Terms & Conditions

1. Definitions

• Vestmere / We / Us / Our — the business operating at 41 Jalan Haji Abdul Aziz, 25000 Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia, providing administrative and archival records support services.
• Client / You — the individual or family contracting Vestmere for a service engagement.
• Service — any of the three engagement types offered by Vestmere: the Category Schema and Intake Session, the Full Cataloguing and Secure Archive Build, or the Custodian Support Programme.
• Agreement — the engagement terms, scope statement and these Terms and Conditions taken together.
• Deliverables — the physical and digital outputs specified in the scope statement for each service.
• Scope Boundary — the written statement of what each service includes and excludes, issued before commencement.

2. Acceptance of terms

By submitting an enquiry through this website, by entering into written correspondence with Vestmere, or by agreeing to a scope statement and proceeding with a service engagement, you confirm that you have read and accept these Terms and Conditions. You must be at least 18 years of age and have the legal capacity to enter into a binding agreement.

Where a service is commissioned on behalf of a family or estate, the individual who signs the scope statement accepts these terms on behalf of all parties they represent.

3. Service description and scope

Vestmere provides administrative and archival support for the organisation and cataloguing of inheritance and estate papers. The scope of each service is administrative in nature. No service provided by Vestmere constitutes legal advice, legal representation, notarial services, document witnessing, document drafting, or any form of professional regulated service. Vestmere does not assess documents for legal validity or effect.

The specific scope of each engagement is stated in writing in the Scope Boundary document issued before commencement. Where a document encountered during an engagement appears to require attention from a legally qualified professional, Vestmere will place it on a written referral list naming the category of practitioner relevant to that item. This referral list is not legal advice.

Services are available to clients located in Malaysia. Engagement locations are by arrangement.

4. Client responsibilities

• Provide accurate information when describing the collection to be catalogued
• Make the relevant papers available at the agreed time and location
• Provide written instruction before any duplicate is destroyed
• Notify Vestmere promptly if the scope of the collection changes materially before or during the project
• Ensure that the person commissioning the service is authorised to do so on behalf of the estate or family
• Maintain the security of the encrypted media delivered at project close

You agree not to misrepresent the nature of the documents you are presenting for cataloguing or to use Vestmere's services to facilitate any unlawful purpose.

5. Intellectual property

The schema sheet, reference coding system, master index format, custodian handbook template and all other documents produced by Vestmere in the course of an engagement are delivered to the client for use in managing their own estate records. The client is granted a non-exclusive, non-transferable right to use and adapt these materials for their personal and family record-keeping purposes. The underlying methodology and format structure remain the intellectual property of Vestmere.

No part of these materials may be resold, sublicensed or used to provide similar services to third parties without Vestmere's prior written consent.

6. Payment terms

All fees are fixed, stated in Malaysian Ringgit (RM) and invoiced before the relevant stage of each service commences. Payment is by bank transfer. The applicable fees are:

• Category Schema and Intake Session: RM 510
• Full Cataloguing and Secure Archive Build (standard scope, up to 1,500 pages): RM 2,600
• Custodian Support Programme (twelve months): RM 4,700

Where a collection is found to exceed the standard scope on commencement of the cataloguing project, Vestmere will advise the client in writing and provide a revised fee for the extended scope before any additional work is carried out. Work on the additional scope does not commence until the client confirms acceptance of the revised fee in writing.

Fees are non-refundable once a service stage has commenced, except in the case of a material failure by Vestmere to deliver the specified deliverables.

7. Confidentiality

Vestmere treats all client documents and all personal and family information encountered in the course of an engagement as confidential. Staff members involved in a project do not discuss the content of any client's papers with any person outside the engagement team. No content from client documents is retained on Vestmere's systems after the final deliverables have been handed to the client.

Vestmere will not disclose client information to any third party except where required to do so by law or by a court order.

8. Data handling

Personal data provided by clients through enquiries and engagements is handled in accordance with Vestmere's Privacy Policy, available at vestmere.blog/privacy-policy.html, and in compliance with the Personal Data Protection Act 2010 (Malaysia).

9. Disclaimers and limitation of liability

Vestmere's services are administrative and archival. They are provided without any representation or warranty that the documents catalogued are legally valid, current, complete or sufficient for any particular legal purpose. The plain-language reference sheet on document vocabulary included in the Custodian Support Programme is provided as general information only and does not constitute legal advice.

To the maximum extent permitted by Malaysian law, Vestmere's total liability to any client arising from any engagement shall not exceed the fee paid for that engagement. Vestmere is not liable for any indirect or consequential losses arising from the use of, or reliance on, the deliverables produced.

10. Termination

Either party may terminate an engagement by written notice. Where the client terminates after a stage has commenced, the fee for that stage is not refundable. Where Vestmere terminates an engagement, any fee paid for work not yet carried out will be refunded within fourteen days. Vestmere reserves the right to decline or terminate an engagement where the nature of the documents presented raises concerns about lawfulness or where client conduct is inappropriate.

11. Dispute resolution and governing law

These Terms and Conditions are governed by the laws of Malaysia. Any dispute arising from a Vestmere engagement will first be addressed through direct correspondence between the parties. If a dispute cannot be resolved within thirty days of written notice, either party may refer the matter to the relevant Malaysian courts with jurisdiction in Pahang.

12. General provisions

• These Terms and Conditions, together with the Scope Boundary document for each engagement, constitute the full agreement between Vestmere and the client for that engagement.
• If any provision of these terms is found to be unenforceable, the remaining provisions continue in full force.
• Vestmere's failure to enforce any provision at any time does not constitute a waiver of that provision.
• These terms may not be assigned by the client without Vestmere's written consent.

13. Changes to these terms

Vestmere may update these Terms and Conditions from time to time. The date at the top of this page reflects the most recent revision. Engagements already in progress at the time of a revision are governed by the terms in effect when the engagement scope was confirmed.

14. Contact for legal enquiries

Vestmere, 41 Jalan Haji Abdul Aziz, 25000 Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia.

Email: [email protected]

Telephone: +60 9-513 8264