Terms of Use

Last Update: March 20, 2025

The Adam Smith Society (or “we,” “us,” or “our”) is a project of the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research, Inc., (“Manhattan Institute”). Your access to the Adam Smith Society website (the “SmithSoc Site”), and the benefits of participation as outlined on this website (the “Benefits”), are governed by and subject to these Terms of Use (the “Terms”). These Terms create a binding legal agreement between you and the Adam Smith Society, and govern your use of its various websites, mobile applications, and other online services that link to these Terms, and the content and functionality provided thereby (collectively, the “Services”).

Please carefully review these Terms and the Adam Smith Society Privacy Policy before using the Services. By using the Services (including by visiting the Services or making any other use of the Services), you (i) accept and agree to be bound by these Terms and (ii) acknowledge that you have reviewed and agree to be bound by the Adam Smith Society Privacy Policy. If you do not agree to all of these Terms, you may not use the Services.

Please note that Section 10 of these Terms contains a binding arbitration clause and a class action waiver that affect your rights for resolving disputes with the Adam Smith Society.

You represent and warrant that (i) you are at least 13 years of age; (ii) if you are under 18 years of age, you have obtained the consent of your parent or legal guardian to these Terms and for your use of the Services; and (iii) you are fully able and competent to enter into and to comply with these Terms.

The Adam Smith Society may change any of the terms contained herein or modify the Services at any time, and you accept any changes made to these Terms by continuing to use the Services after Adam Smith Society posts the changes. Adam Smith Society may immediately terminate this contract with you (including your access to the Services) at any time, including but not limited to, if you fail to comply with any provision of these Terms. You agree and understand that Adam Smith Society is not obligated to provide you with access to the Services.

1. Access to Benefits

Enrollment. To participate in the Adam Smith Society (a “Participant,” or “Participation”) and to gain access to the Benefits, you must elect to participate in a business school chapter or donate through this website.

MBA student chapter participation is free. Capstone donors make contributions (“Capstone Gifts”) through the Adam Smith Society website, which are general contributions to MI, in exchange for participation in a social community. As members of this community, Capstone contributors may be invited to certain events that are relevant to their interests. These events are not exclusive to Capstone contributors, and Capstone Gifts are not given in exchange for event participation.
Payment. You agree that we may charge any contribution that you make to the payment method that you specify at the time of payment. If the payment method is a credit card, you acknowledge that we may seek pre-authorization of your credit card account prior to your purchase to verify that the card is valid and has the necessary funds or credit to complete the purchase. You acknowledge and agree that we may use third party payment processors to process on our behalf any payments that you may make, and that we will not be held liable for any errors caused by such third-party payment processors.
Discontinuation of Benefits; Termination. Manhattan Institute reserves the right to permanently or temporarily amend or discontinue your access to Benefits at any time, in our sole discretion, without notice to you. To the fullest extent permitted under applicable law, we will not be liable for any change to or any discontinuation of your Benefits.

2. Ownership; License Grant and Restrictions

You acknowledge and agree that Adam Smith Society and/or its licensors own all right, title and interest in and to the Services and all content available through the Services, including all intellectual property rights therein and thereto. You will not earn or acquire any ownership rights in any copyrights, patents, trade secrets, trademarks or other intellectual property rights on account of these Terms or any access to or use of the Services. All rights not expressly granted to you with respect to the Services are reserved by Adam Smith Society and its licensors.
Subject to your compliance with these Terms, Adam Smith Society hereby grants you a limited, personal, nonexclusive, non-transferable, revocable license to access and use the Services solely for your personal, noncommercial use, as provided herein.
You may not publish, distribute, display, perform, edit, adapt, modify or otherwise exploit the Services or any content distributed through the Services under any circumstances, except upon request and with the prior written permission by Adam Smith Society. External outlets, when mentioning or alluding to work produced by Adam Smith Society, should tag, cite, or reference the original source. External outlets may be asked to edit or change content that falsely or inaccurately depicts scholarly thoughts or work posted in this space.
You may not (i) circumvent or disable any content protection system or digital rights management technology used with the Services or the content made available through the Services; (ii) decompile, reverse engineer, disassemble or otherwise reduce the Services or any software or technology provided to you in connection with the Services, to a human-readable form; (iii) remove any attribution, copyright, or other proprietary notices from any content provided through the Services; or (iv) access or use the Services or any content provided through the Services in an unlawful or unauthorized manner.
Some elements of the Services, such as Events (see below), may be presented to you on an “off the record” or otherwise confidential basis (“Confidential Information”). You agree that if you are invited to access such content, you will not record, capture, or otherwise copy and disclose any content that you may access as part of your receipt of the Confidential Information.

