Terms of service

Public Work - Terms of Service Last Updated: Aug 1, 2024

Please read these Terms of Service (the “Terms”) and our Privacy Policy (“Privacy Policy”) carefully because they govern your use of the website located at public.work (the “Site”) and the services accessible via the Site offered by Public Work, a project by Cosmos (“we,” “our,” or “us”). To make these Terms easier to read, the Site and our services are collectively called the “Services.”

  1. Agreement to Terms By using our Services, you agree to be bound by these Terms. If you don’t agree to be bound by these Terms, do not use the Services.

  2. Privacy Policy Please review our Privacy Policy, which also governs your use of the Services, for information on how we collect, use, and share your information.

  3. Changes to these Terms or the Services We may update the Terms from time to time in our sole discretion. If we do, we’ll let you know by posting the updated Terms on the Site and/or by sending other communications. It’s important that you review the Terms whenever we update them, or you use the Services. If you continue to use the Services after we have posted updated Terms, it means that you accept and agree to the changes. If you don’t agree to be bound by the changes, you may not use the Services anymore. Because our Services are evolving over time, we may change or discontinue all or any part of the Services at any time without notice, at our sole discretion.

  4. Who May Use the Services? You may use the Services only if you are at least 13 years of age (or such other minimum age at which you can provide consent to data processing under the laws of your territory) and are not otherwise barred from using the Services under applicable law. If you are over 13 years of age but under the age of majority in your respective jurisdiction, you hereby represent and warrant that your parent or legal guardian has read these Terms and accepts them on your behalf. Parents and legal guardians are responsible for the acts of their minor children when using the Services, whether or not the parent or guardian has authorized such acts.

  5. No User-Generated Content Public Work does not allow users to upload any content. The platform is solely a visual search engine for public domain works.

  6. Use of Public Domain Works and Limitation of Liability Public Work provides access to a vast archive of works that we believe to be in the public domain. However, we do not represent or warrant that all works available on the platform are indeed in the public domain. Users are responsible for conducting their own research and ensuring that any work they download and use complies with applicable laws, including copyright laws. Public Work and Cosmos are not liable for any consequences that arise from your use of any content accessed through the Services, including legal disputes or claims.

  7. Rights and Terms for Linking to Cosmos When you click on an image in Public Work to view it on Cosmos, you will be redirected to the Cosmos platform, where the image will be governed by the Terms of Service applicable to Cosmos. Your use of Cosmos is subject to those terms and not these Terms.

  8. Termination of Access We may suspend or terminate your access to and use of the Services, at our sole discretion, at any time and without notice to you. You may also choose to stop using the Services at any time. Upon any termination, discontinuation, or cancellation of the Services, these Terms will survive, except for any provisions that by their nature should not survive.

  9. Warranty Disclaimers THE SERVICES ARE PROVIDED “AS IS,” WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, WE EXPLICITLY DISCLAIM ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, QUIET ENJOYMENT, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT, AND ANY WARRANTIES ARISING OUT OF COURSE OF DEALING OR USAGE OF TRADE. We make no warranty that the Services will meet your requirements or be available on an uninterrupted, secure, or error-free basis. We make no warranty regarding the quality, accuracy, timeliness, truthfulness, completeness, or reliability of any information or content on the Services.

  10. Indemnity You will indemnify and hold Public Work, Cosmos, and their officers, directors, employees, and agents harmless from and against any claims, disputes, demands, liabilities, damages, losses, and costs and expenses, including, without limitation, reasonable legal and accounting fees arising out of or in any way connected with (a) your access to or use of the Services or (b) your violation of these Terms.

  11. Limitation of Liability (A) TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, NEITHER PUBLIC WORK NOR COSMOS, NOR ANY SERVICE PROVIDERS INVOLVED IN CREATING, PRODUCING, OR DELIVERING THE SERVICES, WILL BE LIABLE FOR ANY INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, OR DAMAGES FOR LOST PROFITS, LOST REVENUES, LOST SAVINGS, LOST BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY, LOSS OF DATA OR GOODWILL, SERVICE INTERRUPTION, COMPUTER DAMAGE, OR SYSTEM FAILURE OR THE COST OF SUBSTITUTE SERVICES OF ANY KIND ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THESE TERMS OR FROM THE USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE THE SERVICES, WHETHER BASED ON WARRANTY, CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE), PRODUCT LIABILITY, OR ANY OTHER LEGAL THEORY, AND WHETHER OR NOT PUBLIC WORK OR COSMOS HAS BEEN INFORMED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE, EVEN IF A LIMITED REMEDY SET FORTH HEREIN IS FOUND TO HAVE FAILED OF ITS ESSENTIAL PURPOSE.

(B) TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, IN NO EVENT WILL PUBLIC WORK'S OR COSMOS’S TOTAL LIABILITY ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THESE TERMS OR FROM THE USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE THE SERVICES EXCEED ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS ($100).

(C) THE EXCLUSIONS AND LIMITATIONS OF DAMAGES SET FORTH ABOVE ARE FUNDAMENTAL ELEMENTS OF THE BASIS OF THE BARGAIN BETWEEN PUBLIC WORK, COSMOS, AND YOU.

  1. Governing Law and Forum Choice These Terms and any action related thereto will be governed by the Federal Arbitration Act, federal arbitration law, and the laws of the State of New York, without regard to its conflict of laws provisions. Except as otherwise expressly set forth in Section 13 “Dispute Resolution,” the exclusive jurisdiction for all Disputes that you and Public Work or Cosmos are not required to arbitrate will be the state and federal courts located in New York, New York, and you and Public Work each waive any objection to jurisdiction and venue in such courts.

