Terms of Service

1. Your relationship with Mellow Family

These Terms of Service (“Terms”) govern your use of the Mellow Family platform, including the websites at mellow.family and app.mellow.family, and all related services (collectively, the “Service”). By accessing or using the Service you are entering into a legally binding agreement with Mellow Family (“we,” “our,” or “us”). Please read these Terms carefully before using the Service.

“Service” means any activity, function, record storage, communication, export, timestamp, or other feature provided through the Mellow Family platform, whether accessed via a web browser or mobile application.

These Terms, together with our Privacy Policy, constitute the entire agreement between you and Mellow Family regarding your use of the Service.

2. Accepting the Terms

By creating an account or otherwise using the Service, you confirm that you are at least 18 years old, have the legal capacity to enter into a binding agreement, and agree to these Terms and our Privacy Policy.

If you are using the Service on behalf of an organization, you represent that you have authority to bind that organization to these Terms, and “you” refers to both you and that organization.

If you do not agree with any part of these Terms, do not access or use the Service.

3. Description of the Service

Mellow Family is a court-grade co-parent communication platform. The Service enables co-parents to exchange messages in a secure, structured environment where every message is:

• Stored in an append-only database — messages cannot be edited or deleted after sending.
• Bound into a SHA-256 cryptographic hash chain, making any subsequent tampering detectable.
• Optionally supported by an RFC 3161 timestamp response from a recognized timestamping authority (DigiCert, GlobalSign, or Sectigo) on Power Tools and Professional plans, with the message imprint verified byte-for-byte.
• Exportable as a PDF record suitable for use in legal proceedings, including a custodian declaration designed to satisfy the business-records exception under FRE 803(6) and equivalent state rules.

Timestamp limitations. RFC 3161 timestamps are provided on a best-effort basis. Mellow Family verifies PKI status, generation time, and message imprint from the timestamping authority’s response, but does not today perform full CMS signature chain verification against AATL trust anchors. The PDF accurately describes the verification level performed. You should consult with legal counsel about the evidentiary weight of timestamps in your jurisdiction.

4. Account registration

To use the Service you must register for an account with a valid email address and a secure password. You agree to provide accurate, current, and complete information and to keep it up to date.

You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your password and for all activities that occur under your account. Notify us immediately at security@mellow.family if you suspect unauthorized access to your account.

You may not create accounts on behalf of another person without their consent, or register multiple accounts for the purpose of evading a suspension or ban.

5. Append-only records and message immutability

Please read this section carefully. It describes a core design property of the Service that differs from ordinary messaging applications.

Messages sent through Mellow Family are stored permanently and cannot be edited, retracted, or deleted — by you, by the other party, or by Mellow Family. This is not a limitation; it is the fundamental guarantee that makes records defensible in legal proceedings. The integrity of the hash chain depends on every message remaining exactly as sent.

Before sending any message, understand that it will become part of a permanent record that may be reviewed by attorneys, mediators, judges, guardians ad litem, child protective services workers, or other parties in a legal proceeding.

Mellow Family will not honor requests to delete individual messages. If you believe a message was sent in error, you may send a subsequent message clarifying or correcting the record; the correction becomes part of the record alongside the original.

6. Permitted use and prohibited conduct

You agree to use the Service only for lawful purposes and in accordance with these Terms. You agree not to:

• Use the Service to harass, threaten, intimidate, abuse, defame, or harm any person.
• Send messages containing unlawful content, including child sexual abuse material, obscenity, or incitement to violence.
• Attempt to circumvent, disable, or interfere with the hash-chain integrity, timestamp, or any security feature of the Service.
• Use the Service to transmit spam, malware, or other malicious content.
• Impersonate any person or misrepresent your identity or affiliation.
• Attempt to gain unauthorized access to another user’s account or any part of the Service.
• Reverse-engineer, decompile, or disassemble any part of the Service.
• Use automated scripts, bots, or other tools to access the Service in a way that is not authorized.
• Use the Service in any manner that violates a court order, restraining order, or no-contact directive.

We reserve the right to suspend or terminate any account we determine, in our sole discretion, is being used in violation of these Terms or applicable law.