3. Additional Information about the Services

The Services may contain links to third party content and integrations with third party platforms, including social media sites. Adam Smith Society does not control, endorse, sponsor, recommend, or otherwise accept responsibility for such third party content and integrations. Use of any linked third party content and integrations is at your own risk. When you access the Services through a mobile network, your network or roaming provider’s rates and fees will apply.

4. Your Relationship With Manhattan Institute

Adam Smith Society chapter leaders and chapter participants are unpaid volunteers of Manhattan Institute. By participating in Adam Smith Society chapters and programming, including but not limited to any events, you agree to the Volunteer Agreement.

5. Limitations on Use of the Services

You may not access or use, or attempt to access or use, the Services to take any action that could harm Adam Smith Society, its licensors, or any other third party, interfere with the operation of the Services, or use the Services in a manner that violates any laws. For example, and without limitation, you may not:

impersonate any person or entity or otherwise misrepresent your affiliation or the origin of materials you transmit through the Services;
engage in unauthorized “crawling,” “scraping,” or harvesting of content or personal information, or use any other unauthorized automated means to compile information available through the Services;
take any action that imposes an unreasonable or disproportionately large load on Adam Smith Society’s network or infrastructure;
use any device, software, or routine to interfere or attempt to interfere with the proper working of the Services or any activity conducted on the Services or attempt to probe, scan, test the vulnerability of, or breach the security of any system or network;
attempt to decipher, decompile, disassemble, or reverse-engineer any of the software comprising or in any way making up a part of the Services;
distribute any unauthorized materials or advertise or promote goods or services through the Services without Adam Smith Society’s prior written permission (including, without limitation, by sending spam); or
engage in any other conduct that restricts or inhibits any person from using or enjoying the Services, or that, in Adam Smith Society’s sole judgment, exposes Adam Smith Society or any of its users, affiliates, or any other third party to any liability, damages, or detriment of any type.

6. Feedback; Communications with You

You agree that Adam Smith Society may use all or part of any comments, suggestions or feedback you provide regarding your use of the Services, any content available through the Services, or any derivative thereof (“Feedback”) in any manner and media without any remuneration, compensation or credit to you.
Manhattan Institute and its service providers may communicate with you about the Services, including through one or more third party e-mail or survey services, via methods determined by Adam Smith Society, including through the Services or contact information you provide to us through the Services. You consent to receive communications from us and our service providers that may: (i) solicit Feedback via e-mail, surveys, bug reports, or other methods we may determine; (ii) collect additional information regarding issues you report in your Feedback; (iii) notify you of changes to the Services, the content available through the Services, or these Terms; and (iv) tell you about future Adam Smith Society programs, products or services, including causes you may want to support. You agree that the Adam Smith Society may share your contact information with its service providers, and, to the extent necessary to enable the communications described in this section, with other third parties.