  2. Dispute Resolution (A) Mandatory Arbitration of Disputes. We each agree that any dispute, claim, or controversy arising out of or relating to these Terms or the breach, termination, enforcement, interpretation, or validity thereof or the use of the Services (collectively, “Disputes”) will be resolved solely by binding, individual arbitration and not in a class, representative, or consolidated action or proceeding. You and Public Work agree that the U.S. Federal Arbitration Act governs the interpretation and enforcement of these Terms and that you and Public Work are each waiving the right to a trial by jury or to participate in a class action. This arbitration provision shall survive termination of these Terms.

(B) Exceptions. As limited exceptions to Section 13(a) above: (i) we both may seek to resolve a Dispute in small claims court if it qualifies; and (ii) we each retain the right to seek injunctive or other equitable relief from a court to prevent (or enjoin) the infringement or misappropriation of our intellectual property rights.

(C) Conducting Arbitration and Arbitration Rules. The arbitration will be conducted by the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”) under its Consumer Arbitration Rules (the “AAA Rules”) then in effect, except as modified by these Terms. The AAA Rules are available at http://www.adr.org or by calling 1-800-778-7879. A party who wishes to start arbitration must submit a written Demand for Arbitration to AAA and give notice to the other party as specified in the AAA Rules. The AAA provides a form Demand for Arbitration at http://www.adr.org.

Any arbitration hearings will take place in the county (or parish) where you live unless we both agree to a different location. The parties agree that the arbitrator shall have exclusive authority to decide all issues relating to the interpretation, applicability, enforceability, and scope of this arbitration agreement.

(D) Arbitration Costs. Payment of all filing, administration, and arbitrator fees will be governed by the AAA Rules, and we won’t seek to recover the administration and arbitrator fees we are responsible for paying, unless the arbitrator finds your Dispute frivolous. If we prevail in arbitration, we’ll pay all of our attorneys’ fees and costs and won’t seek to recover them from you. If you prevail in arbitration, you will be entitled to an award of attorneys’ fees and expenses to the extent provided under applicable law.

(E) Injunctive and Declaratory Relief. Except as provided in Section 13(b) above, the arbitrator shall determine all issues of liability on the merits of any claim asserted by either party and may award declaratory or injunctive relief only in favor of the individual party seeking relief and only to the extent necessary to provide relief warranted by that party’s individual claim. To the extent that you or we prevail on a claim and seek public injunctive relief (that is, injunctive relief that has the primary purpose and effect of prohibiting unlawful acts that threaten future injury to the public), the entitlement to and extent of such relief must be litigated in a civil court of competent jurisdiction and not in arbitration. The parties agree that litigation of any issues of public injunctive relief shall be stayed pending the outcome of the merits of any individual claims in arbitration.

(F) Class Action Waiver. YOU AND PUBLIC WORK AGREE THAT EACH MAY BRING CLAIMS AGAINST THE OTHER ONLY IN YOUR OR ITS INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY AND NOT AS A PLAINTIFF OR CLASS MEMBER IN ANY PURPORTED CLASS OR REPRESENTATIVE PROCEEDING. Further, if the parties’ Dispute is resolved through arbitration, the arbitrator may not consolidate another person’s claims with your claims and may not otherwise preside over any form of a representative or class proceeding. If this specific provision is found to be unenforceable, then the entirety of this Dispute Resolution section shall be null and void.

(G) Severability. With the exception of any of the provisions in Section 13(f) of these Terms (“Class Action Waiver”), if an arbitrator or court of competent jurisdiction decides that any part of these Terms is invalid or unenforceable, the other parts of these Terms will still apply.

  1. General Terms (A) Reservation of Rights. Public Work and Cosmos exclusively own all right, title, and interest in and to the Services, including all associated intellectual property rights. You acknowledge that the Services are protected by copyright, trademark, and other laws of the United States and foreign countries. You agree not to remove, alter, or obscure any copyright, trademark, service mark, or other proprietary rights notices incorporated in or accompanying the Services.

(B) Entire Agreement. These Terms constitute the entire and exclusive understanding and agreement between Public Work, Cosmos, and you regarding the Services, and these Terms supersede and replace all prior oral or written understandings or agreements between Public Work, Cosmos, and you regarding the Services. If any provision of these Terms is held invalid or unenforceable by an arbitrator or a court of competent jurisdiction, that provision will be enforced to the maximum extent permissible, and the other provisions of these Terms will remain in full force and effect. Except where provided by applicable law in your jurisdiction, you may not assign or transfer these Terms, by operation of law or otherwise, without Public Work’s prior written consent. Any attempt by you to assign or transfer these Terms absent our consent or your statutory right, without such consent, will be null. Public Work may freely assign or transfer these Terms without restriction. Subject to the foregoing, these Terms will bind and inure to the benefit of the parties, their successors, and permitted assigns.

(C) Notices. Any notices or other communications provided by Public Work under these Terms will be given: (i) via email; or (ii) by posting to the Services. For notices made by email, the date of receipt will be deemed the date on which such notice is transmitted.

(D) Waiver of Rights. Public Work’s failure to enforce any right or provision of these Terms will not be considered a waiver of such right or provision. The waiver of any such right or provision will be effective only if in writing and signed by a duly authorized representative of Public Work. Except as expressly set forth in these Terms, the exercise by either party of any of its remedies under these Terms will be without prejudice to its other remedies under these Terms or otherwise.

Contact Information If you have any questions about these Terms or the Services, please contact Cosmos at hey@cosmos.so.