or to cover, as applicable, all possible uses, directions, precautions, drug interactions, or adverse effects, and none of the information on the Web Site represents or warrants that any particular drug or treatment is safe, appropriate or effective for you.

Please consult your doctor, dentist, or other qualified health provider if you have any questions about a medical or dental condition, or before taking any drug, changing your diet, or starting or stopping any course of treatment. You should not disregard medical or dental advice or delay seeking medical or dental advice as a result of any such information or content or any information that does not come directly from your healthcare provider.

The information contained in the Web Site has been compiled by DDPA from internal and external sources prepared for the purpose of providing information about the Delta Dental Institute, and Delta Dental products and services. DDPA reserves the right to make changes to the information, data, and materials provided on the Web Site at any time without notice.

DELTA DENTAL, the DELTA DENTAL logo and other trademarks, service marks, trade names, logos, and other identifiers used in or in connection with the Web Site are the proprietary service marks or trademarks of DDPA, the Delta Dental Companies or third parties and are protected in the United States and internationally. No use of any of these marks or identifiers may be made without the prior, written authorization of DDPA or other respective owner. All other trademarks and service marks not owned by DDPA that appear on the Web Site are the property of their respective owners, who may or may not be affiliated with, connected to, or sponsored by DDPA.

All content contained on the Web Site, including but not limited to all works of authorship, design, text, images and data compilations; any improvements or modifications to such content; any derivative works based thereon; and the collection,

arrangement and assembly of all such content, are owned, except as otherwise expressly stated herein, by DDPA or its licensors. The entire contents of the Web Site are protected by United States and worldwide copyright and intellectual property laws and treaty provisions.

Nothing in these Terms of Use shall be deemed to grant to you or any other user any license or right in or to any copyright, trademark, trade secret or other proprietary right of DDPA, the Delta Dental Companies, or any other person. You may not use, copy, modify or display any of the trademarks, service marks, names or logos appearing on the Web Site in any way without the prior express written permission of DDPA or the respective owner thereof.

The Web Site, the software used or contained therein, and all information, data, products and materials contained, described or referenced therein (collectively, "Materials") are provided to you on an "as is" and "as available" basis, without representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, including without limitation (1) any implied warranty of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, noninfringement, or title;

(2) any warranty regarding the availability, accuracy, reliability, operation, use, or performance of the Web Site; (3) any warranty that defects will be corrected or that the Web Site or the server(s) and connections that make them available will be uninterrupted, secure, or free of errors, viruses or other harmful components; and (4) any implied warranties arise from course of dealing or course of performance.

In addition, Delta Dental cannot and does not represent, guarantee or warrant that the materials accessible on or via the Web Site are accurate, correct, complete, reliable, or current, and Delta Dental is not responsible for any errors or omissions therein, or any consequences resulting from your reliance on such information.

Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion of implied warranties or limitations on how long an implied warranty may last; as a result, the above limitation or exclusion may not apply to you. If the forgoing provisions of this section are deemed, in whole or in part, to be unenforceable under applicable law, then such provisions shall be reformed to the maximum limitation permitted by applicable law. To the extent permissible, any implied warranties are limited to 90 days from the date of access.

DDPA will use reasonable commercial efforts to keep the Web Site available for access, subject to scheduled downtime for maintenance purposes, unscheduled maintenance and system outages. There are no assurances that the Web Site will be accessible or available at all times or that access will be uninterrupted.

