Skip to content

Terms of Use

PLEASE READ THIS AGREEMENT CAREFULLY; THIS IS A BINDING CONTRACT. 

1. Purpose

These Terms of Use govern access to and use of public websites operated by the American Institute for Packaging and the Environment (“AMERIPEN” or “the Organization”), including pages, content, features, member areas, registration functions, and other online services that link to these Terms (collectively, the Services). By accessing or using the Services, you agree to these Terms and acknowledge AMERIPEN’s Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, do not use the Services. 

These Terms concern website and online-service use. They do not replace the Organization’s bylaws, membership agreements, event terms, antitrust policy, committee rules, or other written agreements. If another AMERIPEN agreement expressly conflicts with these Terms, the more specific agreement governs that subject. 

2. Acceptance and Authority

By using the Services, you represent that you are legally able to agree to these Terms. If you use the Services for an organization, you represent that you are authorized to bind that organization, and you include both you and that organization. 

AMERIPEN websites are intended primarily for business and professional audiences and are not directed to children under 13. You must be at least 18 years old and have the legal capacity to enter into a binding agreement to create an account, register for an event, make a purchase, or submit content through the AMERIPEN website. If you use the websites on behalf of an organization, you represent that you are authorized to bind that organization to these Terms. 

3. Privacy and Electronic Communications

The Organization’s collection and use of personal information are described in its Privacy Policy, which is incorporated by reference for purposes of describing the Organization’s data practices. By providing an email address or using an electronic feature of the Services, you consent to receive notices and communications electronically where permitted by law. You may manage promotional communications as described in the Privacy Policy, but transactional or administrative messages may still be necessary. 

4. Limited License and Permitted Use

Subject to these Terms, the Organization grants you a limited, revocable, nonexclusive, nontransferable license to access and use the Services and to download or print reasonable portions of publicly available materials for your internal business, educational, or other noncommercial use. You must retain copyright, trademark, attribution, and other proprietary notices. 

No other rights are granted. Except as permitted by law or the Organization in writing, you may not reproduce, republish, distribute, sell, license, create derivative works from, publicly display, frame, mirror, or commercially exploit the Services or their content. 

5. Intellectual Property

The Services and their content, selection, arrangement, design, text, graphics, images, videos, recordings, publications, data, software, logos, and other materials are owned by or licensed to the Organization and are protected by intellectual property laws. AMERIPEN, its name and logos, Power of Packaging®, and other AMERIPEN marks are trademarks or service marks of AMERIPEN. Third-party names and marks belong to their respective owners. Nothing in the Services grants a license to use any mark without the owner’s prior written permission. 

6. Accounts and Member Only Materials

Some services require an account or AMERIPEN membership. You agree to provide accurate information, keep it current, safeguard credentials, and promptly notify the Organization of suspected unauthorized access. You are responsible for activity under your account to the extent permitted by law. You may not share credentials, impersonate another person, or allow an unauthorized person to access restricted materials. 

Member-only materials are provided for authorized member use and may be subject to additional restrictions. Unless the Organization states otherwise in writing, you may share such materials internally with personnel of the member organization who have a legitimate need to know, but you may not post them publicly, distribute them outside the member organization, or use them for resale. The Organization may suspend or terminate access when reasonably necessary to protect the Services, other users, or AMERIPEN’s rights. 

7. Prohibited Conduct

You may not use the Services to: 

  • violate law, regulation, contractual obligations, intellectual-property rights, privacy rights, or other rights; 
  • submit content that is unlawful, fraudulent, defamatory, threatening, harassing, discriminatory, obscene, or materially deceptive; 
  • introduce malware, harmful code, or any mechanism intended to disrupt, damage, monitor, or obtain unauthorized access to systems or data; 
  • probe, scan, test, bypass, or defeat security, access controls, rate limits, authentication, or technical restrictions; 
  • access another user’s account; collect credentials; or impersonate any person or organization; 
  • interfere with the Services or impose an unreasonable or disproportionately large load on them; 
  • scrape, harvest, index, copy, or monitor content by automated means except as expressly permitted in Section 7; 
  • remove or alter proprietary notices, misrepresent the source of content, or imply AMERIPEN’s endorsement without authorization; 
  • use contact information obtained through the Services for spam, unsolicited marketing, harassment, or unlawful profiling; or 
  • encourage, assist, or attempt any prohibited conduct. 

