Thank you again to all members who have joined NOSSCR's new listservs.

As a reminder, NOSSCR’s Listserv/Communities have shifted to an email-based format. Going forward, members will receive updates directly in their inboxes, making it easier for members to participate in ongoing conversations. 

NOSSCR has sent invitations to participate in the new email-based Martin Legal Exchange, the Legal Services and Nonprofit Members Community as well as the NextGen Community.

 

If you do not receive an invite and would like to participate in either the Martin Legal Exchange or Legal Services and Nonprofit Members Community, please email [email protected].

We look forward to continuing to foster productive conversations and new relationships between NOSSCR members. 

 

Terms and Conditions

 

NOSSCR Communities Ownership:

Welcome to NOSSCR’s new Communities! NOSSCR will assist in adding and removing
subscribers, monitoring posts and participants, managing content, and responding in a timely
manner as applicable.

This includes compliance with and will require that all subscribers to the Communities comply
with all applicable U.S. law, as well as require that all subscribers to the Communities agree not
to use the internet connection for illegal purposes, including but not limited to, defamation,
violation of intellectual property laws, violation of antitrust or unfair competition laws or violation
of criminal laws.

Communities’ administrators/owners are responsible for saving archived messages to their
list(s). NOSSCR reserves the right to delete archived messages. When the Communities
administrator/owner adds subscribers, they MUST send each listmember/subscriber a welcome
message, which contains the NOSSCR Rules. NOSSCR members are reminded annually to
review these rules, which may be found at https://nosscr.org/

Violations of these rules may result in immediate suspension of posting privileges or other
restrictions, reviewed by NOSSCR’s CEO in consultation with NOSSCR’s President. Posting in
communities is not an automatic privilege for all members, and past behavior of members in this
or other similar contexts may be considered in allowing or disallowing participation.

NOSSCR Communities Usage Rules:

Rule 1: Do not use the forum for illegal purposes, including but not limited to defamation,
violation of intellectual property laws, violation of antitrust or unfair competition laws or violation
of criminal laws.

a. Copyright - Referring to an article or news item with typical reference citations,
providing a brief quote, or offering a link to legitimate online published content is
permissible; community members should not post a full-text version of published
material to the Communities. Not infrequently a community member wants to tell others
about an article or news item related to the issues discussed in the community.
However, sending the entire article to the community, without the permission of the
author or publisher, results in a prima facie case of copyright violation. While there can
be defenses to a claim of copyright infringement where the purpose of copying is clearly
not for commercial purposes (e.g. “fair use” or academic teaching exceptions), those
defenses are complicated, have been construed differently in different jurisdictions and
are not necessarily applicable to Communities distribution.

b. Defamation and libel - In exchanges on the Communities and when referring to
others, avoid personal attacks and characterizations that question a person’s motives or
qualifications. Sometimes a robust debate about ideas spills over into attacks on the
proponents or opponents of the ideas. Community members need to be reminded that a
false statement that harms someone's reputation can be actionable as libel. There is a
substantial difference between disagreeing with how someone did their research or
treated a patient and accusing the person of fraud or incompetence. Because negative
statements that impugn someone’s professional qualifications can cause substantial
economic and emotional harm, this is an area for careful scrutiny. Keeping criticism on
an objective basis that is factually verifiable and skipping personal commentary about
character, competence or motive minimizes legal risk.

c. Antitrust concerns - NOSSCR by its nature is subject to antitrust issues. Discussions
about rates charged, efforts to exert collective pressure on payors, terms of contracts,
internship salaries, etc., all are prohibited. The antitrust laws are broad and complex but
on a very basic level they operate to prohibit and even in some cases criminalize certain
anticompetitive agreements between competitors. A professional association like
NOSSCR is almost by definition a group of competitors that has come together to
pursue common interests. Where those common interests involve agreements on such
terms of competition as rates charged, salaries paid, standards applicable to members
of the profession, and other issues of the marketplace, the antitrust laws apply.
Communities provide a written record of statements that can create an antitrust risk even
when there is no anti-competitive intent.

