Terms of Use

1. Acceptance of These Terms; Parties; Related Entities

1.1 Agreement. These Terms are a binding agreement between you (“you” or “User”) and Acquisition Lab Ops LLC, a Delaware limited liability company doing business as Acquisition Lab (the “Company,” “we,” “us,” or “our”). These Terms govern your access to and use of the websites, web applications, tools, communities, content, and services offered by the Company under the Acquisition Lab brand, including the site located at acquisitionlab.com and any successor or related sites and applications (collectively, the “Platform”). The Platform includes the public areas of our websites and free content such as guides and articles, whether or not you have an account.

1.2 Acceptance. These Terms apply to all use of the Platform, including browsing the public areas of our websites and using free guides, articles, and other content. You accept these Terms by accessing or using any part of the Platform and, where presented, by clicking to accept them, including when you create an account, submit a membership application, or complete a membership purchase. Each click acceptance is recorded as described in Section 9.3. You also agree to our Privacy Policy, available on the Platform, which is incorporated into these Terms by reference. If you do not agree to these Terms, do not access or use the Platform.

1.3 These Terms replace the prior documents. As of the Effective Date, these Terms replace and supersede in their entirety (a) the Acquisition Lab Terms of Use with an effective date of May 1, 2026, and (b) the SearcherList Terms of Use with an effective date of February 2, 2026. The SearcherList platform has been retired and its features are now part of the Acquisition Lab Platform. If you previously used SearcherList, your account is now an Acquisition Lab account and these Terms govern your continued use.

1.4 One brand, multiple entities; who you are contracting with. The Acquisition Lab brand is operated by more than one legal entity. This Section explains which entity you are dealing with in each context:

• (a) These Terms and general platform services. Your agreement for access to the Platform, your account, membership services, and the general tools and content described in these Terms is with Acquisition Lab Ops LLC only. Acquisition Lab Ops LLC operates the Platform and the Acquisition Lab brand and owns or controls the platform technology. AL Marketplace, SHV Management, and SHV Fund I are not parties to these Terms and do not assume responsibility for the general Platform services.
• (b) Direct Deals. If you request access to a Direct Deal (defined in Section 35), you will be asked to enter into a separate Direct Deal Access Agreement (“DDAA”) for that specific deal with AL Marketplace LLC, a Delaware limited liability company and an affiliate of the Company (“AL Marketplace”). The DDAA is a separate agreement in addition to these Terms. AL Marketplace—not Acquisition Lab Ops LLC—is the counterparty for the Direct Deal access and any success fee described in the DDAA. AL Marketplace is not a party to these Terms, and Acquisition Lab Ops LLC is not a party to, does not collect any fee under, and does not assume obligations under any DDAA. Your account, User Content, and general Platform services remain governed by these Terms. Any success fee relating to a Direct Deal arises only under the applicable DDAA.
• (c) Capital submissions. If you submit a deal for potential investment consideration as described in Section 21, the submission is reviewed by the capital team at SHV Management LLC, an affiliate of the Company (“SHV Management” or the “Capital Team”). Any diligence materials requested after your initial submission are exchanged under the separate Capital Submissions NDA described in Section 21.2. SHV Management is not a party to these Terms, and these Terms do not create any obligation to invest or any advisory, fiduciary, or client relationship.
• (d) Fund co-investment. SHV Fund I LP (“SHV Fund I”), an affiliated fund, may, at a User’s request, evaluate a co-investment in a User’s deal, as described in Section 38. Participation is optional and documented separately with SHV Fund I. SHV Fund I is not a party to these Terms, and no co-investment relationship arises unless and until documented separately.

1.5 Eligibility. The Platform is available only to individuals who are at least 18 years old and have the legal capacity to enter into contracts. If you use the Platform on behalf of an entity, you represent that you are authorized to bind that entity, and “you” includes that entity.

1.6 Changes to the Platform. The Platform and its features may change over time. Subject to Part 3 with respect to the Program, we may add, modify, suspend, or discontinue any feature, tool, or resource at any time, with or without notice.

2. Definitions

The following terms have the meanings given below or in the Sections referenced. Other terms are defined where they first appear.

• “Aggregated Deal” means an on-market business listing compiled from publicly available or third-party sources, as described in Section 35.
• “AI Features” has the meaning given in Section 6.
• “Direct Deal” means an off-market business opportunity sourced by AL Marketplace, as described in Section 35.
• “Direct Deal Access Agreement” or “DDAA” means the separate per-deal agreement between a User and AL Marketplace described in Section 36.
• “Member” means a User enrolled in a paid Acquisition Lab membership, including the Program.
• “Plan Descriptions” has the meaning given in Section 4.1.
• “Platform User” means any person who accesses or uses the Platform, on any tier, including free tier users and Members.
• “Program” means the Acquisition Lab accelerator program and related membership offering described in Section 26.
• “Program Materials” has the meaning given in Section 29.1.
• “SHV Fund I” means SHV Fund I LP, as described in Section 1.4(d).
• “User Content” has the meaning given in Section 5.1.

3. Accounts

3.1 Registration; accuracy. To access certain features you must create an account. You agree to provide accurate, complete, and current information when creating your account and to keep it updated.

3.2 One account per person. Each account is personal to the individual who registers it. You may maintain only one account, and you may not share, sell, transfer, or make your account or any tier of access available to any other person.

3.3 Credential security. You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your login credentials and for all activity under your account. Notify us promptly at support@acquisitionlab.com of any unauthorized use of your account or any other breach of security.

3.4 Identity verification. We may require reasonable identity verification at any time to protect the security and integrity of the Platform, and we may suspend access pending verification.

