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The agreement is governed by Delaware law, and any disputes not resolved through arbitration must be litigated in state or federal courts in New York County, New York.
This analysis describes what OpenSea's agreement states, permits, or reserves. It does not constitute a legal determination about enforceability. Regulatory applicability and practical outcomes may vary by jurisdiction, enforcement context, and individual circumstances. Read our methodology
This provision requires users outside of New York to submit to New York court jurisdiction for non-arbitrated disputes, which may create practical barriers to litigation for users located in other U.S. states or internationally.
Under this clause, any dispute not subject to the arbitration requirement is subject to Delaware law and must be litigated in New York County courts. Users located outside New York who bring non-arbitrated claims must do so in New York jurisdiction.
How other platforms handle this
These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of California, without regard to conflict of laws rules, and the proper venue for any disputes arising out of or relating to any of the same will be the arbitration venue set forth in Section 9, or if arbitration does not apply, then the state and fe...
In the EU and EEA, the choice of Texas governing law shall not apply only where a mandatory consumer protection law explicitly prohibits such choice of law provisions.
If you are accessing the Website from a location outside the EEA, U.K., or Canada, you understand that we apply U.S. law and the U.S. advertising industry self-regulatory program to Tracking Technologies associated with the Website.
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"These Terms will be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Delaware, without regard to its conflict of law provisions. For any disputes not subject to arbitration, you agree to submit to the personal jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in New York County, New York.Excerpt from OpenSea's Terms of Service
REGULATORY LANDSCAPE: Governing law and venue clauses interact with state consumer protection statutes that may apply regardless of contractual choice of law, particularly in California, where the CLRA and UCL provide mandatory protections that courts may apply notwithstanding a Delaware governing law clause. EU and UK consumers retain rights under mandatory local law that cannot be displaced by contractual governing law designations. GOVERNANCE EXPOSURE: Low to Medium. Delaware governing law and New York venue are standard features of U.S. technology platform agreements; however, consumer protection law in many U.S. states and internationally may apply regardless of the contractual choice. JURISDICTION FLAGS: EU consumers retain jurisdiction rights under the Brussels I Regulation that may allow them to sue in their home jurisdiction despite a New York venue clause. UK consumers have similar protections. California consumers may have non-waivable rights under state consumer protection statutes. CONTRACT AND VENDOR IMPLICATIONS: B2B partners and institutional integrators should assess whether Delaware governing law is acceptable for their contract review purposes and whether New York venue creates logistical or cost considerations for dispute management. COMPLIANCE CONSIDERATIONS: Legal teams advising international clients should document that local mandatory consumer protection law may apply notwithstanding the Delaware governing law clause, and that the New York venue requirement does not necessarily displace applicable international jurisdictional rules.
Regulatory citations, enforcement risk, and due diligence action items.
Provision-level monitoring, governance timelines, and regulatory mapping built from archived source documents and historical version tracking.
This provision requires users outside of New York to submit to New York court jurisdiction for non-arbitrated disputes, which may create practical barriers to litigation for users located in other U.S. states or internationally.
Under this clause, any dispute not subject to the arbitration requirement is subject to Delaware law and must be litigated in New York County courts. Users located outside New York who bring non-arbitrated claims must do so in New York jurisdiction.
ConductAtlas has identified this type of provision across 271 platforms. See the full comparison.
No. ConductAtlas is an independent monitoring service. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by OpenSea.