1. Introduction

By submitting an entry to the Footwear Innovation Competition (the “Competition”), you (“Participant”) acknowledge and agree to these Terms and Conditions (“Terms”). The Footwear Innovation Foundation (“Foundation”), in collaboration with Liminal Group (“Facilitator”), reserves the right to modify these Terms at any time. If you do not agree to these Terms, do not submit an entry.

2. Eligibility

The Competition is open to individuals and teams who meet the eligibility criteria outlined in the official Competition rules. Employees, contractors, board members, and immediate family members of the Footwear Innovation Foundation are not eligible to participate.

Participants must be over the age of 18. Can be from anywhere in the world, with any background and experience. Teams can enter this competition - it is up to individuals on said team who is the lead that will represent the group.

3. Intellectual Property & Submission Rights

Ownership: You retain ownership of your idea. However, by participating, you grant the Footwear Innovation Foundation and Liminal Group a royalty-free, worldwide, perpetual, irrevocable, non-exclusive license to use, modify, display, distribute, and publish your submission for purposes related to the Competition and the advancement of innovation in footwear.

No Confidentiality: Submissions are not considered confidential. The Foundation and Liminal Group are under no obligation to keep any submission confidential and are not liable for any claim that a submission is similar to ideas independently developed or submitted by others.

Responsibility for IP: You warrant that your submission does not infringe upon any intellectual property rights of any third party. If any claim arises, you agree to indemnify and hold harmless the Footwear Innovation Foundation and Liminal Group from any related liability or costs.

No Non-Compete or Contractual Issues: You warrant that your submission does not infringe upon any labor contracts you are engaged in with footwear companies. If any claim arises, you agree to indemnify and hold harmless the Footwear Innovation Foundation and Liminal Group from any related liability or costs.

4. Compensation and Obligation

No Guaranteed Use: Submission of an idea does not create any obligation for the Footwear Innovation Foundation or Liminal Group to review, provide feedback, provide any funds, or help you develop the idea.

Compensation: Participants will not be entitled to any financial compensation beyond any prizes explicitly outlined in the Competition rules. The foundation determines the prize amounts, subject to change, and who receives them. Liminal Group is responsible for program development and facilitation. Prize distribution is managed by the Foundation.

The Foundation provides prize money to individuals and groups in lump sum – groups are on their own to divide it up. Individuals are responsible for any and all taxes on prize awards.

5. Release & Limitation of Liability

By participating, you waive any right to sue the Footwear Innovation Foundation or Liminal Group for any claims related to your submission or participation in the Competition.

You acknowledge that the Foundation and Liminal Group are not responsible for technical failures, lost or incomplete submissions, or damages arising from participation.

You agree that the Foundation reserves the right to modify, suspend, or cancel the Competition and the financial prizes at its sole discretion.

6. Judging and Rounds

Those who continue in the competition are decided by a group of judges. Judges' decisions are final.

Participants will be notified via email if they made it to the next round. Liminal Group may participate in the selection process and program facilitation for finalists, including mentorship and cohort development.

Those who make it to the elite 8 may be asked to sign contracts to protect their IP, and the FIF as they progress.

7. Disqualification

The Footwear Innovation Foundation reserves the right to disqualify any submission that:

• Violates these Terms.
• Contains offensive, unlawful, or inappropriate content.
• Fails to comply with submission guidelines.
• Includes cheating, misrepresentation of ideas, or persons themselves, or brings the Foundation, Liminal Group and/or competition in disrepute.

8. Force Majeure Clause / Right to Cancel

We include a Force Majeure Clause in our terms and conditions. This protects us from liability if unforeseen circumstances, like natural disasters or other events beyond our control, prevent the competition from proceeding as planned. We also reserve the right to modify or cancel the competition if necessary, ensuring we can adapt to unexpected situations while maintaining fairness.

9. Data Collection / Security

When you enter our competition, we'll collect some personal information from you. This typically includes your name, contact details (like email address and phone number), and any project details you submit as part of your entry. If you're entering as a team, we'll collect similar information for each team member.

Purpose of Collection: We collect this data for several key reasons: primarily for judging your submission, facilitating communication with you throughout the competition (e.g., notifying you of your status or next steps), and for announcing winners. We may also use your contact information for future competition announcements or relevant updates from our organization.

Data Usage and Sharing: Your data will be used internally by our team and our program partners (including Liminal Group) for the purposes outlined above. We may also share your data with third parties essential to the competition's operation, such as our judges for evaluation purposes, and potentially with sponsors or partners if their involvement is directly related to prize distribution or specific competition rounds.

Important Note on Submitted Ideas: We want to be clear about your intellectual property. Unless explicitly stated otherwise and agreed to by you in a separate, specific agreement, we will not use your submitted ideas for our own commercial purposes outside of this competition. If an opportunity arises where we might want to explore using your idea, we will contact you directly to discuss a separate agreement and obtain your explicit consent.

Compliance: We are committed to complying with relevant data privacy regulations, including but not limited to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), depending on the geographic scope of our competition and where entrants are located. Our data handling practices are designed to respect and protect your privacy rights under these applicable laws.

10. Confidentiality + IP Efforts

Participants, judges, and program facilitators (including Liminal Group) may be asked to sign Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) to protect the confidentiality of the ideas, especially in the later rounds where more detailed information might be shared.

11. No Implied Partnership / Employment

Participation does not create an employment relationship or partnership with the Foundation, Liminal Group, any judge, sponsor or footwear company.

12. Governing Law & Disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia, USA. Any disputes shall be resolved exclusively in the courts located in Virginia, USA.

By submitting an entry, you confirm that you have read, understood, and agree to these Terms.