Last Updated: April 7, 2023
This policy (the “Privacy Policy”) applies to the websites of the Supreme Court Historical Society (“SCHS,” “we,” “us,” or “our”), located at https://supremecourthistory.org (the “Historical Society Site”) and https://supremecourtgifts.org and https://supreme-court-historical-society.myshopify.com websites (together, the “Gift Shop Sites”) (together, the “Sites”). The purpose of this Privacy Policy is to explain to you how and when we collect, use, and disclose your information when you visit the Sites, make purchases through the Gift Shop Sites and/or donate through the Sites. Although this Privacy Policy is long, we ask for all of our visitors to read it in its entirety as it contains important descriptions regarding how we use and handle your personal information.
By accessing the Sites, you signify to us that you have read, understand, and agree to all of the terms of the Privacy Policy as set forth herein. Please do not use this Site or submit information to us either through the Sites or other avenues if you do not agree to the terms on our Sites. This Privacy Policy is to be read in connection with any other policies and terms of service posted on our Sites. You do not have a right to change the terms of this Privacy Policy or any other policies or terms of service on our Sites. Our interpretation and application of the terms of this Privacy Policy and any other policies and terms of service posted on our Sites shall be final.
This Privacy Policy will tell you:
- What information we collect from you;
- How and why we collect it;
- Why and with whom we share it; and
- What options you have with respect to our use of it.
This Privacy Policy covers personal information you provide to us when you visit the Sites and personal information and other data collected automatically about you when you visit the Sites. The term “personal information” as used in this Privacy Policy refers to information that can be used to identify an individual, directly or indirectly, alone or together with other information. This includes, for example, your name, email address, birthdate, shipping address, financial information, phone number, and other identifying information; and can also include your location, IP address, device ID, and certain cookie and network identifiers, which are discussed further below.
This Privacy Policy does not apply to information that you provide to third parties through their applications or websites, including, but not limited to, your social media accounts and other locations you can access from links posted on the Sites. These third parties likely have their own privacy policies, which we encourage you to read before you provide information to them. Please note that we are not responsible for the privacy policies or practices of these third parties.
Personal Information You Provide
If you use the Sites to join as an SCHS member or renew your membership, submit an order request to the Gift Shop Sites, or pledge a donation to the SCHS, we will request the following information as applicable (either through our Sites or through other communications means such as an email or telephone call):
We want you to be aware that when you use the Sites, information is automatically collected about you and your online activities, including through the use of Google Analytics on our Sites. (See “Once Information Is Received, How Is It Used and Shared—Data Analytics.”). Cookies, web beacons, log files and tags placed on your computer when your web browser accesses the Sites enable us to recognize you, record how you and other visitors use the Sites, and track statistics about usage of the Sites. The data collected using cookies and similar technologies include:
- Identification – date and time of each visit to a Site, history of visits, user name and password if you establish a Gift Shop Sites account, and other personalized services including, but not limited to, event registrations;
- Device – your IP address, internet domain name, browser type, operating system, and mobile network;
- Usage – referring site of application, text, and video content viewed on our Sites and time spent in viewing each file, products that are viewed, website or search terms that referred you to the Sites, number and duration of visits and history of the Site pages viewed, and other internet activities; and
- Location – your general geographic location can be determined by your IP address and a more specific location is available if you access our Sites using a mobile device unless you have set your mobile device to block location tracking. For information about how we use information collected using these technologies. (See “Once Information Is Received, How Is It Used and Shared.”).
Restricting the Use of Information Collected Using Technology
You can influence how these technologies are used to track and log your online activities in several ways:
- Managing the preference settings on your browser and device;
- Communicating directly with Google as explained at: https://policies.google.com/privacy;
- Visiting www.aboutads.info/choices to learn more about personalized advertising and how to opt-out of personalized advertising on your web browser and mobile apps by companies participating in the Digital Advertising Alliance. You can also opt-out via the Network Advertising Initiative by visiting www.networkadvertising.org/; and
- If you restrict the use of cookies and other technologies, any pop-up form functionality on the Sites may not be accessible to you. If you chose to restrict personalized advertising, you will still receive ads, but they will not be personalized.
Information from Other Sources
We may obtain demographic information about you (age, sex, household income, location, employment) from Google Analytics when you access the Historical Society Site while signed into a Google account. We do not have control over the policies, practices, and procedures of Google Analytics. For information on how to influence the information collected about you by Google Analytics, please see below, “Sharing Information with Service Providers and with Other Third Parties, Data Analytics.”
We may also combine the information you provide to us on the Sites with other information, whether online or offline, including information collected from third parties, and may use and disclose such combined information for the purposes described in this Privacy Policy.
Use of Information
We may use your information to perform the services for which that information was collected and to maintain and enhance the quality of the content of our Sites and product offerings to meet the interests and needs of our members, donors, Site visitors, and customers. Accordingly, we may use your information for a number of purposes including the following:
- Confirming, processing, and fulfilling orders.
- Processing donations to SCHS.
- Administering member services, which means that we may contact you for reasons related to the service you have signed up for (e.g. to provide you with password reminders or to notify you regarding a particular service).
- Contacting you about a submission you have made to the Sites, including, but not limited to, any content you provide.
- Providing you, in line with the preferences shared with us, information or advertising related to our products or services.
- Issuing invoices, administering accounts, and collecting and processing payments.