7. Disclaimer of Warranties, Limitation of Liability, and Indemnity

You expressly agree that your use of the Services and the content available through the Services is at your own risk. The Services and content are provided “as is” and, to the fullest extent permitted by law, without warranties of any kind, either express or implied. Without limiting the foregoing, neither the Adam Smith Society nor its licensors make any warranties of fitness for a particular purpose, title, merchantability, completeness, availability, security or privacy of your data and/or information, compatibility, or non-infringement; or that the Services will be uninterrupted, free of viruses and other harmful components, accurate, error free, or reliable; or as to the accuracy, currency, or completeness of any content or information made available through the Services, whether provided in text, audio, video, graphical, or other form (the “Service Content”). Neither Adam Smith Society nor its licensors make any representations or warranties with respect to any third party service providers.
To the fullest extent permitted by law, in no event shall Adam Smith Society, its licensors, their affiliates, successors and assigns, or any of their respective directors, officers, employees, third party service providers (including those who help administer and operate the Services), agents, and suppliers (collectively, the “Licensor Parties”), be liable for any direct, indirect, punitive, incidental, special, consequential, or other damages, including loss of profits, arising out of or in any way related to the Services or the Service Content, whether based in contract, tort (including negligence), strict liability, or other theory, even if the Licensor Parties have been advised of the possibility of such damages. To the fullest extent permitted by law, in no event shall the Licensor Parties’ total liability to you for all damages, losses and causes of action, whether in contract, tort (including negligence) or otherwise, arising under or in connection with this agreement or the Services or Service Content exceed the greater of the actual amount you paid for the Services (if any) and $100. The parties agree that the foregoing limitations are essential to these Terms and that Adam Smith Society could not provide the Services or the Service Content except in reliance on these limitations of liability.
You further agree to indemnify and hold harmless the Licensor Parties from and against any and all liabilities, claims, damages, expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs), and other losses arising out of or in any way related to your breach or alleged breach of these Terms, your use of the Services or the Service Content, or your Feedback. Adam Smith Society reserves the right to employ separate counsel and assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter otherwise subject to indemnification by you. In such event, you shall provide Adam Smith Society with such cooperation as Adam Smith Society reasonably requests.

8. Notices

From time to time, Adam Smith Society (either directly or through a third party service) may communicate with you about the Services and/or these Terms via e-mail or otherwise through the Services. You agree that any such notices, disclosures, and other communications will satisfy Adam Smith Society’s applicable legal notification requirements. Notices may include modifications to the terms of these Terms or changes to the Services or Service Content. Adam Smith Society recommends that you keep a copy of any electronic communications Adam Smith Society sends to you for your records.

9. User Content

Certain features of the Services may permit you or other users to upload content to the Services, including images, data, text, videos, and other types of information (“User Content”) and to publish User Content on the Services. You retain the copyrights, including any moral rights, and any other proprietary rights that you may hold in the User Content that you post to the Services.

Limited License Grant to Adam Smith Society. By uploading User Content to the Services, you grant Adam Smith Society a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, fully paid, transferable right and license (with the right to sublicense) to use, reproduce, host, store, transfer, display, perform, reproduce, modify, create derivative works of, and distribute your User Content, in whole or in part, for any purpose, in any media formats and through any media channels now known or hereafter developed. You irrevocably and forever waive any rights you may have regarding your User Content being altered in any way that may be objectionable to you. If your name, image, voice, or likeness (your “Appearance”) appears in the User Content, you authorize Adam Smith Society to use your Appearance in connection with both non-commercial and commercial uses of the User Content and waive all rights of publicity with respect to such uses of your Appearance. You hereby release Adam Smith Society and its agents and assigns from any and all claims which arise out of or are in any way connected with such use. Adam Smith Society reserves the right to refuse to accept, post, display, or transmit any of your User Content in its sole discretion.
User Content Representations and Warranties. You are solely responsible for your User Content and the consequences of posting or publishing User Content. By posting or publishing User Content, you affirm, represent, and warrant that:
- you are the creator and owner of the User Content, or have the necessary licenses, rights, consents, and permissions to authorize Adam Smith Society to exercise the licenses to the User Content granted by you in this section, in the manner contemplated by Adam Smith Society, the Services, and these Terms; and
- your User Content, and the use of your User Content as contemplated by these Terms, does not and will not: (i) infringe, violate, or misappropriate any third-party right, including any copyright, trademark, patent, trade secret, moral right, privacy right, right of publicity, or any other intellectual property or proprietary right; (ii) slander, defame, libel, or invade the right of privacy, publicity or other property rights of any other person; or (iii) cause Adam Smith Society to violate any law or regulation.
- you agree to pay for any and all royalties, fees, or other monies owing any person by reason of User Content you post on or through the Services.
User Content Disclaimer. We are under no obligation to edit or control User Content that you or other users post or publish, and will not be in any way responsible or liable for User Content. Adam Smith Society may, however, at any time and without prior notice, screen, remove, edit, or block any User Content that in our sole judgment violates these Terms or is otherwise objectionable. You understand that when using the Services you will be exposed to User Content from a variety of sources and acknowledge that User Content may be inaccurate, offensive, indecent, or objectionable. To the fullest extent allowed under applicable law, you agree to waive, and do waive, any legal or equitable right or remedy you have or may have against Adam Smith Society with respect to User Content. We expressly disclaim any and all liability in connection with User Content, to the fullest extent allowed under applicable law. If notified by a user or content owner that User Content allegedly does not conform to these Terms, we may investigate the allegation and determine in our sole discretion whether to remove the User Content, which we reserve the right to do at any time and without notice.
Procedure for Infringing User Content. If you believe that any User Content does not conform to these Terms, please notify us.

