Our purpose

Firm Society is a private, referral-based professional network where members can build relationships, share opportunities, collaborate, and support one another in their work.

The strength of the network depends on the trust its members place in one another. This Code of Conduct explains the standards expected of applicants and members when using Firm Society and interacting with others through the platform. By applying for or maintaining membership, you agree to follow this Code and applicable Firm Society terms and policies.

1. Treat others with dignity and respect

Communicate and conduct business respectfully, even when you disagree. Do not harass, threaten, bully, intimidate, or abuse anyone; use derogatory language or personal attacks; share sexually explicit, hateful, threatening, or otherwise inappropriate material; repeatedly contact someone who has asked you to stop; or use the platform to shame, humiliate, or encourage hostility toward another person.

Address professional disagreements calmly and directly. If a matter cannot be resolved privately, members may bring it to the attention of Firm Society administrators.

2. Be truthful and transparent

Provide accurate information about yourself, your business, and the services you offer. Use your own identity and accurate contact information. Represent your experience, qualifications, licenses, certifications, and insurance truthfully, and correct information that becomes inaccurate. Be clear about the services you can perform and limitations that may affect a project. Disclose relevant personal, financial, or business relationships when they could reasonably affect another person's decision.

Do not impersonate another person or business, submit false information, or claim qualifications you do not have.

3. Act professionally

Approach your work and interactions with honesty, reliability, and care. Communicate clearly and within a reasonable time. Arrive prepared, make a reasonable effort to meet agreed schedules, and notify the other party promptly when a commitment, deadline, or appointment cannot be met. Treat customers, coworkers, subcontractors, and other members professionally. Take responsibility for mistakes and make a good-faith effort to resolve them. Respect the property, equipment, time, and business relationships of others.

Membership does not guarantee the quality of a member's work. Each member remains responsible for their own professional conduct and business decisions.

4. Honor agreements and financial commitments

Make important terms clear before work begins. Depending on the work, these may include scope, price, payment schedule, responsibilities, materials, deadlines, and conditions for changes or cancellation. Firm Society encourages written agreements for significant work or financial commitments.

Provide accurate estimates and invoices, discuss material changes in scope or price before proceeding whenever practical, pay employees and business partners according to agreements, communicate promptly about concerns, and avoid misleading pricing, hidden charges, or promises you do not intend or reasonably expect to fulfill.

5. Respect privacy and confidential information

Firm Society is a private network. Access to another member's information does not give you unrestricted permission to use or distribute it. Use contact information only for appropriate, relevant purposes. Protect information shared privately in messages, groups, profiles, referrals, and business discussions. Obtain permission before sharing private information outside the intended conversation or group. Keep customer information, project details, pricing, documents, and business records confidential when required by an agreement or the circumstances, and use reasonable care when handling information entrusted to you.

Do not publish private contact details without permission; copy, scrape, download, sell, or distribute the member directory or other platform data for unrelated purposes; post screenshots or private messages to shame someone; or share sensitive personal, family, religious, medical, or financial information without an appropriate reason and permission. Share only what is needed for the particular purpose.

6. Use referrals responsibly

Refer only people or businesses you know well enough to describe honestly. Explain your relationship when asked. Do not present a referral as a guarantee of character, qualifications, availability, or work. Say so if you cannot confidently answer a question, and respect the privacy of applicants and referring members.

Applicants must provide accurate referral information and should have the referring member's permission to share their contact information. A referral supports a review; it does not guarantee membership or approval.

7. Share opportunities fairly and accurately

Describe opportunities accurately and identify important uncertainties. Use an opportunity only for a relevant and legitimate business purpose. Respect stated limits on sharing or contacting a prospect. Do not claim ownership of another person's opportunity. Communicate openly about referral fees, commissions, or other compensation before they become an expectation. Do not contact prospects in a misleading, aggressive, or deceptive way.

Receiving a lead does not guarantee a contract, payment, or exclusive right to pursue the work unless the parties separately agree otherwise.

