Effective 30 October 2016
1 GENERAL
Welcome to Rhetorica GmbH! We are honored to have you as a customer. We provide our services to you subject to the following conditions. If you purchase any services from Rhetorica GmbH, you accept these conditions. Please read them carefully.
2 PRIVACY / DATA PROTECTION
Customer data is used for internal purposes only and is shared with no outside entities. Users may optionally grant or revoke access to their Progress Reports to an outside person / people, whom they designate in their 'Rhetorica Home Page' of the site. Otherwise our privacy policy is extremely strict: no outside entity has access to any customer data.
3 TRAINING SESSIONS
The Rhetorica Method requires training sessions to be held in the form of actual business and or integration meetings. All Rhetorica contracts and courses are concluded for a specific number of Meetings.
The Rhetorica Method of language training requires trainers to keep detailed notes of speaking errors during each Meeting and to process and post those, along with all relevant administrative information (including, but not limited to attendance, participation, strengths and weaknesses, progress reports) to the Rhetorica Website and / or the Rhetorica Lesson Log after each Meeting. This information is available to all participants as well as to any registered management partners specifically approved by each student at any time during the life of the contract and requires substantial time after each Meeting on the part of each trainer.
Rhetorica GmbH offers two rates:
1. Individual Meetings: for one or two participants. Rhetorica rates are directly related to the number of participants. The maximum number of two participants for Individual Meetings cannot be exceeded during the life of the contract. Conversions from one type of rate to another are not possible.
2. Group Meetings: for three to a maximum of eight participants. The maximum number of eight participants for Group Meetings cannot be exceeded during the life of the contract. Conversions from one type of rate to another are not possible.
Rhetorica GmbH offers two Meetings Packages:
1. Executive Meetings: 60 minutes of face to face instruction per Meeting, including processing and reporting times after each Meeting.
2. Business Meetings: 90 minutes of face to face instruction per meeting, including processing and reporting times after each Meeting.
Included in the price of all meetings is access to the Rhetorica GmbH Member's Website for the life of the contract. Access to the Rhetorica GmbH Member's Website is discontinued 60 days after the last Meeting / lesson in the contract.
Conventional learning materials, e.g. books, etc. are not part of the Rhetorica GmbH Method, which focuses on the speaking skills of language. If conventional materials are desired by the customer, these are not covered in the otherwise all-inclusive rates and will be invoiced separately.
4 MEETING LOCATIONS / CUSTOMER RE-LOCATION
All Rhetorica GmbH Meetings (lessons) take place on customer premises in meeting rooms appropriate for the number of participants. Rhetorica rates include travel up to 30 KM from Basel-Stadt. Locations outside of this area can be arranged, travel supplements may be assessed and agreed in a separate agreement. Customer must provide appropriate parking for trainer(s) or stipulate in advance of the contract that there is no parking available.
In the event of a relocation or transfer of any student outside of the 35 km zone, all remaining lessons will be executed via Skype or another internet based video-conferencing system. Neither course cancellation due to relocation, nor partial or full refunds are possible after a course / contract has been accepted by the customer.
5 MULTIPLE-CUSTOMER GROUP RATES
Rhetorica GmbH offers its competitive corporate rates to group courses made up of more than one customer (company). The Group Rate is calculated by equally distributing the course cost among each customer. Any Meeting which takes place is booked and invoiced to each customer equally, no matter which participants are present. A missed Meeting, for any reason whatsoever, is forfeited by the absent person and is charged to / deducted from his/her Course Account. The Rhetorica GmbH Lesson Log and website compensate substantially for missed lessons however and each participant has full access to the Lesson Log and all material covered in a missed lesson.
6 COURSE CANCELLATION, REFUNDS AND EXPIRATION DATES
Rhetorica GmbH maintains extremely competitive training rates by maintaining a lean administrative structure and passes the resulting savings on to its customers. As a result, once a course has been booked and accepted by the customer, either by a signature on the Rhetorica Offer of Services or by the issuance of a Purchase Order (PO) by the customer or by payment of the course fee, no changes, conversions, refunds or cancellations are possible.