We comply with the provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (the “DMCA”) applicable to our operations (17 U.S.C. §512, as amended). If you have an intellectual property rights-related complaint about material posted on the Services, you may contact our designated agent at the following address:

Manhattan Institute
ATTN: Legal Department (Copyright Notification)
52 Vanderbilt Ave, New York, NY, 10017
dmca@manhattan.institute

Please note that under applicable law, if you knowingly give false, misleading or inaccurate information that User Consent is infringing, you may be subject to civil or criminal penalty.

Any notice under the DMCA alleging that materials hosted by or distributed through the Services infringe intellectual property rights must include all of the information required by the DMCA for such notices. Adam Smith Society will promptly terminate without notice access to the Services by users that are determined by Adam Smith Society to be “Repeat Infringers.” A Repeat Infringer is a user who has been notified of infringing activity or has had User Content removed from the Services at least three times.

10. Events

Event Conduct. From time to time, Manhattan Institute may host various events at different locations (each an “Event”). If you attend or participate in an Event, you agree to (i) follow any code, standards, guidelines, or any other applicable rules of conduct or behavior as required by Adam Smith Society or the owner/controller of an Event venue, and (ii) to comply at all times with any applicable laws and regulations. In any event, you shall at all times conduct yourself at an Event, including in interactions with other attendees, hosts, guests, or venue personnel, in a socially and professionally responsible and appropriate manner.
License Grant. Adam Smith Society encourages you to take photographs, videos, and other media at an Event and to share it with others through social media or any other distribution channel (your “Event Materials”). You will continue to retain any ownership rights you may have in your Event Materials, but without limiting Section 8 (User Content), you hereby grant Manhattan Institute a royalty-free, irrevocable, perpetual, non-exclusive, worldwide, fully sublicensable license to publish, reproduce, distribute, display, perform, edit, adapt, modify, and otherwise use your Event Materials (or any portion thereof), including those that are made publicly available on your social media accounts, in any manner and in any form, media, or technology now known or later developed. You hereby waive any moral rights or rights of publicity that you may have in your Event Materials. You further represent that you have obtained the consent of all individuals who are identifiable in your Event Materials, or of the individual’s parent or legal guardian if the individual is under 18 years old, to include the individual’s likeness in your Event Materials and for us to enjoy all of the rights and privileges that you grant to us under these Terms and any other agreement that you have entered into with Adam Smith Society, including without limitation the right to use your or the individual’s likeness in our advertising and marketing activities. Notwithstanding the foregoing, we will not be in any way responsible or liable for your Event Materials, and we are not obligated to publish or use your Event Materials.
Disclaimer of Warranties. You expressly agree that your participation or attendance at Events is at your own risk. To the fullest extent permitted by law, all Events are provided on an “as is” and “as available” basis, without warranties of any kind, whether express, implied, or statutory. Neither Manhattan Institute nor any third party service providers or attendees of an Event, including invited guest speakers, make any warranties as to the accuracy, currency, or completeness of any information made available at an Event, whether provided in text, audio, video, graphical, oral, or other form. Neither Manhattan Institute nor its licensors make any representations or warranties with respect to any third party service providers. Manhattan Institute makes no representations or warranties with respect to any third party service providers at any Event or any facilities at which Events may be hosted.
Limitation of Liability. To the fullest extent permitted by law, Manhattan Institute shall not be liable for any direct, indirect, punitive, incidental, special, consequential, or other damages, including loss of profits, loss of life or health, and any claims of third parties, arising out of or in any way related to any Event, whether based in contract, tort (including negligence), strict liability, or other theory, even if Manhattan Institute has been advised of the possibility of such damages. To the fullest extent permitted by law, in no event shall Manhattan Institute’s aggregate liability to you for all damages, losses and causes of action, whether in contract, tort (including negligence) or otherwise, exceed the greater of the actual amount you paid for the Event giving rise to the Claims (if any) and $100. Depending on the jurisdiction where you reside or where the relevant Events occur, applicable law may not allow all of the foregoing limitations on implied warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain damages, in which case, to the extent prohibited by law, such provisions shall not apply to you.
Indemnification. You agree to indemnify and hold harmless Manhattan Institute, its directors, officers, employees, and agents from and against any and all liabilities, claims, damages, expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs), and other losses arising out of or in any way related to your attendance at an Event, and any claims arising from or alleging fraud, intentional misconduct, gross negligence, or criminal acts committed by you at or in connection with any Event. Manhattan Institute reserves the right to employ separate counsel and assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter otherwise subject to indemnification by you. In such event, you shall provide Adam Smith Society with such cooperation as Manhattan Institute reasonably requests.

