Welcome to The Charlotte Mercury. By reading, subscribing, or even doomscrolling on our site, you agree to these terms. We keep them short on top for humans, but we’ve tucked the legal armor down below because lawyers like to sleep at night.
The Human-Friendly Version
1. You Own Your Attention
You choose what to read. No clickbait traps, no autoplay videos. If you’re here, it’s because you want to be. That’s the deal.
2. We Own Our Work (and License It… Sort Of)
Our journalism is released under a Creative Commons Attribution–NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-ND 4.0).
- Share it freely, even commercially.
- Credit us and link back.
- Don’t remix or mangle it without permission.
Third-party content (photos, ads, wire copy) may not be covered under this license.
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4. We’re Not Your Lawyer, Doctor, or Investment Advisor
Our coverage of zoning meetings may change your outlook on life, but it’s not legal, medical, or financial advice. Treat it accordingly.
5. Subscriptions and Emails
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The Lawyer-Friendly Version
Governing Law and Venue
These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of North Carolina. Any disputes must be filed in state or federal courts located in Mecklenburg County, NC. Yes, you’ll have to come to Charlotte.
Limitation of Liability
The Charlotte Mercury provides content “as is” with no warranties of any kind. We disclaim all implied warranties, including merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement. We are not liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, consequential, or punitive damages arising from your use of the site. Translation: if you make a terrible life choice based on a joke in our newsletter, that’s on you.
Indemnification
You agree to indemnify and hold harmless Mercury Local, LLC, its officers, employees, and contributors from any claims, damages, liabilities, costs, or expenses arising from your misuse of the site, violation of these Terms, or infringement of others’ rights.
User Conduct
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We may suspend or terminate access at any time for violations.
Termination and Modification
We may modify or discontinue the site, or these Terms, at any time without notice. If you keep using the site after changes, that means you accept the new Terms.
Age Restrictions
This site is intended for users 13 and older. If you’re under 13, come back after a birthday or two.
Severability
If a court finds part of these Terms unenforceable, the rest still applies. No domino effect.
Entire Agreement
These Terms are the entire agreement between you and Mercury Local, LLC regarding use of the site, and they supersede any prior understandings.
Contact Us
Mercury Local, LLC
520B North Poplar
Charlotte, NC 28202
📧 legal@cltmercury.com
Licensing
All original content on The Charlotte Mercury is licensed under:
Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-ND 4.0)
You may share our work with credit, but you may not remix or alter it. Full license text: CC BY-ND 4.0
Bottom line: Read, share, and talk about our journalism. Don’t vandalize it, don’t weaponize it, and don’t sue us when you realize zoning policy is more complicated than TikTok told you.