4. Access Tiers

4.1 Tiers. The Platform offers tiers of access described on the plan and pricing pages published on the Platform, as updated from time to time (the “Plan Descriptions”). As of the Effective Date, the tiers include free Platform User access and paid membership. The features, deal visibility rules, eligibility requirements, and pricing of each tier are as stated in the Plan Descriptions in effect at the relevant time.

4.2 Tier changes. We may add, modify, or retire tiers or tier features by updating the Plan Descriptions. Changes to tiers or tier features are changes to the services, not amendments to these Terms, and do not require re-acceptance of these Terms. Section 16 governs amendments to these Terms themselves.

5. Your Content; License to the Company

5.1 User Content. “User Content” means the content, information, and materials you submit to or through the Platform, including buyer profile information, financial information (including information submitted through the PFS Tool described in Section 20), deal submissions, forum posts, messages, and other communications.

5.2 You own your content. You retain ownership of your User Content. These Terms do not transfer ownership of any User Content to the Company.

5.3 Limited license to the Company. You grant the Company a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to host, store, reproduce, adapt (solely as needed for formatting and display), display, and transmit your User Content solely as necessary to: (a) operate, maintain, secure, and improve the Platform; (b) provide the services you request, including sharing your User Content with persons you direct or authorize us to share it with; and (c) comply with applicable law. This license does not permit the Company to sell your User Content or to use it for third-party advertising.

5.4 Aggregated and de-identified data. Separately from Section 5.3, you grant the Company the right to create, use, and retain aggregated or de-identified data derived from User Content and Platform usage, meaning data that does not identify you or any other individual, for analytics, research, benchmarking, industry reporting, and content purposes.

5.5 Public postings. Content that you choose to post in areas of the Platform visible to other users, such as forum posts and profile fields you elect to share, is non-confidential to the extent so posted. You are responsible for what you choose to share and for the consequences of sharing it. Section 29 governs the confidentiality obligations of Members with respect to community content.

5.6 Feedback. Suggestions, ideas, and feedback you provide about the Platform are non-confidential, and the Company may use them without restriction or compensation.

5.7 Your responsibilities. You represent that you own or have the rights necessary to submit your User Content and that your User Content does not infringe or misappropriate the rights of any third party.

6. AI Features

6.1 AI Features. The Platform includes features that use artificial intelligence or machine learning to generate outputs, such as deal summaries, deal matching, and feedback on personal financial statements (collectively, “AI Features”). AI Features may be added, changed, or removed over time.

6.2 No reliance. Outputs of AI Features are generated automatically and may be inaccurate, incomplete, or outdated. They are provided for informational purposes only. They are not investment, legal, tax, accounting, or financial advice, and they are not a substitute for your own diligence or for advice from licensed professionals. You agree to independently verify any AI Feature output before relying on it or acting on it. The Company disclaims liability for reliance on AI Feature outputs to the extent stated in Sections 11 and 12.

6.3 Data use for AI improvement. We may use data to develop and improve AI Features only as follows: we train and improve models using aggregated or de-identified data, meaning data that does not identify you or any other individual. We do not use materials submitted under a non-disclosure agreement (including diligence materials exchanged under the separate NDA described in Section 21) to train models, and we do not train models on your User Content in identifiable form. Because this commitment excludes NDA-covered materials and identifiable User Content, the Company does not provide a separate opt-out for this limited AI training use. Our Privacy Policy contains additional information about how data is handled.

7. Prohibited Conduct

You agree that you will not:

• (a) provide false or misleading information, including misrepresenting your identity, financial capacity, experience, or acquisition intent;
• (b) impersonate any person or entity, or misrepresent your affiliation with any person or entity;
• (c) circumvent, disable, or otherwise interfere with any security feature or access control of the Platform, including tier restrictions and the Direct Deal access controls described in Part 5;
• (d) harvest, scrape, crawl, or otherwise use any automated means, bot, spider, or software to access the Platform or to extract, index, or compile data, content, or user information from the Platform;
• (e) collect or compile user data or contact information from the Platform for any purpose outside of good faith participation in the Platform;
• (f) transmit viruses, malware, or other malicious code, or take any action that imposes an unreasonable load on the Platform’s infrastructure;
• (g) send spam or other unsolicited commercial communications to users;
• (h) copy, modify, reverse engineer, decompile, or disassemble any portion of the Platform, or create derivative works from it, except to the extent this restriction is prohibited by law;
• (i) access or use the Platform to build a competing product or service, or copy its features or functions;
• (j) post or transmit content that is defamatory, harassing, obscene, or otherwise unlawful;
• (k) use deal information available on the Platform for any purpose other than evaluating the applicable opportunity for your own potential acquisition; or
• (l) use the Platform in violation of any applicable law or regulation.

We may investigate suspected violations and may remove content, restrict features, or suspend or terminate accounts as described in Section 14.

8. Intellectual Property; Copyright Notices

8.1 Company intellectual property. The Platform, including its design, logos, branding, software, databases, and all content created by or for the Company, is the property of the Company or its licensors and is protected by intellectual property laws. Subject to these Terms, the Company grants you a limited, revocable, non-exclusive, non-transferable license to access and use the Platform for its intended purposes. No other rights are granted. You may not use the Company’s trademarks, including “Acquisition Lab,” without our prior written authorization.