8. Automated Access Artificial Intelligence and Data Mining

General-purpose search engines may use standard crawling tools to create publicly searchable links and brief snippets. You may not use any other automated access without AMERIPEN’s prior written authorization. 

9. Antitrust Compliance

The Organization is a trade association, and users may include actual or potential competitors. The Services may not be used to propose, facilitate, coordinate, or signal agreements or exchanges involving nonpublic competitively sensitive information. Prohibited subjects include, but are not limited to, current or future prices, fees, costs, margins, wages, output, capacity, bids, customers, suppliers, territories, market allocation, refusals to deal, or competitively significant business plans. 

Do not post or request such information through the Services. Participation in AMERIPEN activities is subject to AMERIPEN’s Antitrust Policy and applicable law. AMERIPEN may remove content, restrict access, and report conduct when reasonably appropriate. 

10. User Content and Feedback

If a feature allows you to submit text, files, images, comments, or other content (User Content), you retain your ownership rights. You grant the Organization a worldwide, nonexclusive, royalty-free license to host, store, reproduce, format, transmit, display, and otherwise use User Content only as reasonably necessary to operate, secure, administer, and improve the Services and to fulfill the purpose for which you submitted it. This license lasts as long as reasonably needed for those purposes, subject to legal retention obligations. 

You represent that you have the rights needed to submit User Content and that it complies with these Terms. Do not submit confidential, proprietary, personal, export-controlled, or legally privileged information unless the Organization has expressly requested it through an authorized process. Website submissions do not create an attorney-client, fiduciary, confidential, or advisory relationship. 

If you voluntarily provide suggestions about the Services (Feedback), you grant the Organization a perpetual, worldwide, nonexclusive, transferable, sublicensable, royalty-free license to use and incorporate the Feedback without compensation or attribution. The Organization has no obligation to use User Content or Feedback and may remove it where permitted by law. 

11. Copyright Complaints

If you believe material available through the Services infringes a copyright, send a written notice to the contact below that includes: 

  • your physical or electronic signature; 
  • identification of the copyrighted work or a representative list of works; 
  • identification and location of the allegedly infringing material with enough detail for AMERIPEN to find it; 
  • your name, mailing address, telephone number, and email address; 
  • a statement that you have a good-faith belief the disputed use is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or law; and 
  • a statement, under penalty of perjury, that the notice is accurate and that you are the copyright owner or authorized to act for the owner. 

Send notices to info@ameripen.org. AMERIPEN may remove or restrict access to material and may notify the person who provided it. 

12. Third Party Services and Links

The Services may link to or integrate websites, platforms, payment processors, social media services, or other services operated by third parties. The Organization does not control, and is not responsible for, their availability, security, content, privacy practices, or terms. A link or integration does not by itself constitute endorsement. Your dealings with third parties are between you and the third party and may be governed by separate terms. 

13. Registrations, Purchases and Events

Membership applications, event registrations, sponsorships, publications, and other transactions may be subject to prices, eligibility requirements, cancellation terms, codes of conduct, releases, or other terms disclosed during the transaction. Those specific terms supplement these Terms and control if they conflict on the transaction’s subject. You agree to provide accurate information and pay authorized charges. The Organization may correct errors and cancel or limit a transaction when permitted by the applicable terms and law. 

14. Informational Purposes and Association Positions

The Services provide general informational and educational content. They do not provide legal, regulatory, tax, accounting, engineering, compliance, or other professional advice and should not be relied upon as a substitute for advice from qualified professionals. Laws, regulations, guidance, markets, and technical information change, and content may not reflect the most recent developments or apply to a particular situation. 

Unless expressly stated, content does not necessarily represent a formal position of the Organization, its Board, any member, or any member’s employees. References to a company, product, service, or third-party material do not constitute endorsement, and member or sponsor status does not imply the Organization’s approval. 

15. Availability and Changes to the Services

The Organization may modify, suspend, restrict, or discontinue any part of the Services and may correct or remove content at any time. The Organization does not promise that content will remain available, current, or error-free. You are responsible for maintaining any copies you are authorized to keep. 