To the extent permitted by applicable law, DDPA, its subsidiaries, the Delta Dental Companies, any affiliate or third party supplier or licensor of any of the foregoing persons or entities (collectively, the “Delta Dental Parties” and individually, each an “Delta Dental Party”) will not be liable to you or any third party for any direct, indirect, special, incidental, exemplary, punitive, and consequential damages, even if the Delta Dental Party has been previously advised of this possibility of such damages, whether in action under contract, negligence or any other theory, arise out of or in connection with these Terms of Use, or the use, inability to use, or performance of the Web Site, or any materials available on or via the Web Site, nor shall any Delta Dental Party be responsible for any damages whatsoever that result from mistakes, omissions, interruptions, deletion of files, errors, defects, delays in operation or transmission, or any failure of performance whether or not caused by events beyond their reasonable control, including but not limited to acts of God, communications line failure, theft, destruction, or unauthorized access to our records, programs or services. Some jurisdictions do not allow the limitation or exclusion of liability for incidental or consequential damages; as a result, the above limitation or exclusion may not apply to you. If the forgoing provisions of this limitation of liability section are deemed, in whole or in part, to be unenforceable under applicable law, then to the extent permitted by applicable law, in no event shall the total liability of the Delta Dental Parties, in the aggregate, to you for any and all damages relating to or arising from these Terms of Use, or the use or inability to use, or performance of the Web Site, or any materials available on or via the Web Site exceed the amount of fifty dollars ($50.00).

To the extent permitted by applicable law, you agree to indemnify and hold the Delta Dental Parties harmless from and against any and all damages, liabilities, actions, causes of action, suits, claims, demands, losses, costs and expenses (including without limitation reasonable attorneys’ fees, disbursements and court costs, including any incurred in enforcement of this indemnification provision) arising from or in connection with (i) your use of the Web Site, or any content, information, materials or services contained, displayed or available therein; (ii) your violation of these Terms of Use; (iii) any Submission (as defined below) provided by you to Delta Dental; or (iv) your violation of any rights of any third party.

The Web Site may provide links or references to third party websites, mobile applications, services, or materials which are not provided, related to, or maintained by Delta Dental. Delta Dental has no responsibility for the content therein, regardless of whether the link is provided by Delta Dental or a third party and none of DDPA, its subsidiaries, the Delta Dental Companies or its or their affiliates shall be liable for any damages or injury arising from your access to or use of that content. The display of any link shall not and does not constitute or imply endorsement by Delta Dental or its affiliates of the linked site or any content therein. No judgment or warranty is made with respect to the accuracy, timeliness, or suitability of the content of any website to which the Web Site may link, including information on such other website regarding DDPA, its subsidiaries, the Delta Dental Companies, or its or their affiliates.

You may include a link to the Web Site on one or more other websites operated by you; provided such sites link to the home page (for example, www.deltadentalinstitute.com (http://www.deltadentalinstitute.com/), only. Linking to other content within the Web Site is prohibited without DDPA’s prior express written consent. This limited license expressly prohibits the framing of Delta Dental content in any way or any other activity that may create a misimpression or confusion among users with respect to sponsorship or affiliation.

Finally, certain functionality on or linked to the Web Site is provided by third parties and is subject to separate terms of use, terms and conditions, or privacy policies and practices. We recommend that you review any Terms of Use and, as applicable, Privacy Statements or Privacy Policies associated with such functionality prior to use. 

DDPA recognizes that you have an interest in how we collect, retain and use information about you via the Web Site. To understand how we collect, use and safeguard the information you may provide to us via this Web Site, please review the Delta Dental Institute Privacy Statement, which is incorporated into these Terms of Use.  

While we appreciate your comments and are happy to answer your questions about the Delta Dental Institute, we generally do not accept ideas, know-how, inventions or suggestions for products and services (“Submissions”). This is for your

protection and for ours, and to avoid misunderstanding about the origin of Submissions between you and us.

Please note that any Submissions, remarks, graphics, or other information provided by you by any means, including through email, a “Contact Us” form, or otherwise, is and will be non-confidential and non-proprietary, except that any personal information included in any such Submissions will be held and used in accordance with our Privacy Statement. By making a Submission, you grant Delta Dental a worldwide, perpetual, irrevocable, non-exclusive, royalty-free, sub-licensable, and transferable license to use, reproduce, distribute, create derivative works of, adapt, display, and perform your Submissions. You represent and warrant that you have the necessary rights to such Submissions, including the right to assign or grant a license to your rights in this Agreement. Please do not make any Submissions if you do not wish to grant us the rights set forth herein.