8.2 Copyright infringement notices. We respect intellectual property rights and expect users to do the same. If you believe that content on the Platform infringes your copyright, send a notice to our designated agent at support@acquisitionlab.com or by mail to [Company notice address], Attention: Copyright Agent. Your notice must include: (a) identification of the copyrighted work claimed to be infringed; (b) identification of the material claimed to be infringing and its location on the Platform; (c) your name, address, telephone number, and email address; (d) a statement that you have a good faith belief that the use is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; (e) a statement, under penalty of perjury, that the information in your notice is accurate and that you are the copyright owner or authorized to act on the owner’s behalf; and (f) your physical or electronic signature. We will respond to valid notices consistent with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, including removing or disabling access to the identified material where appropriate, and we may terminate the accounts of repeat infringers. If your content is removed and you believe the removal was a mistake, you may submit a counter-notice containing the information required by 17 USC 512(g)(3) to the same address.

9. Electronic Communications; Electronic Signatures

9.1 Electronic delivery. You consent to receive all communications, agreements, disclosures, and notices relating to the Platform electronically, by email to the address associated with your account or by posting on the Platform. You agree to keep your email address current. Electronic communications satisfy any legal requirement that a communication be in writing.

9.2 Electronic signature consent. You agree that clicking an acceptance button, checking a box, or typing your name in a signature field constitutes your electronic signature, with the same force and effect as a handwritten signature, consistent with the federal Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (ESIGN) and applicable versions of the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (UETA). You consent to transact electronically with the Company and its affiliates, including accepting these Terms, any Direct Deal Access Agreement, and any other agreement presented on the Platform. To access and retain electronic records you will need a device with an internet connection, a current web browser, an active email account, and software capable of viewing PDF files. You may request a paper copy of any electronic record, or withdraw your consent to electronic transactions, by contacting support@acquisitionlab.com; withdrawing consent may prevent continued use of the Platform.

9.3 Records of acceptance. The Company maintains records of electronic acceptance, including the accepted version of these Terms, a timestamp recording the date, time, and applicable time zone, the IP address, the user ID, and, where applicable, the account, application, purchase, or deal associated with the acceptance. You agree those records are admissible evidence of your agreement.

10. SMS / Text Messaging Program

10.1 Opt-in. By providing your mobile number and opting in, you consent to receive marketing and promotional text messages from Acquisition Lab Ops LLC dba Acquisition Lab. Consent to receive text messages is not a condition of any purchase.

10.2 Opting out. You can opt out at any time by replying STOP to any message. After you send STOP, we will send a confirmation message before you are unsubscribed. For help, reply HELP to any message or contact support@acquisitionlab.com.

10.3 Message frequency; rates. Message frequency varies and depends on your engagement. Message and data rates may apply for any messages sent to you from us and to us from you.

10.4 Carriers. Mobile carriers are not liable for delayed or undelivered messages.

10.5 Privacy. Information about how we handle mobile numbers and related data is set out in our Privacy Policy.

11. Disclaimers

11.1 Educational platform and community. The Platform, the Program, and all related content, tools, and communications are provided for general educational and informational purposes. Acquisition Lab is an educational platform and community for acquisition entrepreneurs.

11.2 Not a broker, adviser, lender, or law firm. The Company is not a business broker, real estate broker, securities broker or dealer, finder, investment adviser, lender, loan broker, or law firm, and is not your agent or fiduciary. The Company does not render investment, legal, tax, accounting, or financial advice; does not represent buyers or sellers; does not negotiate, structure, or close transactions on behalf of any user; does not hold or handle transaction funds; and does not recommend or endorse any particular acquisition opportunity, user, or third party. Nothing on the Platform, in the community forum, in any tool output, or in any communication from the Company, its staff, its coaches or advisors, or other users constitutes investment, legal, tax, or financial advice. You are solely responsible for independently evaluating any acquisition opportunity and should consult your own licensed legal, financial, tax, and other advisors.

11.3 Deal review and community feedback; advisors are independent contractors. A core part of the Platform and the Program is the ability to bring a potential acquisition to the community, to Company staff, and to the coaches and advisors made available through the Program, to stress-test assumptions and see the opportunity from other angles. All such feedback is educational peer feedback and general commentary only. It is not due diligence, and it is not investment, legal, tax, accounting, or financial advice. Neither the Company nor any staff member, coach, or advisor undertakes any duty to review any opportunity, to identify or catch any issue, risk, or defect, or to verify any information, and neither the Company nor any staff member, coach, or advisor will have any liability for feedback given or not given, for issues not identified, or for anything you do with the feedback you receive. Coaches and advisors made available through the Platform or the Program are independent contractors, not employees or agents of the Company, and they are not your advisers, fiduciaries, brokers, or representatives. You are solely responsible for your own due diligence and for your decisions, including whether to pursue, finance, or close any acquisition. The limitations of liability in Section 12 and the release in Section 13.2 apply to all such feedback.

11.4 No endorsement; no verification guarantee. The presence of any user, profile, or listing on the Platform is not an endorsement or recommendation by the Company. The Company does not undertake to verify the accuracy, completeness, or continued validity of information provided by users or third parties, including any user’s identity, financial capacity, or qualifications, or any listing information. Any designation indicating that information was reviewed reflects only that certain information was reviewed at a point in time, does not guarantee its accuracy, completeness, or continued validity, and may be revoked if information proves inaccurate or outdated. You are responsible for your own diligence on any person or opportunity you engage with through the Platform.

11.5 Third-party content and services. The Platform displays content sourced from third parties, including Aggregated Deals described in Section 35, and may provide access to third-party services, including lender partners and the entity formation service described in Section 24. The Company is not responsible for third-party content or services, does not verify them, and makes no representations about them. Your dealings with third parties are solely between you and the third party.