- Sending you e-mails, e-newsletters, personalized offers or other communications about our products, events, and services. For information about how to stop these messages. (See “Opt Out Procedures.”).
- Identifying your usage of the Sites, the number of visits (including, but not limited to, IP address logging) from different locations, and your online browsing of the Sites.
- Blocking and controlling against disruptive use of the Sites.
- Screening our product orders and donation pledges for potential risks, including, but not limited to, fraud.
- Analyzing and improving the services we offer.
- De-identifying personal information, which means removing some or all personally identifiable information (for example, name, date of birth, phone number), to use or share for statistical or analytical purposes.
- Responding to governmental inquiries or requests to disclose specific information that we believe to be lawful, responding to a court order, when required by law for other purposes, to enforce our Site policies, or to protect our or others’ rights, property, or safety.
- Sharing information with service providers assisting us in fraud protection or investigation.
- Undertaking or preparing for a business transaction, such as a fundraiser or for other donation purposes, or any sale, merger, reorganization, or transfer.
Sharing Information with Service Providers and with Other Third Parties
Service Providers. The personal information you give us and information about you collected from the Sites and other points of contact may be combined with other personal information available from our records and other sources. We share information with our service providers (including, but not limited to, publishers, printers, payment processors, donation processors, email servicing providers, e-commerce service providers, fundraising platform managers, web analytics partners, and search engine optimization and marketing partners) who perform administrative and technology functions on our behalf.
Data Analytics. Google represents that it processes data for website usage and other analytics purposes using third party cookies without revealing any personal information that identifies you individually. Please note that the information collected by Google Analytics has been deemed to be considered “personal information” under certain laws. To learn more about how Google collects and processes data from websites for advertising and data analytics purposes, please visit https://policies.google.com/technologies/partner-sites. To learn more about the controls Google offers to manage the collection and use of your personal information, please visit https://policies.google.com/privacy.
Events and Sponsorships. We may share certain personal information, including your name, email address, company affiliation, and mailing address with third parties for marketing purposes when we partner with third parties to co-host or sponsor events. We will not share this information with such third parties without your consent.
We retain personal information for as long as we reasonably require it for legal or business purposes. When we no longer have a legitimate business interest in keeping your personal information, our policy is to take reasonable steps to securely delete or destroy it. In determining data retention periods, SCHS takes into consideration applicable laws, contractual obligations, and what we reasonably believe are your expectations and requirements. At any time, we will honor your request to unsubscribe from our email communications by your clicking on the link at the end of each email message or by contacting us as provided in the section “How to Contact Us” below.
We use commercially reasonable organizational, technical, and physical safeguards to protect the security, confidentiality, and integrity of your personal information and seek to meet the standards of this Privacy Policy. Still, the Internet is not 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee or promise that your use of the Sites or the services will be completely safe. We cannot and do not guarantee the security of your personal information from unauthorized use or alteration. You should be mindful that there is risk of disclosure inherent in the electronic communication and storage of information (including without limitation from unauthorized entry or use, telecommunication issues, hardware or software failure, and other factors).
Some browsers have “do not track” features that allow you to tell a website not to track you. These features are not all uniform. The Sites do not currently respond to “do not track” requests or similar browser settings.
SCHS does not knowingly collect personal information from children under the age of thirteen (13), and the Sites are not directed at children under the age of thirteen (13). We do not knowingly collect personal information from such children except as permitted under applicable law. If you become aware that a child has provided us with their personal information, please contact us as provided in the section “How to Contact Us” below, and we will delete such information from our files or obtain parental consent in accordance with applicable law. Any purchase on the Gift Shop Sites made by an individual under the age of eighteen (18) must be done with parental or guardian consent, which includes an agreement by such parent or guardian to be bound to make any payments to SCHS that were agreed to, promised, or pledged to be made by the Site visitor.
You can opt out from receiving further email communications from SCHS by:
- Following the “unsubscribe” instructions located near the bottom of each email;
- Emailing us at mmeehan@supremecourthistory.org; or
- Writing to us at One First Street, NE, Washington D.C., 20543 Attn: Martha Meehan-Cohen.
You may gain access to other websites via links on the Sites. The Sites may display advertisements and other content from third parties or partners that link to third-party websites that we do not own or operate. This Privacy Policy does not apply to the privacy practices of those website applications or services, which may collect information from you. We provide links to these third-party sites as a convenience to you. They are not intended as an endorsement of or referral to the linked services. The linked services are subject to their separate and independent privacy statements, notices, and terms. We do not monitor third-party sites. You are responsible to read those statements, notices and terms carefully.
The Sites are intended for use by individuals in the United States. SCHS is based in and operates in the United States. Our servers are located in the United States. This means that if you reside or are located in a country outside of the United States, personal data that you transfer to us through use of the Sites or your other communications with us will be transferred to, stored, or processed in the United States.
If you have any questions or requests, you can contact us:
By email: mmeehan@supremecourthistory.org
By letter to: One First Street, NE, Washington D.C., 20543 Attn: Martha Meehan-Cohen
By phone: (202) 554-8300
We may need to confirm your identity in order to respond to some requests.
From time to time we may change, modify, add or remove portions of this Privacy Policy. We will post an updated copy of our Privacy Policy on the Sites, and any changes to this Privacy Policy shall be effective ten (10) days after they have been posted on the Sites. We encourage you to periodically check our Sites for updates. We will notify you of any material changes to our Privacy Policy to the extent required by law (including by email if you are on our email contact list).