8. Avoid spam and unwanted solicitation

Do not send repetitive or bulk promotional messages without permission; add members to outside mailing lists or marketing campaigns without consent; use automated tools or scripts to collect member information or send messages; promote fraudulent schemes, pyramid schemes, or misleading offers; or continue a sales approach after a member asks you to stop.

Members may discuss services and share relevant opportunities in appropriate places, respectfully and in accordance with Firm Society's rules.

9. Keep the platform secure

Use your own account and keep sign-in methods secure. Notify Firm Society promptly if you believe your account has been accessed without permission. Sign out on shared or public devices when appropriate and use the platform only for its intended purposes.

Do not share account access with an unauthorized person, attempt to access another account or restricted information, circumvent access controls, interfere with the site, upload malicious code, or misuse security features, automated systems, or integrations.

10. Post and share appropriate content

You are responsible for content you post, upload, or share. It should be relevant to the network and appropriate for a professional community. Do not post material you know to be false or misleading; threats, harassment, discriminatory abuse, or explicit material; confidential information you are not authorized to disclose; material that infringes another person's intellectual property or privacy rights; or malware, deceptive links, or content designed to compromise another user.

Obtain permission before posting photos, project information, customer details, or work belonging to someone else. Firm Society may review or remove content when reasonably necessary to address a reported concern, enforce policies, protect the platform, or comply with legal obligations.

11. Follow applicable requirements

Members are responsible for understanding and following laws, regulations, licensing requirements, and professional obligations that apply to their work and location. Where applicable, maintain your own licenses, registrations, permits, insurance, bonding, training, certifications, and safety practices.

A Firm Society profile, membership approval, or referral does not replace an independent check of a license, insurance policy, qualification, or other credential.

12. Resolve concerns respectfully

Address problems directly and privately when doing so is safe and appropriate. Explain the concern clearly, listen to the other perspective, review relevant agreements or communications, propose a reasonable resolution, and allow a reasonable opportunity for a response. Do not use Firm Society to threaten, retaliate against, or publicly shame someone involved in a dispute.

Firm Society may review conduct on the platform, but is not automatically a party to contracts between members and does not promise to investigate or resolve every business dispute.

13. Report concerns

Members may report suspected violations, fraudulent activity, safety concerns, or platform misuse to an administrator through available reporting or contact options. Provide a factual description and relevant dates, messages, or documents. Avoid speculation, exaggeration, unnecessary private information, and knowingly false reports.

Firm Society may request additional information and contact people involved. Information will be handled as discreetly as practical, but complete confidentiality cannot be guaranteed. A good-faith report must not be met with threats or retaliation.

14. Membership review and account action

Administrators may review applications, reports, accounts, and platform activity to help protect the network and enforce its policies. Depending on the circumstances, an administrator may request information, provide guidance or a warning, remove or restrict content or features, pause an application, place an account under review, suspend, disable, or close an account, or refer a matter to an appropriate authority when necessary or required.

Firm Society may act promptly when it believes there is a serious risk. Where practical and appropriate, a person will have an opportunity to respond or request review of an account decision. Membership and account decisions are made by Firm Society. Members should not assume they are authorized to represent the platform or make membership decisions on its behalf.

15. Respect the independence of members

Members and businesses remain independent. Unless a separate written agreement says otherwise, a member is not an employee, partner, agent, or representative of Firm Society simply because they have an account. Firm Society does not set a member's prices or direct their business. Members are responsible for evaluating those they work with and for their own contracts, taxes, insurance, work, and obligations.

Firm Society does not guarantee work, referrals, income, or business opportunities.

16. Uphold the spirit of the community

Use sound judgment and consider how your actions affect others and the community's trust. Strive to be honest in what you say, respectful in how you treat others, reliable in commitments, considerate with private information and opportunities, accountable for decisions, and cooperative when working through problems.

Agreement

By submitting an application or continuing to use Firm Society, I acknowledge that I have read this Code of Conduct and agree to follow it. I understand that Firm Society may review concerns and take appropriate action under its policies.