11.6 AS-IS. THE PLATFORM AND ALL CONTENT, TOOLS, AND SERVICES ARE PROVIDED ON AN “AS-IS” AND “AS-AVAILABLE” BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. THE COMPANY DOES NOT WARRANT THAT THE PLATFORM WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, ERROR-FREE, OR SECURE, OR THAT ANY INFORMATION ON THE PLATFORM IS ACCURATE, COMPLETE, OR CURRENT.

11.7 Scope. Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion of certain warranties, so some of the above exclusions may not apply to you. In that case, the exclusions apply to the fullest extent permitted by law.

12. Limitation of Liability

12.1 TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, THE COMPANY AND ITS AFFILIATES, AND THEIR RESPECTIVE OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, MANAGERS, EMPLOYEES, COACHES, ADVISORS, CONTRACTORS, AND AGENTS, WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR FOR ANY LOSS OF PROFITS, REVENUE, DATA, OR GOODWILL, ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THESE TERMS OR THE PLATFORM, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, THE COMPANY WILL HAVE NO LIABILITY FOR ANY LOSS OF BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY, FAILED ACQUISITION, OR “DEAL KILL” DAMAGES OF ANY KIND.

12.2 TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, THE TOTAL AGGREGATE LIABILITY OF THE COMPANY AND ITS AFFILIATES FOR ALL CLAIMS ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THESE TERMS OR THE PLATFORM WILL NOT EXCEED THE GREATER OF (A) ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS ($100) OR (B) THE AMOUNTS YOU PAID TO THE COMPANY IN THE TWELVE (12) MONTHS PRECEDING THE EVENT GIVING RISE TO THE CLAIM.

12.3 The limitations in this Section 12 apply regardless of the theory of liability and even if a limited remedy fails of its essential purpose, and they do not apply to liability that cannot be limited under applicable law.

13. Indemnification; Release of User-to-User Disputes

13.1 Indemnification. You will defend, indemnify, and hold harmless the Company and its affiliates (including AL Marketplace, SHV Management, and SHV Fund I), and their respective officers, directors, managers, principals, employees, coaches, advisors, contractors, and agents, from and against any claims, damages, losses, liabilities, costs, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) arising out of or relating to: (a) your material breach of these Terms; (b) your User Content; (c) your infringement or misappropriation of any third-party right; (d) your transactions, communications, or disputes with other users or third parties, including any actual or attempted business acquisition, but only to the extent a claim results from your breach of these Terms, your willful misconduct, or your violation of applicable law; or (e) your violation of applicable law in connection with your use of the Platform or User Content.

13.2 Release. The Platform enables interactions between independent users, including buyers, sellers, lenders, and other participants. If you have a dispute with another user or with any third party you engage through the Platform, you release the Company and its affiliates, and their respective officers, directors, managers, employees, coaches, advisors, contractors, and agents, from all claims, demands, and damages of every kind, known or unknown, arising out of or connected with that dispute. This release also extends to any claim arising out of feedback, commentary, or deal review you receive through the Platform or the Program, including from coaches and advisors, as described in Section 11.3. You waive the protections of any statute or common law rule that would otherwise limit this release to claims known at the time of agreeing to it.

14. Termination

14.1 By you. You may stop using the Platform at any time and may deactivate your account through your account settings or by contacting support@acquisitionlab.com.

14.2 By the Company. We may suspend or terminate your access to all or part of the Platform, with or without cause and with or without notice, including if we believe you have violated these Terms. Where practicable we will use reasonable efforts to notify you of the reason.

14.3 Effect of termination. Upon termination, your license to use the Platform ends. If the Company terminates your membership for a material violation of these Terms, no refund will be issued, as provided in Section 28.2. Otherwise, termination does not by itself affect refund rights or obligations under Section 28. Termination does not affect any Direct Deal Access Agreement, which remains governed by its own terms.

14.4 Survival. Sections and obligations that by their nature should survive termination do survive, including Sections 5.2 through 5.7 (with Section 5.3 surviving only to the extent necessary to retain or process User Content in accordance with these Terms and the Privacy Policy), 6.2, 6.3, 8, 9.3, 11, 12, 13, 15, 17, 25, 29, 31, 32, and 33. Sections 14.3 and 28.3 govern the effect of termination and refunds as stated in those Sections.

15. Governing Law; Dispute Resolution; Arbitration; Class Action Waiver

15.1 Governing law. These Terms and any dispute arising out of or relating to these Terms or the Platform are governed by the laws of the State of Delaware, without regard to its conflict of laws principles. The Federal Arbitration Act governs the interpretation and enforcement of the arbitration provisions of this Section 15.

15.2 Informal resolution first. Before filing an arbitration demand, you agree to first contact us at support@acquisitionlab.com with a written description of the dispute and give us thirty (30) days to attempt to resolve it. We will do the same before initiating arbitration against you.

15.3 Binding individual arbitration. EXCEPT AS PROVIDED IN SECTION 15.6, ALL DISPUTES BETWEEN YOU AND THE COMPANY ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THESE TERMS OR THE PLATFORM, WHETHER BASED IN CONTRACT, TORT, STATUTE, OR ANY OTHER LEGAL THEORY, WILL BE RESOLVED BY BINDING INDIVIDUAL ARBITRATION ADMINISTERED BY JAMS UNDER ITS STREAMLINED ARBITRATION RULES AND PROCEDURES THEN IN EFFECT AND, WHERE APPLICABLE, JAMS’S CONSUMER MINIMUM STANDARDS (COLLECTIVELY, THE “JAMS RULES”), AS MODIFIED BY THIS SECTION 15. YOU AND THE COMPANY EACH WAIVE THE RIGHT TO A TRIAL BY JURY AND THE RIGHT TO LITIGATE DISPUTES IN COURT, EXCEPT AS STATED IN SECTION 15.6. You may opt out of the arbitration and class action waiver by sending written notice to support@acquisitionlab.com within thirty (30) days after you first accept these Terms. The notice must include your full name, the email address associated with your account, and a clear statement that you opt out. An opt-out does not affect any other provision of these Terms or any arbitration agreement you separately accept.

