Terms and conditions

1. Standard terms of business

1.1 These standard terms of business apply in all contractual relationships between me (Philip Ronan) and my clients and constitute the whole agreement between the parties unless agreed in writing before work commences.

2. Applicable law

2.1 These terms of business should be interpreted in accordance with English law, and the parties agree to submit to the jurisdiction of the English courts.

3. Turnaround and delivery dates

3.1 I will make all reasonable efforts to ensure that jobs are delivered on time.

3.2 If I provide a quotation that mentions a delivery date or turnaround time, this should only be understood as an estimate of the time taken to complete the job based on my current workload.

3.3 Delivery dates are not binding until the client has provided all source materials necessary for me to complete the job (e.g., source texts for translation or typesetting), and until I have accepted and acknowledged the client's go-ahead.

4. Acceptance

4.1 I reserve the right to decline jobs if they are outside my area of expertise or for any other reason.

5. Delivery methods

5.1 Unless otherwise agreed, I will deliver all completed works by email in a suitable format such as PDF (Portable Document Format).

5.2 I cannot be held responsible for any loss or late delivery caused by postal services or email disruption, or by other circumstances beyond my control.

6. Fees

6.1 The fees and/or rates for all work must be agreed in advance before I start work.

6.2 I may need to charge extra for jobs that involve extra work (e.g., translation of handwritten documents).

6.3 Fees and/or rates may be varied after I have started work on a job if it emerges that the client did not provide all the relevant information in advance, or if there are any changes to the client's requirements.

7. Payment

7.1 Unless otherwise agreed, all invoices will be rendered in (and payable in) Pounds Sterling.

7.2 Invoices are issued on or after completion of each job, and are payable within 30 days of the date of the invoice.

7.3 In the case of long-term commissions, payment in installments may be required.

7.4 In the case of download services (like the online typesetting service), advance payment is required.

7.5 If a client fails to pay an invoice within the allotted period, I reserve the right to use whatever means I see fit to recover the debt, including the use of debt collection agencies.

8. Legal agreements

8.1 If the client uses any part of my work in a legal agreement of any kind, it should first be reviewed by a competent legal professional in the country of intended use.

9. Confidentiality

9.1 I will keep confidential all original materials provided to me by the client and all work produced by me for the client, except for material that is in the public domain when so provided by either party. This confidentiality shall cease to apply if at any time the material becomes public knowledge through no fault of my own.

9.2 If I need to engage other people such as proof-readers in order to complete a job, I will ensure that the same confidentiality conditions are made known to them.

9.3 The client agrees not to disclose to a third party any details of agreements made between the client and me (e.g., my fees or working methods).

10. Cancellations

10.1 If a client cancels a job after I have started working on it, the client shall be liable for all the work completed up to the time of cancellation, plus 15% of the agreed/estimated fee, unless otherwise agreed.

11. Copyright and translation rights

11.1 Any material provided to me for purposes such as translation or typesetting must be either the client's own property or properly licensed by the client for such purposes.

11.2 If this material is protected by copyright, the client must either hold suitable rights to the material for the job in question, or must only use my work for private study.

11.3 The client agrees to bear the cost of any claims and/or legal actions made against me as a result of the infringement of the copyright, translation rights or any other rights of a third party due to the client's improper use of such materials.

11.4 In cases where the copyright of material produced by me is to be assigned to the client after I have completed a job, the copyright shall only be assigned when I have received full payment for the job. Until then, the copyright will belong to me.

12. Responsibility and liability

12.1 I will endeavour to complete every job on time with reasonable skill and care, and to ensure that the finished product is suitable for its intended purpose.

12.2 I will not be held liable for any problems or damages resulting from source materials provided by the client that are incomplete, incorrect, illegible or disordered, or from the late arrival or non-arrival of source materials from the client, or through any other fault of the client.

13. Force majeure

13.1 If I am unable to complete a job on time due to forces outside my control (e.g., natural disaster or civil disorder), I will make every effort to notify the client as soon as possible and will offer the client the opportunity to withdraw from the contract. The client will pay for any work completed, and I will do what I can to help the client find someone else to finish the job.

14. Complaints

14.1 Any disagreements or concerns regarding the accuracy or quality of my work or any other complaints must be made in writing within five working days of delivery.