These Terms of Use are governed and interpreted pursuant to the laws of the State of Illinois, United States of America, notwithstanding any principles of conflicts of law. Delta Dental makes no representation that Materials provided through the Web Site are applicable or appropriate for use in all locations. If you use the Web Site from other locations, you are responsible for compliance with applicable local laws.

Binding Mutual Arbitration: Except for intellectual property claims, any dispute, claim or controversy in connection with, arising out of or relating to this Agreement or the breach, termination, enforcement, interpretation or validity of these these Terms of Use, including, but not limited to, the determination of the scope or applicability of these Terms of Use to arbitrate (a “Dispute”), will be determined by arbitration in Cook County, IL before a single arbitrator. The arbitration will be administered by the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”) in accordance with AAA Consumer Arbitration Rules. Judgment on the award may be entered in any court having jurisdiction. This provision will not preclude Parties from seeking provisional remedies in aid of arbitration from a court of appropriate jurisdiction.

Conduct of Arbitration: The arbitration will be commenced by the claimant party filing a demand for arbitration with the administrator of AAA and serving the demand on the opposing party. Within thirty (30) calendar days of the date the demand for arbitration is filed, the Parties will select an arbitrator by following the AAA Consumer Arbitration Rules’ appointment procedures. Except as may be required by law, neither Party nor the arbitrator may disclose the existence, content or results of any arbitration under these Terms of Use without the prior written consent of both Parties. The arbitrator’s award will be in writing accompanied by a reasoned opinion and a written statement of the essential findings and conclusions on which the award is based.

Costs: The arbitrator will determine how the costs and expenses of the arbitration will be allocated between the Parties, and may award attorneys’ fees.

Limitation of Liability: In any arbitration arising out of or related to this Agreement, the arbitrator may not award any incidental, indirect, or consequential damages, including damages for lost profits or any punitive or exemplary damages.

If any part of these Terms of Use is found to be unlawful, void or unenforceable, that part will be deemed severable and will not affect the validity and enforceability of remaining provisions.

You may not assign or otherwise transfer these Terms of Use or any rights or obligations hereunder. The failure of Delta Dental to exercise or enforce any right or provision set forth herein shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision. These Terms of Use set forth the entire understanding between you and Delta Dental with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersede any prior or contemporaneous communications, representations, or agreements, whether oral or written, between you and Delta Dental with respect to such subject matter.

Delta Dental reserves the right to modify or discontinue the some or all of the services or functionality offered on the Web Site, or any content or materials contained or accessible thereon, at any time without prior notice. Delta Dental shall in no way be held liable for any consequence which results from Delta Dental’s decision to modify or discontinue providing the Web Site or any content or functionality thereof. In addition, Delta Dental reserves the right, at any time and without notice, to add to, change, update, or modify these Terms of Use simply by posting such addition, change, update, or modification on the Web Site. Any such change, update, or modification will be effective immediately upon posting on the Web Site. We suggest that you check these Terms of Use periodically for changes.

You guarantee that (i) you are not located in a country that is subject to U.S. Government embargo, or that has been designated by the U.S. Government as a "terrorist supporting" country, and (ii) you are not listed on any U.S. Government list of prohibited or restricted parties.

DDPA expressly reserves the right to monitor any and all use of the Web Site.

Sending an email to us via our contact us page is not a completely secure and confidential means of communication. It is possible that your email communication may be accessed or viewed by another internet user while in transit to us. If you wish to keep your communication private do not use the email functionality. In such case, please contact the applicable us by regular mail.

Questions regarding these Terms of Use should be directed to:

Delta Dental Institute

c/o Delta Dental Plans Association

Attention: Legal Department

222 W. Merchandise Mart Plaza, Suite #631 Chicago, IL 60654