15.4 Seat and procedure. The seat and legal place of the arbitration is Wilmington, Delaware. Hearings may be conducted remotely by videoconference, subject to the JAMS Rules and applicable law, and either party may request a remote hearing. Nothing in this Section limits any right you may have under applicable JAMS consumer standards or law to an in-person hearing or to a hearing in or near your residence. The arbitrator’s award will be final and binding, and judgment on the award may be entered in any court of competent jurisdiction. Unless applicable law or the JAMS Rules require otherwise, each party will bear its own attorneys’ fees and costs. The arbitrator may award reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs to the party prevailing on a claim or defense that the arbitrator determines was frivolous, brought in bad faith, or pursued for an improper purpose, to the extent permitted by law. For any claim seeking less than ten thousand dollars ($10,000), the Company will pay all JAMS filing, administration, and arbitrator fees, subject to any reallocation permitted by applicable law if the claim is determined to be frivolous, brought in bad faith, or pursued for an improper purpose.

15.5 Class action waiver. YOU AND THE COMPANY EACH AGREE THAT CLAIMS MAY BE BROUGHT ONLY IN AN INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY, AND NOT AS A PLAINTIFF OR CLASS MEMBER IN ANY PURPORTED CLASS, COLLECTIVE, CONSOLIDATED, OR REPRESENTATIVE PROCEEDING. The arbitrator may not consolidate claims of more than one person and may not preside over any form of class or representative proceeding. YOU KNOWINGLY AND VOLUNTARILY WAIVE THE RIGHT TO PARTICIPATE IN A CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT OR CLASS-WIDE ARBITRATION. If this class action waiver is found unenforceable as to a particular claim, that claim (and only that claim) must proceed in court, and the remainder of this Section 15 remains in effect.

15.6 Exceptions. Either party may (a) bring an individual claim in small claims court if the claim qualifies, and (b) seek injunctive or other equitable relief in a court of competent jurisdiction to protect intellectual property rights or to address unauthorized access to the Platform. For any claim that is not subject to arbitration, you and the Company consent to the exclusive jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in the State of Delaware and waive any objection to venue in those courts.

15.7 Survival. This Section 15 survives termination of these Terms and of your account.

16. Changes to These Terms

16.1 Updates. We may update these Terms from time to time. When we do, we will notify you by email to the address associated with your account and will post the updated Terms on the Platform with a new effective date.

16.2 Effectiveness. Changes that are not material take effect when posted. Material changes take effect no earlier than the effective date stated in the notice, which will be at least fifteen (15) days after notice is sent, except where an earlier date is required by law or is needed to address security, fraud, or legal compliance.

16.3 Re-acceptance for material marketplace changes. If we make a material change to the marketplace-related terms in Part 5 of these Terms, we will require you to re-accept the updated Terms through a click-through before you continue to use the affected marketplace features. For other changes, your continued use of the Platform after the stated effective date constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms. If you do not agree to an update, stop using the Platform and deactivate your account.

17. Miscellaneous

17.1 Entire agreement. These Terms, together with the Privacy Policy and the applicable Plan Descriptions, are the entire agreement between you and the Company regarding the Platform, and they supersede all prior agreements regarding the Platform, including the documents identified in Section 1.3. Each Direct Deal Access Agreement is a separate agreement between you and AL Marketplace and is not part of these Terms. Any separate written agreement you sign with the Company or an affiliate (for example, the enrollment documents described in Part 3 or the NDA described in Section 21) remains in effect according to its terms.

17.2 Severability; waiver. If any provision of these Terms is held invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions continue in full force. The failure of either party to exercise any right under these Terms is not a waiver of that right or of any other right.

17.3 Assignment. You may not assign these Terms or any rights under them. The Company may assign these Terms to an affiliate or in connection with a merger, acquisition, reorganization, or sale of assets.

17.4 No third-party beneficiaries. These Terms do not create rights in any third party, except that the Company’s affiliates (including AL Marketplace, SHV Management, and SHV Fund I) and the persons identified in Sections 11 through 13, including coaches and advisors, may enforce the protections of Sections 11, 12, and 13.

17.5 Force majeure. The Company is not liable for any delay or failure caused by events beyond its reasonable control.

17.6 Notices. Notices to the Company must be sent to support@acquisitionlab.com or to [Company notice address]. Notices to you may be sent to the email address associated with your account or posted on the Platform.

17.7 Headings; interpretation. Headings are for convenience only. “Including” means “including without limitation.”

18. Access Scope by Tier

18.1 Deal visibility. The deals and features visible to you depend on your access tier, as stated in the Plan Descriptions. As of the Effective Date, free tier Platform Users can view Aggregated Deals and those Direct Deal listings that have been listed for longer than the aging threshold stated in the Plan Descriptions, and Members receive the early access described in Section 37. The exact thresholds, timing rules, and tier features are stated in the Plan Descriptions, not in these Terms, and may change as described in Section 4.2.

18.2 No circumvention of tiers. You may not use another person’s account, automated tools, or any other means to access deals or features outside your tier.

19. Buyer Profiles

19.1 Private by default. Each buyer profile is assigned a unique, non-indexed link. Your profile is private by default and is visible only to individuals with whom you share your link.

