The agreement is governed by California law, with exclusive jurisdiction for any permitted court proceedings in Los Angeles County, California state and federal courts.
This analysis describes what Whatnot'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 clause establishes California as the governing law and Los Angeles County as the exclusive venue for any litigation not subject to arbitration, which may create a practical barrier for users located outside California who need to pursue court proceedings.
The updated terms establish mandatory arbitration as the exclusive dispute resolution mechanism for influencers, replacing direct court access in California and Australia. Under the revised language, any dispute with Whatnot must proceed through arbitration under the main Terms of Service, which includes a class action waiver. This means influencers cannot bring class or collective claims and cannot access court proceedings except where the main Terms of Service explicitly permits. The practical effect is that individual influencers seeking to resolve disagreements with Whatnot over payments, account suspension, content disputes, or contractual interpretation must use arbitration rather than litigation.
View change record →The updated terms establish a formal Creator Program for Australian users that defines how creators can submit content for potential monetary or credit rewards. Creators grant Whatnot a one-year, non-exclusive, worldwide license to use submitted videos across paid and organic social media, television, and other platforms, while retaining ownership of the original content. The terms require creators to clearly disclose any material connection to Whatnot, including consideration or free products received, in a form specified by Whatnot and compliant with Australian advertising standards and the AANA Code of Ethics.
View change record →Australian sellers using Whatnot are now required to resolve all disputes through arbitration rather than through Australian courts. The updated terms state that disputes will be resolved exclusively under the main Terms of Service arbitration provisions, removing the previous option to bring legal action in Los Angeles courts or pursue jury trials. The terms no longer include language allowing court proceedings, except where the main Terms of Service expressly permit.
View change record →Removal of explicit California governing law and Los Angeles jurisdiction clause may indicate these provisions were relocated or subsumed in arbitration/dispute resolution sections.
View full change record →Changed 'will be' to 'shall be' and added 'construed in accordance with', removed reference to 'Dispute Resolution section', and added qualifier 'To the extent that any lawsuit or court proceeding is permitted hereunder'.
View full change record →Under this clause, disputes proceeding to court must be litigated in Los Angeles County, California under California law, regardless of the user's location. This applies to the limited categories of claims excluded from arbitration.
How other platforms handle this
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.
For any claims that are not subject to arbitration...U.S. Residents: Delaware law; venue exclusively in the state or federal courts in New Castle County, Delaware
These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of California and the United States without regard to conflicts of laws provisions
"These Terms shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of California, without regard to its conflict of law provisions. To the extent that any lawsuit or court proceeding is permitted hereunder, you and Whatnot agree to submit to the personal and exclusive jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in Los Angeles County, California.Excerpt from Whatnot's Terms of Service
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This clause establishes California as the governing law and Los Angeles County as the exclusive venue for any litigation not subject to arbitration, which may create a practical barrier for users located outside California who need to pursue court proceedings.
Under this clause, disputes proceeding to court must be litigated in Los Angeles County, California under California law, regardless of the user's location. This applies to the limited categories of claims excluded from arbitration.
ConductAtlas has identified this type of provision across 267 platforms. See the full comparison.
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