Rule 2: Do not intentionally interfere with or disrupt other forum members, network services, or
network equipment. This includes distribution of unsolicited advertisement or chain letters,
propagation of computer worms and viruses, and use of the network to make unauthorized entry
to any other machine accessible via the Community.

Rule 3: Do not use the Forum for commercial purposes. “Commercial” as used for purposes of
evaluating Communities messages means communications whose primary purpose is to
advance the business or financial interests of any person or entity, or otherwise to promote a
financial transaction for the benefit of the author directly or indirectly. Examples of prohibited
communications include advertisements for products or services, notices regarding rental of
office space, or direct solicitations of Communities members to purchase products or services.
Examples of messages that may be of financial benefit to Communities members but are not
prohibited because they do not inure to the financial benefit of the author include news of job
listings or position openings, or discussion of professionally related products or services where
the Communities member conveying the information is not in the business of selling the
products or services. Announcements that provide useful professional information to Community
members but may also have some incidental commercial benefit to the sender (e.g., an author
who is a community member merely advising the Community of publication of a professional
book) typically would not be "commercial" for purposes of this restriction.

Rule 4: Do not violate privacy rules or disclose community content with anyone outside the
community. All information shared on the Communities board is limited to verified members of
NOSSCR. Only verified members are allowed to join and participate in the community. New
members may be required to provide relevant information to verify their identity and professional
credentials. Do not share or disclose any personally identifiable information (PII) of fellow
members without their explicit consent.

a. No External Sharing of Posts: Information and discussions shared on the community
are intended solely for members' benefit. Do not forward, share, or reproduce posts from
the community outside of the community without the original author's consent.

b. Use of PII in Responses: When responding to a post that involves a specific case or
situation, avoid including any personal or sensitive information that could identify
individuals or clients, even if anonymized. Further, do not share or disclose any
personally identifiable information (PII) of fellow members without their explicit consent.

c. Secure Communication: We encourage members to use secure communication
practices when sharing sensitive information within the community.

NOSSCR Communities Etiquette

1. Professional Conduct: All members must adhere to the highest standards of
professional conduct and ethics. Avoid engaging in any behavior that could reflect poorly
on the legal profession.

2. Respectful Communication: Treat all members with respect and courtesy. Avoid
personal attacks, offensive language, and discriminatory remarks.

3. Confidentiality: Do not share confidential client information or any privileged
communications on the Communities.

4. Relevance: Keep discussions relevant to the legal profession, legal issues, and matters
of professional interest. Avoid off-topic discussions.

5. No Solicitation: Do not use the Communities for commercial purposes or to promote
products, services, or events without prior approval from the community administrators.

6. No Spam: Refrain from posting repetitive or irrelevant messages that could be
considered spam.

7. Civility: Engage in constructive debates and discussions. Disagreements are allowed,
but always maintain a respectful tone.

8. No Unauthorized Legal Advice: Do not provide legal advice unless you are sure of the
recipient’s jurisdiction and have permission to do so. Encourage seeking professional
legal counsel instead.

9. No Unauthorized Advertising: Do not advertise job openings, services, or events
without prior permission from the community administrators.

10. Respect Copyright and Intellectual Property: Do not share copyrighted material
without permission from the owner.

11. Report Inappropriate Content: If you come across any content that violates the rules or
community guidelines, report it to the administrators promptly.

12. Personal Liability: Each member is personally responsible for their own posts and
comments.

13. Keep Discussions Legal and Ethical: Do not engage in discussions that promote or
encourage illegal or unethical behavior.

14. Practical Limits: Do not use posts to schedule personal meetings, to thank someone
for sending you something, or to say hello to a friend. Ask yourself, “will my post add to
the knowledge base for the other members in the community?” If not, respond directly to
the other member instead.

15. Politics: Do not use the communities for political discussion or promotion of candidates.

16. Other associations: Do not use the communities to promote or to negatively describe
other associations or nonprofits.