19.2 Optional visibility settings. You may choose to make your profile more visible. The Platform offers optional settings to (a) make your profile discoverable by other users within the Platform, including sellers, and (b) make your profile fully public as a web page that can be found and indexed by search engines. These settings are off by default and you can change them at any time. If you revert to private, new discovery stops, but copies, links, or search engine caches created while your profile was public may persist for a time outside our control.

19.3 You control sharing. You decide whether and with whom to share your profile. Once you share a link or make your profile discoverable or public, recipients and viewers may view, save, or forward it, and previously shared links remain accessible until you deactivate the profile or the link. Consider carefully what you include in your profile before sharing it or making it visible.

19.4 Accuracy. Profile information must be truthful and accurate, including any representations of your financial capacity, experience, and acquisition goals.

20. Personal Financial Statement (PFS) Tool

20.1 The tool. The Platform includes a tool for preparing and maintaining a personal financial statement and related financing readiness outputs (the “PFS Tool”). Outputs of the PFS Tool are informational only. They are not financial advice, and they are not a commitment, prequalification, or guarantee of financing from anyone.

20.2 Sharing with lender partners. You may opt in to share your PFS data with participating lender partners. We will share your PFS data with a lender only at your election. Lender partners do not pay the Company per-referral compensation for these introductions. Some lender partners may also have a general commercial or sponsorship relationship with the Company that is independent of any particular introduction or referral. Any such relationship does not affect whether you may opt in, the information shared, or the terms of any relationship you form with a lender. Any relationship you form with a lender is solely between you and the lender.

20.3 Preapproval badge. If you elect to share your PFS data with a lender or other financing partner and that partner issues a preapproval letter, the Platform may display a preapproval badge on your buyer profile reflecting the partner’s preapproval, which may include the preapproval amount. You choose whether the badge is displayed on your profile or shared with others. The badge reflects a determination made by the issuing partner, not by the Company. The Company does not independently verify preapprovals, the badge is not a commitment to lend by anyone, and it reflects the partner’s assessment as of a point in time (Sections 11.4 and 11.5 apply).

20.4 Internal use. The Capital Team may review and use PFS data internally in connection with evaluating capital program fit and capital submissions, and the Company may use PFS-derived attributes internally as described in Section 23. Our Privacy Policy contains additional information.

21. Capital Submissions (All Users)

21.1 Submissions. The Platform allows you to submit a deal to the Capital Team (SHV Management LLC) for potential investment consideration. The capital program is available to Members and non-member Platform Users alike; membership is not required and does not affect the Capital Team’s evaluation.

21.2 Separate NDA. Diligence materials beyond your initial submission, such as tax returns and detailed financial statements, are exchanged under a separate mutual non-disclosure agreement presented to you at the point of submission for acceptance by you and SHV Management LLC (the “Capital Submissions NDA”), not under these Terms. The Capital Submissions NDA is a separate agreement, and its terms, not these Terms, govern the materials exchanged under it. The Capital Submissions NDA will identify SHV Management LLC as the contracting entity, extend its confidentiality protections to SHV Management LLC’s affiliates and their authorized representatives as stated in that NDA, and may be presented and accepted electronically. These Terms merely disclose that the NDA process exists.

21.3 No commitment; no advisory relationship. Submitting a deal does not create any obligation of the Company, SHV Management, SHV Fund I, or any affiliate to invest, and does not create any advisory, fiduciary, or client relationship.

22. Credit and Background Reports

In connection with evaluating capital submissions and related investment decisions, the Company or the Capital Team may seek consumer credit reports or background reports. Any such report will be obtained only with your separate written authorization, requested at the point of collection, as required by the Fair Credit Reporting Act and other applicable law. These Terms do not constitute that authorization and do not authorize anyone to obtain such a report about you. This Section discloses only that the program exists.

23. Internal Marketing and Program Fit

The Company may use Platform data, including PFS-derived attributes and usage data, internally to identify Users who may be a fit for Acquisition Lab programs, such as the EIR program and capital programs, and to communicate with those Users about those programs, subject to our Privacy Policy and your communication preferences. The Privacy Policy contains the full description of these practices.

24. Entity Setup Tool

24.1 How it works. The Platform includes a tool that collects the information required to form a business entity and passes that information to a third-party formation service. The formation itself is performed by the third-party service under its own terms of service, which govern the formation.

24.2 Not legal services. The Company is not a law firm and does not provide legal services or legal advice. Use of the entity setup tool does not create an attorney-client relationship with the Company or anyone else. Choice of entity, tax elections, and related decisions are your responsibility, in consultation with your own advisors. The Company is not responsible for the acts or omissions of the third-party formation service.

25. Transaction Reporting

For any acquisition of a business identified through the Platform, you agree to notify the Company within five (5) business days of the closing of the transaction, by email to support@acquisitionlab.com, including the name of the business acquired and the closing date. This obligation applies to all Platform Users and is in addition to, and does not replace, any reporting obligations in a Direct Deal Access Agreement or, for Members, the obligation in Section 32.

26. The Program

26.1 Description. Acquisition Lab is an educational accelerator and community designed to educate, support, and connect individuals pursuing small business acquisitions. The Program includes: (a) onboarding and training sessions; (b) access to the Acquisition Lab community forum for the duration of your active membership; (c) full Platform access as described in the Plan Descriptions, including the Direct Deal early access described in Section 37; and (d) access to such tools, resources, and educational materials as the Company makes available from time to time.

26.2 Changes to the Program. The Company reserves the right to modify, limit, or remove any tool, resource, or Program component at any time in its sole discretion. Section 28 governs refunds.