7. Subscription plans and payment

Mellow Family offers three subscription tiers:

• Free — Secure co-parent messaging with SHA-256 hash-chain integrity and basic PDF export. One active case. No credit card required.
• Power Tools — $9.99/month — Everything in Free, plus RFC 3161 timestamp responses, ChildFocus AI message coaching, full court-ready PDF export with custodian declaration, and unlimited cases.
• Professional — $20.00/month — Everything in Power Tools, plus an attorney access portal (shareable read-only case link), bulk export, and priority email support.

Paid subscriptions are billed monthly in advance through Stripe. By subscribing, you authorize Stripe to charge your payment method on a recurring basis until you cancel. Cancellation takes effect at the end of the current billing period; you retain access to paid features until then.

Prices may change with 30 days’ notice. Continued use of the Service after a price change constitutes your acceptance of the new price.

We do not issue refunds for partial billing periods except as required by applicable law or in our sole discretion. Contact support@mellow.family with billing questions.

8. Intellectual property

The Service, including its design, software, branding, and documentation, is owned by Mellow Family and protected by copyright, trademark, and other intellectual property laws. These Terms do not grant you any right, title, or interest in the Service except the limited right to use it as described here.

You retain ownership of the content you send through the Service (your messages). By using the Service, you grant Mellow Family a limited, non-exclusive license to store, process, and display your content solely as necessary to provide the Service — including generating PDF exports, computing hash values, requesting timestamps, and displaying messages to authorized parties in your case. We do not claim any broader rights to your content.

9. Privacy

Our Privacy Policy describes how we collect, use, and protect your personal information. By using the Service, you agree to the terms of the Privacy Policy.

10. Disclaimer of warranties

THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. MELLOW FAMILY DOES NOT WARRANT THAT THE SERVICE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, ERROR-FREE, OR SECURE, OR THAT RECORDS GENERATED BY THE SERVICE WILL BE ADMISSIBLE IN ANY PARTICULAR LEGAL PROCEEDING.

The Service is a communication and record-keeping tool. It is not a substitute for legal advice. Consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for guidance on the admissibility and evidentiary value of records in your specific legal matter.

11. Limitation of liability

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, MELLOW FAMILY AND ITS OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, AND AGENTS SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES — INCLUDING LOSS OF DATA, LOSS OF PROFITS, OR COSTS OF SUBSTITUTE SERVICES — ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO YOUR USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE THE SERVICE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

IN NO EVENT SHALL MELLOW FAMILY’S TOTAL LIABILITY TO YOU EXCEED THE GREATER OF (A) THE AMOUNTS YOU PAID FOR THE SERVICE IN THE TWELVE MONTHS PRECEDING THE CLAIM OR (B) ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS ($100).

12. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Mellow Family and its officers, directors, employees, and agents from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, losses, and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising out of or relating to: (a) your use of the Service; (b) your violation of these Terms; (c) your violation of any law or the rights of a third party; or (d) content you submit through the Service.

13. Dispute resolution and governing law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Delaware, United States, without regard to conflict-of-law principles.

Any dispute arising from or relating to these Terms or the Service shall first be submitted to good-faith informal negotiation. If unresolved within 30 days, disputes shall be resolved exclusively through binding arbitration under the rules of the American Arbitration Association (AAA) Consumer Arbitration Rules, conducted by a single arbitrator, in English. The arbitration shall be conducted remotely unless both parties agree otherwise. The arbitrator’s decision is final and binding, and judgment may be entered in any court of competent jurisdiction.

Class action waiver. You agree that any claims must be brought on an individual basis and not as a plaintiff or class member in any purported class, collective, or representative proceeding. The arbitrator may not consolidate claims or preside over a class proceeding.

Nothing in this section prevents either party from seeking injunctive or other equitable relief from a court of competent jurisdiction to prevent irreparable harm.

14. Termination

You may close your account at any time by contacting support@mellow.family. Account closure removes your login credentials and profile. Message records may be retained as described in our Privacy Policy to preserve the integrity of the shared record for the other party.

We may suspend or terminate your access to the Service at any time, with or without notice, if we determine that you have violated these Terms or applicable law, or if continued operation would create legal or security risk. Provisions of these Terms that by their nature should survive termination will do so, including sections on intellectual property, disclaimer of warranties, limitation of liability, and dispute resolution.

15. Changes to these Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. We will notify you of material changes by posting the updated Terms with a new “Last updated” date and, for significant changes, by sending an email to your registered address at least 14 days before the changes take effect. Continued use of the Service after the effective date constitutes your acceptance of the updated Terms.

16. Contact

Questions about these Terms may be directed to: