Terms & Conditions

1. Definitions

• Agreement — these Terms & Conditions, together with any written engagement letter or scope document agreed between the parties.
• Client / You — the individual or entity that commissions services from Vellum Row.
• Engagement — a specific, agreed service commissioned from Vellum Row, described in a scope document and/or invoice.
• Services — the estate records services offered by Vellum Row, including heirloom cataloguing, records consolidation, and family archive custodianship, as described on our website and in engagement documents.
• We / Us / Our — Vellum Row, operating from Level 3, Wisma Bukit Mata, Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman, 93100 Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia.
• Work Product — catalogues, indexes, scanned files, reports, protocols, and other documents produced by Vellum Row in the course of an engagement.

2. Acceptance of Terms

By using this website or commissioning services from Vellum Row, you confirm that you are at least 18 years of age and have the legal capacity to enter into binding agreements. If you are acting on behalf of an entity, you confirm that you have authority to bind that entity to this Agreement.

Commissioning an engagement — whether by signing a scope document, accepting an invoice, or instructing us in writing to begin work — constitutes acceptance of these terms.

3. Description and Scope of Services

Vellum Row provides descriptive and organisational estate records services only. Our services involve the physical cataloguing of personal effects, the gathering, sorting, scanning and indexing of documents, and the ongoing maintenance of family archives.

We do not provide legal advice, financial advice, property valuation, investment guidance, or any professional service requiring a regulated practising licence under Malaysian law. Nothing in our work product constitutes legal opinion, financial opinion, or professional advice of any kind. Clients who need regulated professional services should engage appropriately qualified practitioners independently.

Services are available primarily to clients with assets or records located in Sarawak, Malaysia. Requests from clients based elsewhere are considered on a case-by-case basis.

4. Client Responsibilities

• Provide accurate information about the items and documents in scope for the engagement.
• Ensure that Vellum Row has lawful authority to handle the documents and effects presented. By commissioning an engagement, the client represents that they have the right to submit the relevant materials for handling.
• Make items and documents available at agreed times and locations.
• Review any draft deliverables within the period stated in the engagement document and provide corrections within that period.
• Not present materials that are subject to court order, freezing order, or other legal restriction without disclosing that restriction at the outset.

5. Intellectual Property

Work Product produced by Vellum Row during an engagement is provided to the client upon payment in full. The client may use, copy and share the Work Product without restriction for their own purposes.

The content of the Vellum Row website — including text, layout and design — remains the property of Vellum Row and may not be reproduced or redistributed without our written consent.

Documents and items provided by the client remain the property of the client at all times. Vellum Row does not claim any interest in client-owned materials.

6. Payment Terms

Fees are stated in Malaysian Ringgit (RM) and are as published on our website or as agreed in a written engagement document. All fees are subject to applicable Malaysian taxes where required by law.

• Deposit — a deposit of 50% of the engagement fee is required before work commences.
• Balance — the remaining 50% is due upon notification that the Work Product is ready for handover.
• Custodianship — the annual custodianship fee is invoiced at the start of each programme year. The fee for year one is due before the programme commences.

If a client cancels an engagement after work has commenced, the deposit is non-refundable. Where more than 50% of the engagement has been completed at the point of cancellation, the full fee becomes payable. We will provide an itemised account of work completed to date.

7. Service Delivery Terms

• Engagement durations are indicative. The Heirloom Cataloguing engagement typically runs one to two weeks; the Records Consolidation engagement runs ten weeks; and the Custodianship Programme runs twelve months from enrolment. We will notify the client if circumstances cause a material variation to the timeline.
• Changes to scope after an engagement begins will be discussed and agreed in writing before any additional work is undertaken. Additional scope may result in a revised fee and timeline.
• Work Product is delivered at a handover meeting, either in person or, where the client is based remotely, by agreed means. Digital deliverables are provided on two separate media.
• Original documents and physical items are returned to the client at handover. We do not retain originals beyond the engagement period.

8. Disclaimers

Our services are descriptive and organisational in nature. We do not warrant that a completed archive, catalogue or index will satisfy any particular legal, regulatory or institutional requirement. Clients are responsible for verifying whether any Work Product meets the specific requirements of any institution, authority or process to which it will be presented.

This website and its contents are provided on an "as is" basis. We make reasonable efforts to keep information accurate but do not warrant the completeness or currency of any information published here.

9. Limitation of Liability

To the extent permitted by Malaysian law, Vellum Row's total liability to a client in connection with an engagement is limited to the fees paid by that client for the specific engagement in which the loss arose.

We are not liable for indirect, consequential or incidental loss, including loss of opportunity, loss of expected outcome from any legal or administrative process, or damage to documents caused by conditions beyond our control during transit between agreed collection and return points.

Nothing in these terms excludes liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, or any other liability that cannot be excluded under Malaysian law.

10. Confidentiality

We treat all client documents, correspondence and information as confidential. We will not disclose client information to any third party except as required by law or as explicitly authorised in writing by the client. Team members are bound by confidentiality obligations in connection with client work.

11. Indemnification

The client agrees to indemnify Vellum Row against claims, losses or costs arising from the client's misrepresentation of authority over submitted materials, the client's failure to disclose a legal restriction applying to submitted materials, or the client's use of Work Product in a manner that breaches any applicable law.

12. Termination

Either party may terminate an engagement with 14 days' written notice. In the event of termination, the client is liable for fees corresponding to the proportion of the engagement completed at the date notice is received, with a minimum liability of the deposit paid.

Vellum Row may terminate an engagement with immediate effect if the client provides materially false information, if continued engagement would require Vellum Row to act outside its stated scope, or if payment obligations are not met within 14 days of a written reminder.

13. Dispute Resolution and Governing Law

These terms are governed by the laws of Malaysia. Both parties agree to attempt to resolve any dispute informally by written communication in the first instance, with a period of 30 days for informal resolution before any formal process is commenced.

Where informal resolution is not achieved, disputes will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Sarawak, Malaysia.

14. General Provisions

• Entire agreement — these terms, together with any written engagement document, constitute the entire agreement between the parties in respect of the relevant engagement.
• Severability — if any provision of these terms is found unenforceable, the remaining provisions continue in full force.
• Waiver — failure to enforce any provision on a particular occasion does not constitute waiver of that provision.
• Assignment — the client may not assign rights or obligations under an engagement without our prior written consent.
• Notices — formal notices under these terms should be sent in writing to the addresses stated in the engagement document, or by email to [email protected].

15. Changes to These Terms

We may update these terms from time to time. An updated "Last Updated" date at the top of this page indicates a revision. Changes apply to engagements commenced after the effective date of the revision. Engagements in progress at the date of revision continue under the terms in force when they were commissioned, unless both parties agree in writing to apply the revised terms.