26.3 Virtual sessions; identity. To protect the security and integrity of virtual sessions, you agree to join all video conferences using your truthful and accurate legal name. The Company may, at its sole discretion, require participants to enable their camera or provide additional identity verification. Failure to comply with an identity verification request may result in removal from the session or suspension of services.

27. Fees

27.1 Membership fee. The fee for membership is a one-time fee as published on the Company’s website at the time of purchase. Fees are due at the time of purchase. Applicable taxes may be added where required by law.

27.2 Other offerings. If the Company introduces additional paid offerings or tiers, their fees and billing terms will be stated in the applicable Plan Descriptions at the time of purchase.

28. Refund Policy

28.1 30 days, no questions asked. You may request a refund of your membership fee for any reason, or for no reason, within thirty (30) days of your original purchase date. Send refund requests to support@acquisitionlab.com. Upon a timely request, the Company will issue a full refund of the membership fee without requiring you to explain or justify the request.

28.2 Limited exceptions: fraud, bad faith, or material violation after termination. The Company may deny a refund only where (a) it reasonably determines, based on objective evidence, that the purchase or refund request is fraudulent or made in bad faith, for example enrolling primarily to obtain and retain the Program Materials and then seeking a refund, or purchasing with unauthorized payment credentials, or (b) the Company has terminated your membership for a material violation of these Terms, including a material violation of the community standards in Section 30. Accessing, downloading, or using the Program or the Program Materials during the 30-day period is not, by itself, grounds for denial. The phrase “30 days, no questions asked” describes the refund right subject only to these limited exceptions.

28.3 Effect of a refund. If a refund is issued, your membership ends, your license to the Program Materials ends, and you must cease using and destroy any copies of Program Materials in your possession. Sections 29 through 33 survive.

28.4 After 30 days. No refunds will be given after thirty (30) days from the original date of purchase. After day 30, all payments are non-refundable.

28.5 Lifetime access programs. Even if you purchase a Program with lifetime access, the Company reserves the right to discontinue or modify such Program at its sole discretion. Discontinuation or modification of a Program after the 30-day refund period does not entitle you to a refund.

29. Program Materials; Confidentiality

29.1 Single-user license. The Company’s programs and materials are copyrighted. The original materials provided to you as a Member, including program and course materials, templates, tools, worksheets, and recordings (collectively, “Program Materials”), are licensed to you for your individual use only, under a single-user license. All intellectual property in the Program Materials remains the sole property of the Company. No license to sell, distribute, or share the Program Materials is granted or implied.

29.2 No sharing outside the membership. You may not share, post, publish, distribute, resell, or otherwise make available any Program Materials, session recordings, or community content (including forum posts and other information shared by Members in the community) to any person who is not an active Member, except as expressly permitted by the Enrollment NDA (defined below), such as sharing with your own advisors who are bound by its terms.

29.3 Community confidentiality. You acknowledge that the community forum may contain non-public financial information, personal acquisition strategies, and sensitive business information shared by other participants. You agree to hold all such information in strict confidence and not to disclose, reproduce, or use it for any purpose other than your participation in the Program.

29.4 Relationship to your enrollment NDA. As part of enrollment, Members sign a separate Mutual Non-Disclosure and Non-Circumvention Agreement with the Company (the “Enrollment NDA”). This Section supplements, and does not replace, the Enrollment NDA and any other separate confidentiality agreement between you and the Company. The Enrollment NDA governs disputes under that agreement; Section 15 governs disputes under these Terms. If a separate agreement imposes a stricter obligation, the stricter obligation controls.

29.5 Conflicts. You agree to notify the Company of any actual or potential conflict of interest relevant to your participation in the community, including engagements that compete with the Company or with other participants’ active pursuits, so it can be managed appropriately.

29.6 Survival. Your obligations under this Section 29 survive the end of your membership and the termination of these Terms.

30. Community Forum Standards

30.1 The Acquisition Lab community forum is a platform for acquisition entrepreneurs to discuss, share, and collaborate. As a condition of access, you agree to:

• (a) provide only truthful and accurate information, including honest representations of your financial capacity, experience, and acquisition goals;
• (b) refrain from posting content that is defamatory, harassing, obscene, or otherwise harmful to other participants;
• (c) refrain from soliciting participants for competing programs or services;
• (d) refrain from harvesting, scraping, or compiling participant data or contact information from the forum for any purpose outside of good faith participation; and
• (e) conduct yourself professionally and in good faith in all forum interactions.

30.2 The Company may remove any content from the forum and may suspend or terminate any participant’s forum access for violation of these standards, in the Company’s sole discretion. Membership fees remain governed by Section 28.

31. Persona Release (Members and Event Attendees Only)

31.1 Scope. This Section 31 applies only to Members and to individuals who attend Acquisition Lab events, workshops, or recorded sessions (“Event Attendees”). It does not apply to Platform Users who are neither Members nor Event Attendees.

31.2 Release. You understand that the Company, its affiliates, or authorized representatives may conduct interviews and capture photographs, audio recordings, and video during sessions and events. You grant the Company an irrevocable, royalty-free, worldwide, perpetual right to use your name, likeness, image, voice, biographical information, interview content, and other indicia of persona, in any manner or media now known or hereafter devised (including digital media, social platforms, and the internet), for program, promotional, and marketing purposes. To the fullest extent permitted by law, you waive any right to inspect or approve such uses, any claim to compensation, and any claims arising from such uses, including claims based on alteration or editing.