11. Arbitration

Please read this section carefully because it affects your rights. By agreeing to binding arbitration, you waive your right to litigate disputes through a court and to have a judge or jury decide your case.

In order to expedite and control the cost of disputes, Manhattan Institute and you agree that any legal or equitable claim, dispute, action or proceeding arising from or related to your use of the Services or these Terms (“Dispute”) will be resolved as follows to the fullest extent permitted by law:

Notice of Dispute. In the event of a Dispute, you or Adam Smith Society must give the other a written statement that sets forth the name, address, and contact information of the party giving it, the facts giving rise to the Dispute, and a proposed solution (a “Notice of Dispute”). You must send any Notice of Dispute by first class U.S. Mail to Manhattan Institute at 52 Vanderbilt Ave, New York, NY, 10017 and also via e-mail to dmca@manhattan.institute. Adam Smith Society will send any Notice of Dispute to you by first class U.S. Mail to your address if Adam Smith Society has it, or otherwise to your e-mail address. You and Adam Smith Society will attempt to resolve any Dispute through informal negotiation within sixty (60) days from the date the Notice of Dispute is sent. After sixty (60) days, you or Adam Smith Society may commence arbitration.
Mediation, Binding Arbitration and Governing Law. You and Adam Smith Society shall endeavor to settle any Dispute by mediation under the Mediation Rules of Judicial Arbitration and Mediation Services, Inc. (“JAMS”). The place of mediation shall be New York, New York. Any Dispute which has not been resolved by mediation as provided herein within thirty (30) days after appointment of a mediator or such time period as you or Adam Smith Society may otherwise agree, shall be finally resolved by binding arbitration as described in this Section 10. You are giving up the right to litigate (or participate in as a party or class member) all Disputes in court before a judge or jury. Instead, all Disputes will be resolved before a neutral arbitrator, whose decision will be final except for a limited right of appeal under the Federal Arbitration Act. The place of arbitration shall be New York, New York. Any court with jurisdiction over the parties may enforce the arbitrator’s award. As the Services are provided in New York, to the fullest extent permitted by law, your access to and use of the Services, the Terms and any Dispute that might arise between you and Adam Smith Society shall be governed by the laws of the State of New York, without regard to its conflict of law provisions.
Class Action Waiver. Any proceedings to resolve or litigate any Dispute in any forum will be conducted solely on an individual basis. Neither you nor Adam Smith Society will seek to have any Dispute heard as a class action or in any other proceeding in which either party acts or proposes to act in a representative capacity. No arbitration or proceeding will be combined with another without the prior written consent of all parties to all affected arbitrations or proceedings.
Arbitration Procedures. Any arbitration will be conducted by JAMS under the JAMS Comprehensive Arbitration Rules and Procedures (“JAMS Rules”) in effect at the time the Dispute is filed. You may request a telephonic or in-person hearing by following the JAMS Rules. In a dispute involving $10,000 or less, any hearing will be telephonic unless the arbitrator finds good cause to hold an in-person hearing instead. To the extent the forum provided by JAMS is unavailable, Adam Smith Society and you agree to select a mutually agreeable alternative dispute resolution service and that such alternative dispute resolution service shall apply the JAMS Rules. The arbitrator may award the same damages to you individually as a court could. The arbitrator may award declaratory or injunctive relief only to you individually, and only to the extent required to satisfy your individual claim.
Arbitration Fees. Whoever files the arbitration pays the initial filing fee. If Adam Smith Society files, then Adam Smith Society will pay; if you file, then you will pay unless you get a fee waiver under the applicable arbitration rules. Each party will bear the expense of that party’s attorneys, experts, and witnesses, and other expenses, regardless of which party prevails, but a party may recover any or all expenses from another party if the arbitrator, applying applicable law, so determines.
Filing Period. To the extent permitted by law, any Dispute under these Terms must be filed within one (1) year in an arbitration proceeding. The one-year period begins when the events giving rise to the Dispute first occur. If a Dispute is not filed within one year, it is permanently barred.

