Terms of Service
These Terms of Service (“Terms”) govern your use of the Diplomatist service (the “Service”), operated as a sole proprietorship. By using the Service or interacting with messages it transmits, you agree to these Terms.
1. About the Service
Diplomatist is a managed messaging service that records, structures, and audits one-on-one professional discussions conducted over channels including SMS, email, and direct API. Users of the Service (“users”) configure discussions and exchange messages with other parties (“counterparties”) through the Service. The Service validates outgoing messages against the user’s pre-configured parameters before transmission, maintains a tamper-resistant log of all messages and configuration changes, and produces structured records of agreements reached.
The user is the author and authorizer of all messages sent on their behalf. The Service is the channel of record — it transmits, validates, and logs.
2. Eligibility
You must be at least 18 years old to use the Service as a user. Counterparties (recipients of messages from the Service) are presumed to be adults. The Service is not designed for or directed at minors.
3. Acceptable use
You may not use the Service to:
- Send unsolicited bulk messages, marketing campaigns, or any communication that violates the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), CAN-SPAM Act, or analogous laws in your jurisdiction.
- Impersonate another person without authorization, or misrepresent your identity in a manner intended to deceive.
- Conduct discussions on behalf of someone who has not authorized you to do so.
- Engage in fraud, deception, or any unlawful activity.
- Send threatening, harassing, abusive, or hateful content.
- Send content that is sexually explicit, promotes self-harm, or is otherwise harmful.
- Attempt to manipulate, bypass, or exploit the Service’s validation or audit controls.
- Reverse engineer, decompile, or attempt to extract source code from the Service except as permitted by law.
- Use the Service to compete with the Service or build a substantially similar product.
4. SMS messaging
If you receive SMS messages from the Service:
- You may opt out at any time by replying STOP. Opt-out is honored immediately and no further messages will be sent from that number to you.
- You may reply HELP for help, or contact us at the address in Section 12.
- Message and data rates may apply, depending on your mobile carrier and plan.
- Message frequency varies based on the conversation. The Service does not send marketing or bulk messages.
If you initiate an SMS conversation with a number operated by the Service, that constitutes consent to receive replies in that conversation.
5. User responsibilities
If you are a user of the Service:
- You are responsible for ensuring that any counterparty you contact has consented to receive messages from you, where consent is required by law.
- You are responsible for the configuration of your discussions — the parameters, rules, and message templates or drafts you use. The Service validates messages against your configuration but does not author or originate them.
- You are responsible for the content of all messages sent through the Service on your behalf, and for any agreements reached. The Service provides validation, parameter tracking, and audit logging; it does not exercise authority on your behalf.
- You agree not to use the Service for purposes that require licensure or regulation that you do not hold (e.g., medical, legal, or financial advice; lending; insurance underwriting).
- You are responsible for monitoring active discussions and for intervening when needed.
6. Drafting assistance and message validation
The Service includes optional drafting tools that may use natural-language processing (provided by third-party subprocessors disclosed in our Privacy Policy) to suggest message text based on conversation context and the user’s configured parameters. Drafting tools are an aid for the user, not an autonomous actor:
- The user authorizes the configuration that drafts operate within.
- Every outgoing message — drafted or composed manually — is validated against the user’s configured parameters before transmission. Messages that violate parameter limits are rejected and do not leave the Service.
- The user remains the author and the responsible party for messages sent through their account.
You acknowledge that natural-language outputs may occasionally be unexpected, culturally inappropriate, or imprecise. The validation layer prevents parameter violations (e.g., agreeing below a configured floor) but does not guarantee tone, style, or perfect interpretation. You are responsible for reviewing your discussions and configuration accordingly.
7. Intellectual property
The Service’s software, design, and trademarks are the property of the operator. These Terms do not grant you any license to copy, modify, or redistribute the Service.
Content you submit (configuration, conversation history, drafts) remains yours. You grant Diplomatist a non-exclusive license to use that content solely to operate the Service for you.
8. Disclaimers
THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE,” WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. WE DO NOT WARRANT THAT THE SERVICE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR-FREE, OR THAT VALIDATION OR AUDIT OUTPUTS WILL BE COMPLETE OR APPROPRIATE FOR YOUR PURPOSES.
The Service is not legal, financial, medical, or professional advice. Do not rely on the Service’s outputs as such advice.
9. Limitation of liability
TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, DIPLOMATIST AND ITS OPERATOR WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES; LOST PROFITS, REVENUE, OR DATA; OR DAMAGES RESULTING FROM AGREEMENTS REACHED BETWEEN USERS AND COUNTERPARTIES THROUGH THE SERVICE WITHIN THE USER’S CONFIGURED PARAMETERS.
Aggregate liability for all claims relating to the Service is limited to the greater of (a) the total amount paid by you to Diplomatist in the twelve months preceding the claim, or (b) USD $100.
10. Termination
You may stop using the Service at any time. We may suspend or terminate access if you violate these Terms or use the Service in a way that could expose us or others to legal risk. Upon termination, we will delete your conversation data and audit logs within a reasonable period unless legally required to retain them.
11. Changes to these Terms
We may update these Terms from time to time. The “Last updated” date at the top reflects the most recent revision. Continued use of the Service after changes constitutes acceptance of the new Terms. Material changes affecting users will be communicated where reasonably possible.
12. Contact
Email: legal@diplomatist.org
For privacy-specific questions, see the Privacy Policy.
13. Governing law and dispute resolution
These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of California, USA, without regard to conflict-of-law principles. Any dispute arising from these Terms or the Service will be resolved in the state or federal courts located in San Francisco County, California, and you consent to personal jurisdiction in those courts.
If any provision of these Terms is held invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions will continue in effect.