All Meetings for a Rhetorica Course must be taken within two (2) years of the date of signature of the Offer of Services or the issuance date of the Purchase Order (PO) or the date of payment, whichever is first. Any meetings not taken within this period are forfeited by the customer. A one-time extension of this expiry period is possible at the discretion of Rhetorica GmbH if valid, extenuating circumstances warrant it and written request is received and confirmed by Rhetorica GmbH at least 60 days prior to the end of the initial expiration period.
7 MEETING POSTPONEMENTS / CANCELLATIONS
Email or text message cancellation of a scheduled Meeting must be received and confirmed by the trainer at a minimum of 24 hours in advance of the scheduled Meeting time, e.g. cancellation for a Thursday Meeting scheduled for 13:00 (1:00 pm) must be received before 13:00 (1:00pm) on Wednesday. Cancellations for Monday Meetings must be received by 16:00 (4:00pm) of the previous Friday. Scheduled Meetings will be invoiced if not cancelled within the aforementioned deadlines.
8 STUDENT CERTIFICATION AND GRADES
All students attending a Rhetorica course and reaching a Grade Point Average of at least 4.0 on the Swiss Grading Scale (6.00 = best) receive serial-numbered certification for the exact number of hours completed and the CEFRL level achieved. Approximate corresponding grades on the US / UK grading system, the German grading scale and the French grading system are furnished as a courtesy and are an approximation only. The Swiss Grade is the legally certified grade.
9 ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS
When you visit Rhetorica GmbH or send e-mails to us, you are communicating with us electronically. You consent to receive communications from us electronically. We will communicate with you by e-mail or by posting notices on the Rhetorica-Gmbh.com site. You agree that all agreements, notices, disclosures and other communications that we provide to you electronically satisfy any legal requirement that such communications be in writing.
Electronic Attendance: you agree to accept the electronic attendance records. The attendance of each student at each Rhetorica meeting is taken and transmitted to all members of the course via the Lesson Log. Errors in attendance can be corrected until the end of the course by students themselves on their 'Meetings' page. You agree that accessing your Rhetorica Account is confirmation of your attendance status and equal to an actual signed attendance register.
Requests for changes to your records which are not possible by users themselves, including, but not limited to, attendance and Progress Reports, must be received in writing no later than 30 days after the occurrence. Thereafter, you implicitly approve and confirm your records by accessing the site.
10 COPYRIGHT
All content included on this site, including, but not limited to text, graphics, logos, button icons, images, audio clips, digital downloads, data compilations, and software, is the property of Rhetorica GmbH and protected by international copyright laws. The compilation of all content on this site is the exclusive property of Rhetorica GmbH, with copyright authorship for this collection by Rhetorica GmbH, and protected by international copyright laws.
11 TRADE MARKS
Rhetorica GmbHs trademarks and trade dress may not be used in connection with any product or service that is not Rhetorica GmbHs, in any manner that is likely to cause confusion among customers, or in any manner that disparages or discredits Rhetorica GmbH.
12 LICENSE AND SITE ACCESS
Rhetorica GmbH grants you a limited license to access and make personal use of this site and not to download (other than page caching) or modify it, or any portion of it, except with express written consent of Rhetorica GmbH. This license does not include any resale or commercial use of this site or its contents: any collection and use of any product listings, descriptions, or prices: any derivative use of this site or its contents: any downloading or copying of account information for the benefit of another merchant, person, or entity: or any use of data mining, robots, or similar data gathering and extraction tools. This site or any portion of this site may not be reproduced, duplicated, copied, sold, resold, visited, or otherwise exploited for any commercial purpose without express written consent of Rhetorica GmbH.
You may not frame or utilize framing techniques to enclose any trademark, logo, or other proprietary information (including images, text, page layout, or form) of Rhetorica GmbH without express written consent. You may not use any meta tags or any other ""hidden text"" utilizing Rhetorica GmbHs name or trademarks without the express written consent of Rhetorica GmbH. Any unauthorized use terminates the permission or license granted by Rhetorica GmbH.
You are granted a limited, revocable, and nonexclusive right to create a hyperlink to the home page of Rhetorica GmbH so long as the link does not portray Rhetorica GmbH's services in a false, misleading, derogatory, or otherwise offensive matter. You may not use any Rhetorica GmbH logo or other proprietary graphic or trademark as part of the link without express written permission."