32. Acquisition Disclosure Obligation

32.1 If you successfully complete the acquisition of a business during your participation in the Program or within five (5) years following the conclusion of your participation, you agree to notify the Company in writing within thirty (30) days of the closing of the acquisition, by email to support@acquisitionlab.com.

32.2 The Company may use disclosed acquisition information for program analytics, case studies, and marketing purposes, subject to the confidentiality provisions of Section 29 and, where applicable, the persona release in Section 31.

32.3 Failure to notify does not void these Terms, but you acknowledge that this disclosure obligation is a material term of your membership. This Section is in addition to the reporting obligation in Section 25 and any reporting obligations in a Direct Deal Access Agreement.

33. Non-Solicitation; Non-Disparagement; Client Responsibility and Results Disclaimer

33.1 Non-solicitation. You will not specifically solicit for hire or for other business dealings the Company’s employees, coaches, or contractors whom you met through the Program, without the prior written consent of the Company’s CEO. Section 30 separately prohibits solicitation of participants for competing programs or services.

33.2 Non-disparagement. You agree not to make knowingly false or defamatory statements about the Company, the Program, or its staff. Nothing in this Section restricts you from making truthful statements, giving honest reviews or feedback (whether positive or negative), communicating with any government agency, or making statements required by law.

33.3 Client responsibility. You accept and agree that you are 100% responsible for your progress and results from the Program. The Company makes no representations, warranties, or guarantees, verbally or in writing, regarding your results.

33.4 Results and earnings disclaimer. There is no guarantee that you will earn any money, complete an acquisition, or be successful using the techniques and ideas presented in the Program. Examples and case studies are not a promise or guarantee of earnings or outcomes. Your results depend on many factors, including the time you devote to the Program, your finances, knowledge, skill, and market conditions.

34. Seller Accounts

34.1 Applicability; scope of this Part. This Part 4 applies to any User who registers or uses a seller account on the Platform (a “Seller”), in addition to Parts 1 and 2. This Part governs only the Seller’s user account and use of the Platform. The terms of listing and selling a business through the marketplace, including the Seller’s representations about the business, authority to sell, marketing authorization, and all seller economics, are set out in a separate seller agreement with AL Marketplace LLC that Sellers sign, not in these Terms.

34.2 Accuracy. All information a Seller provides through the Platform must be truthful, accurate, and not misleading, and Sellers must promptly update information that becomes inaccurate.

34.3 Confidentiality of buyer information. A Seller will hold in confidence the identities, profiles, and financial information of prospective buyers received through the Platform, and will use that information only to evaluate the potential transaction.

34.4 No guarantee of sale. The Company does not guarantee that any listing will receive exposure, inquiries, or offers, or that any business will sell.

34.5 Not the Seller’s broker or agent. The Company is not a broker for, or an agent or representative of, any Seller, owes no fiduciary duties to any Seller, and does not negotiate on any Seller’s behalf.

35. Deal Types

35.1 Two types of listings. The marketplace displays two types of deal listings, and every listing is tagged with its type:

• (a) “Aggregated Deals” are on-market listings compiled from publicly available sources and third-party feeds. Aggregated Deals are third-party content presented for your convenience. Neither the Company nor AL Marketplace has any relationship with the seller of an Aggregated Deal, any role in the transaction, or any right to compensation on an Aggregated Deal. No fee of any kind is charged in connection with Aggregated Deals. The Company does not verify Aggregated Deal information, which may be inaccurate, incomplete, outdated, or withdrawn. You must verify all information about an Aggregated Deal with the original listing source, including the listing broker or seller, before relying on it.
• (b) “Direct Deals” are off-market opportunities sourced by AL Marketplace LLC.

35.2 No advice; no endorsement. The presentation of any deal listing is not a recommendation or endorsement, and Section 11 applies to all marketplace content.

36. Direct Deal Access; Per-Deal Agreement; Fee Disclosure

36.1 Per-deal agreement required. Before the details of any Direct Deal are released to you, you must accept a Direct Deal Access Agreement with AL Marketplace for that specific deal. The DDAA is presented electronically and is accepted per deal.

36.2 Buyer-paid success fee. Each Direct Deal carries a buyer-paid success fee payable to AL Marketplace if you (or a party acting with or through you) acquire the target business. The fee formula, any minimum fee, and the deal-specific terms are disclosed in the DDAA before you accept it. No success fee arises under these Terms, and the Company is not a party to, and does not collect any fee under, any DDAA. If you do not accept the DDAA for a Direct Deal, you will not receive that deal’s details and no fee obligation arises.

36.3 Information sharing. When you request access to a Direct Deal, you direct the Company to share with AL Marketplace the account and profile information reasonably needed to administer your DDAA and your access to that deal, as described in the Privacy Policy.

36.4 Relationship between documents. Your DDAA governs your rights and obligations for the specific Direct Deal it covers. These Terms continue to govern your use of the Platform generally. If a DDAA conflicts with these Terms with respect to that deal, the DDAA controls for that deal.

37. Member Early Access

Members receive early access to newly listed Direct Deals before they become visible to other tiers, as described in the Plan Descriptions. The success fee for any Direct Deal is the same for Members and non-members. Membership does not change, and is not consideration for, any fee under any DDAA.

38. Fund Co-Investment Disclosure

SHV Fund I may, at a User’s request, evaluate a minority co-investment in a deal the User is pursuing. Participation is entirely optional, is initiated by the User, and is documented separately with the fund. Whether or not SHV Fund I participates has no effect on any success fee under any DDAA, which is neither contingent on nor modified by fund participation, and no effect on your access to the Platform.

39. Contact

Questions about these Terms may be directed to support@acquisitionlab.com.