PRIVACY AND TERMS OF USE

Recognition of Client Privacy

Takingdictation.com respects the legal right of all clients to have their privacy maintained; Takingdictation.com therefore will not provide any personal information to any third party unless otherwise instructed to do so by the client.  Furthermore, Takingdictation.com will use provided information only with the expressed permission of the client.  Takingdictation.com never will give anyone but the client access to the project documents unless the client has indicated that it is permissable to do so.  Some clients, for example, permit their documents be added to the Takingdictation.com portfolio, but permission always will be requested before any document is added to the portfolio.  Furthermore, Takingdictation.com will not seek to distribute any personal information outside of this website (http://takingdictation.com) for any purpose, personal or corporate, unless such disclosure of information is necessitated by local, state, or federal law.

Protection of Financial Information and Client Funds

Takingdictation.com further protects the privacy of clients by allowing clients to make electronic payments through Paypal. This allows the personal banking or credit card information of the client to be encoded in such a way that accessing the personal data is difficult for hackers. Furthermore, the fact that Takingdictation.com accepts checks and money orders means that clients never run the risk of losing cash through the mail.

Document and Information Handling

As a courtesy to clients, Takingdictation.com will keep documents from completed projects on the primary business computer or other media for a period of one month.  This is done just in case something happens such as a client's computer crashing, loss of the e-mail that contains the project document(s), etc.  After one month, the documents will be wiped from wherever they were stored previously, and all hard copies Takingdictation.com may have printed will be shredded.  If desired, clients may request that the documents be kept on Takingdictation.com's computer or media for a period longer than the standard one month or that documents not be shredded.

Payments and Fees

By commissioning work from Takingdictation.com, clients agree to pay their bill in full by the date specified on the initial bill of sale unless other arrangements are made, such as a per month payment plan.  Clients also acknowledge the possibility of incurring late fees for those bills not paid by the date specified on the initial bill of sale.  Additionally, by entering into contract with Takingdictation.com, whether by written or by oral means, clients acknowledge that they may be assessed fees for rescheduling appointments more than twice; these fees are applied when applicable due to the fact that scheduling a specific project on the Takingdictation.com calendar prevents Thibodeaux from accepting other work that might be otherwise accepted. Finally, by commissioning work from Takingdictation.com, clients acknowledge that Takingdictation.com has legal representation via Prepaid Legal Services, Inc. and agree to subject themselves to the legal ramifications of any past due or otherwise delinquent bill.  

Recognition of Client's Right to Request Modifications

Takingdictation.com asserts a certain level of expertise regarding copyediting and copywriting services. However, Takingdictation.com also acknowledges that clients are the experts in their own fields.  Therefore, by commissioning work from Takingdictation.com, clients acknowledge their right to request changes in any project document until the document meets their needs.  In this way, a client is protected from paying for work that is unsatisfactory for their project vision and acknowledges the primary goal of Takingdictation.com to work with each client on a personal level to achieve a satisfactory result.

Clients should note that if it is necessary to make changes in a document due to an error by Takingdictation.com, no charges will be assessed for the time spent correcting the error. If, however, the modifications are the result of a lack of communication on behalf of the client, then charges will be assessed for the time spent correcting the error.

Notice on Academic Integrity

As a former consultant with the CMU writing center, Thibodeaux has extensive experience in writing and editing classroom assignments, research papers, thesis, dissertations, etc. While Thibodeaux will not ghostwrite an academic paper for a client, she would be glad to help a client through the entire writing process to make sure that their paper is in tip-top shape according to the specified guidelines and format. This includes brainstorming, outlining, organization, grammar, style guidelines, even suggesting ways of saying what a client means. The main reason she does not write academic papers outright is to protect herself as a writer, and also to protect the student from violating any academic dishonesty and integrity policy at their university that may result in expulsion. Also, note that, under certain circumstances, writing consultation IS deductible on a client's taxes as an educational expense. Ghostwriting, however, is NOT deductible.