13 MEMBERSHIP ACCOUNTS
Users have access to the Rhetorica Member’s site for the life of their course plus 30 days. Thereafter, users have the option of keeping their Rhetorica account active at the discretion of Rhetorica GmbH for a nominal fee. Thirty days after the end of the course, accounts become inactive and users no longer have access. Records will not be deleted unless specifically requested in writing. Rhetorica GmbH accounts can easily be re-activated at any time in the future.
This website and the Rhetorica Method represent years of development and investment. Please help us keep our trade secrets. Do not share your user name, password, or grant access to anyone who is not a Rhetorica customer. Doing so can result in loss of access to the site and forfeiture of your tuition.
If you use this site, you are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account and password and for restricting access to your computer, and you agree to accept responsibility for all activities that occur under your account or password. If you are under 18, you may use our website only with involvement of a parent or guardian. Rhetorica GmbH and its associates reserve the right to refuse service, terminate accounts, remove or edit content, or cancel orders in their sole discretion."
14 REVIEWS, COMMENTS, EMAILS, AND OTHER CONTENT
Visitors may post reviews, comments, and other content: and submit suggestions, ideas, comments, questions, or other information, so long as the content is not illegal, obscene, threatening, defamatory, invasive of privacy, infringing of intellectual property rights, or otherwise injurious to third parties or objectionable and does not consist of or contain software viruses, political campaigning, commercial solicitation, chain letters, mass mailings, or any form of ""spam.""
You may not use a false e-mail address, impersonate any person or entity, or otherwise mislead as to the origin of a card or other content. Rhetorica GmbH reserves the right (but not the obligation) to remove or edit such content, but does not regularly review posted content.
You represent and warrant that you own or otherwise control all of the rights to the content that you post: that the content is accurate: that use of the content you supply does not violate this policy and will not cause injury to any person or entity: and that you will indemnify Rhetorica GmbH or its associates for all claims resulting from content you supply. Rhetorica GmbH has the right but not the obligation to monitor and edit or remove any activity or content. Rhetorica GmbH takes no responsibility and assumes no liability for any content posted by you or any third party."
15 DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES AND LIMITATION OF LIABILITY
Rhetorica GmbH attempts to be as accurate as possible. However, Rhetorica GmbH does not warrant that service descriptions or other content of this site are accurate, complete, reliable, current, or error-free. This site is provided on an ""as is"" basis. Rhetorica GmbH makes no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, as to the operation or availability of this site or its content, information or material.
You expressly agree that your use of this site is at your sole risk. Rhetorica GmbH uses the most up to date computer security measures but can not warrant that this site, its servers or email sent from Rhetorica GmbH are free of viruses or other harmful components.
Rhetorica GmbH will not be liable for any damages of any kind arising from the use of this site, including, but not limited to direct, indirect, incidental, punitive and/or consequential damages. Some jurisdictions do not allow limitations on implied warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain damages. If these laws apply to you, you might have additional rights."
16 APPLICABLE LAW
By visiting Rhetorica GmbH, you agree that the laws of the Canton of Basel-Stadt, Switzerland, without regard to principles of conflict of laws, will govern these Conditions of Use and any dispute of any sort that might arise between you and Rhetorica GmbH.
17 DISPUTES
Any dispute relating in any way to your visit to Rhetorica GmbH or to services you purchase through Rhetorica GmbH shall be submitted to confidential arbitration in Canton Basel-Stadt, Switzerland, except that, to the extent you have in any manner violated or threatened to violate Rhetorica GmbHs intellectual property rights, Rhetorica GmbH may seek injunctive or other appropriate relief in any cantonal or federal court in the canton of Basel-Stadt, Switzerland, and you consent to exclusive jurisdiction and venue in such courts.
18 SITE POLICIES, MODIFICATION, AND SEVERABILITY
Please review our other policies, such as our General Terms and Conditions, posted on this site. These policies also govern your visit to Rhetorica GmbH. We reserve the right to make changes to our site, policies, and these Conditions of Use at any time. If any of these conditions shall be deemed invalid, void, or for any reason unenforceable, that condition shall be deemed severable and shall not affect the validity and enforceability of any remaining condition.