16. Disclaimer of Warranties

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, THE SERVICES AND ALL CONTENT ARE PROVIDED AS IS AND AS AVAILABLE. AMERIPEN AND ITS OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, MEMBERS, AGENTS, CONTRACTORS, LICENSORS, AND SERVICE PROVIDERS DISCLAIM ALL EXPRESS, IMPLIED, AND STATUTORY WARRANTIES, INCLUDING WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, ACCURACY, SECURITY, AND UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR-FREE OPERATION. AMERIPEN DOES NOT WARRANT THAT DEFECTS WILL BE CORRECTED OR THAT THE SERVICES OR SERVERS ARE FREE OF HARMFUL COMPONENTS. 

Some jurisdictions do not allow certain disclaimers, so some of the foregoing may not apply to you. 

17. Limitation of Liability

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, AMERIPEN AND ITS OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, MEMBERS, AGENTS, CONTRACTORS, LICENSORS, AND SERVICE PROVIDERS WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES; LOSS OF PROFITS, REVENUE, GOODWILL, USE, OR DATA; BUSINESS INTERRUPTION; OR COSTS OF SUBSTITUTE SERVICES ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THE SERVICES OR THESE TERMS, REGARDLESS OF THE THEORY OF LIABILITY AND EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY. 

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, THEIR TOTAL AGGREGATE LIABILITY FOR ALL CLAIMS ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THE SERVICES OR THESE TERMS WILL NOT EXCEED THE GREATER OF (A) THE AMOUNT YOU PAID AMERIPEN THROUGH THE SERVICES FOR THE TRANSACTION GIVING RISE TO THE CLAIM DURING THE 12 MONTHS BEFORE THE EVENT OR (B) US$1,000. 

These limitations do not apply to liability that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited, including where applicable liability for fraud, willful misconduct, or gross negligence. Your sole remedy for dissatisfaction with the Services, apart from remedies that cannot be waived, is to stop using them. 

18. Indemnification

To the extent permitted by law, you will defend, indemnify, and hold harmless the Organization and its officers, directors, employees, members, agents, contractors, licensors, and service providers from third-party claims, liabilities, damages, judgments, losses, costs, and reasonable attorneys’ fees arising from your unlawful use of the Services, your material breach of these Terms, or User Content that infringes or violates another person’s rights. AMERIPEN will provide reasonable notice of a covered claim. The Organization may control the defense and settlement, and you will reasonably cooperate. You may not settle a claim in a manner that admits fault by or imposes obligations on an indemnified party without that party’s written consent. 

19. Suspension and Termination

The Organization may suspend or terminate access to all or part of the Services if it reasonably believes you violated these Terms, created a security or legal risk, failed to pay an applicable charge, or used the Services in a way that may harm the Organization, its members, other users, or third parties. Where reasonably practicable, the Organization may provide notice. Provisions that by their nature should survive termination will survive, including provisions concerning intellectual property, Feedback, disclaimers, liability, indemnification, governing law, and general terms. 

20. Governing Law and Forum

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Michigan, without regard to conflict-of-law principles. Except where applicable law requires otherwise, any action arising out of or relating to the Services or these Terms must be brought exclusively in a state or federal court located in Michigan that has subject-matter jurisdiction, and each party consents to personal jurisdiction and venue in those courts. 

21. Changes to These Terms

The Organization reserves the right to amend these Terms at any time, for any reason. Changes to the Terms will be recommended by the Executive Committee to the Board of Directors. Any material amendment to these Terms requires approval by the Board of Directors, to be documented in the Organization's corporate records, and may be communicated through a website notice, email communications, or other reasonable methods as determined appropriate by the Organization. 

22. General Terms

These Terms and any additional terms expressly incorporated into them constitute the entire agreement concerning their subject. If a provision is unlawful or unenforceable, it will be enforced to the maximum extent permitted, and the remainder will remain in effect. The Organization’s failure to enforce a provision is not a waiver. You may not assign these Terms without the Organization’s written consent; AMERIPEN may assign them in connection with a merger, reorganization, transfer of operations, or similar transaction. There are no third-party beneficiaries.  

23. Questions

Questions regarding these Terms should be directed to info@ameripen.org. 

 

Amended and Adopted by AMERIPEN’s Board of Directors October 2026. Supersedes Terms of Use Amended and Adopted June 2024.

Scroll To Top