12. Termination

Adam Smith Society reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to restrict, suspend, or terminate these Terms and/or your access to all or any part of the Services, at any time and for any reason without prior notice or liability. Adam Smith Society reserves the right to change, suspend, or discontinue all or any part of the Sites at any time without prior notice or liability. Upon termination of these Terms, the rights granted to you under these Terms with respect to the Services and Service Content will immediately terminate. However, Adam Smith Society’s rights to use your Feedback, as well as the limitations on Adam Smith Society’s liability, the indemnification provisions, and the terms pertaining to the dispute resolution process, will survive any expiration or termination of these Terms.

13. Miscellaneous

Supplemental Terms. When using the Services, you agree to comply with and are subject to any posted guidelines, rules, or supplemental terms applicable to such services or features, as may be posted from time to time. All such guidelines, rules, or terms are hereby incorporated by reference into the Terms. To the extent that you are asked to review and accept any supplemental terms that expressly conflict with these Terms, the supplemental terms associated with the applicable portion of the Services govern with respect to your use of such portion of the Services to the extent of the conflict.
No Assignment. These Terms, and any rights and licenses granted hereunder, may not be transferred or assigned by you, but may be assigned by Adam Smith Society without restriction. These Terms operate to the fullest extent permissible by law.
Severability. If any provision of these Terms is held to be unlawful, void, or unenforceable, that provision will be deemed severable from these Terms and will not affect the validity and enforceability of any remaining provisions.
No Waiver. Adam Smith Society’s failure to enforce any provisions of these Terms or respond to a violation by any party does not waive Adam Smith Society’s right to subsequently enforce any terms or conditions of the Terms or respond to any violations. Nothing contained in these Terms is in derogation of Adam Smith Society’s right to comply with governmental, court, and law enforcement requests or requirements relating to your use of the Services or information provided to or gathered by Adam Smith Society with respect to such uses.
Governing Law. These Terms shall be governed by, and construed and interpreted in accordance with, the laws of the United States and the State of New York. By using the Services, you waive any claims that may arise under the laws of other states, countries, territories, or jurisdictions.
Contact. For inquiries or questions regarding these Terms or the Services, please contact Manhattan Institute at 52 Vanderbilt Ave, 2^nd Floor, New York, NY, 10017, 212-599-7000, or legal@manhattan.institute.