Legal statement

1. About EY

EY is a global leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services. The insights and quality services we deliver help build trust and confidence in the capital markets and in economies the world over. We develop outstanding leaders who team to deliver on our promises to all of our stakeholders. In so doing, we play a critical role in building a better working world for our people, for our clients and for our communities.

“EY” in this legal statement refers to the global organization of member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited (“EYG”), each of which is a separate legal entity. EYG, a UK company limited by guarantee, does not provide services to clients.

The EY network is divided into three areas: Americas, EMEIA and Asia Pacific.

Americas
The member firms of EYG operating in North, Central and South America, as well as Ernst & Young (Israel) Ltd. (the “Americas Area Firms”), are separate and independent legal entities that are, directly or indirectly, members of Ernst & Young Americas LLC.

Ernst & Young Americas LLC is a Delaware limited liability company that coordinates the activities of the Americas Area Firms. It does not provide professional services to clients and does not participate in client engagements. Although Ernst & Young Americas LLC oversees implementation of EYG policies at Americas Area Firms and facilitates their cooperation, it does not control or manage, or have any ownership interest in, any Americas Area Firm. Ernst & Young Americas LLC is not the agent of any Americas Area Firm, nor does it have any authority to represent or bind any thereof. No Americas Area Firm is the agent of Ernst & Young Americas LLC, nor may any of them represent or bind Ernst & Young Americas LLC in any way.

EMEIA 
The member firms of EYG that operate in Europe, the Middle East, India and Africa (the “EMEIA Firms”) are separate and independent legal entities and are in part, directly or indirectly, members of Ernst & Young EMEIA Limited.

Ernst & Young EMEIA Limited is an English company limited by guarantee and is the principal governance entity in EMEIA for the EMEIA Firms. Ernst & Young EMEIA Limited does not carry on any trade or other activities with a view to profit and it is prohibited by its constitution from providing professional services. Accordingly, it does not participate in client engagements. Furthermore, although it facilitates the coordination of these firms and cooperation between them, Ernst & Young EMEIA Limited does not control or manage or have any ownership interest in any EMEIA Firm. Ernst & Young EMEIA Limited does not act as agent for or have any authority to represent or bind any EMEIA Firm and no EMEIA Firm acts as agent for or has any authority to represent or bind Ernst & Young EMEIA Limited.

EY Europe SCRL is a Belgian limited liability company, a member of EYG and the parent entity of certain EMEIA Firms in Europe. Ernst & Young Europe LLP is an English limited liability partnership, a member of EYG and Ernst & Young EMEIA Limited and the parent entity of certain other EMEIA Firms in Europe. Neither EY Europe SCRL nor Ernst & Young Europe LLP provide professional services or participate in client engagements. Although each of them is the parent entity of certain EMEIA Firms, neither EY Europe SCRL nor Ernst & Young Europe LLP act as agent for or have any authority to represent or bind any EMEIA Firm or Ernst & Young EMEIA Limited, and neither Ernst & Young EMEIA Limited nor any EMEIA Firm acts as agent for or has any authority to represent or bind EY Europe SCRL or Ernst & Young Europe LLP.

Asia-Pacific 
The member firms of EYG that operate in Asia-Pacific (the “Asia-Pacific Firms”) are separate and independent legal entities and are, or will be, directly or indirectly, members of Ernst & Young Asia-Pacific Limited.

Ernst & Young Asia-Pacific Limited is a Hong Kong company limited by guarantee and is the principal governance entity in Asia-Pacific for the Asia-Pacific Firms. Ernst & Young Asia-Pacific Limited does not carry on any trade or other activities with a view to profit and it is prohibited by its constitution from providing professional services. Accordingly, it does not participate in client engagements. Furthermore, although it facilitates the coordination of these firms and cooperation between them, Ernst & Young Asia-Pacific Limited does not control or manage or have any ownership interest in any Asia-Pacific Firm. Ernst & Young Asia-Pacific Limited does not act as agent for or have any authority to represent or bind any Asia-Pacific Firm, and no Asia-Pacific Firm acts as agent for or has any authority to represent or bind Ernst & Young Asia-Pacific Limited.

2. The “ey.com” web site

The “ey.com” Web site (this “Site”) is comprised of global content, which relates to the international business and operations of EY, and individual country content, which relates to the local business and operations of a member firm.

The global content on the Site is owned and operated by EYGM Limited ("EYGM"). EYGM Limited is a limited liability company registered in the Bahamas and is a member firm of EYG. EYGM is a central coordinating entity and does not provide services to clients.

The relevant local member firm(s) owns and operates the local content on the individual country pages.

3.  Legal Disclaimer

By using this Site, you are agreeing to be bound by the following terms and conditions. The information on this Site is intended to furnish users with general information on matters that they may find to be of interest. While every effort has been made to offer current and accurate information, errors can occur. Furthermore, this Site may contain references to certain laws and regulations. Laws and regulations will change over time and should be interpreted only in light of particular circumstances.

EY DISCLAIMS ALL LIABILITY AND RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANY ERRORS OR OMISSIONS IN THE CONTENT CONTAINED ON THIS SITE.

All content on the Site and all services provided through it are provided "as is", with no guarantees of completeness, accuracy or timeliness, and without representations, warranties or other contractual terms of any kind, express or implied. EY does not represent or warrant that this Site, the various services provided through this Site, and / or any information, software or other material downloaded from this Site, will be accurate, current, uninterrupted, error-free, omission-free or free of viruses or other harmful components.

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMISSIBLE PURSUANT TO APPLICABLE LAW, EY DISCLAIMS ALL LIABILITY TO YOU AND EVERYONE ELSE IN RESPECT OF THE CONTENT ON THIS SITE AND ALL SERVICES PROVIDED THROUGH IT, WHETHER UNDER ANY THEORY OF TORT, CONTRACT, WARRANTY, STRICT LIABILITY OR NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE, AND WHETHER IN RESPECT OF DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, SPECIAL, PUNITIVE OR SIMILAR DAMAGES, EVEN IF EY WAS ADVISED, KNEW OR SHOULD HAVE KNOWN OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

The information presented on this Site should not be construed as legal, tax, accounting or any other professional advice or service. You should consult with an EY or other professional advisor familiar with your particular factual situation for advice concerning specific tax or other matters before making any decision. You should not send any confidential information to any member firm of EYG until you have received agreement from the firm to perform the services you request.

RSS Feeds, Podcasting and eMail Updates – Terms of Use
RSS feeds, podcasting and email updates are free services offered by certain EY member firms to individuals for private, non-commercial use. The EY RSS feed is a means by which EY offers article headlines, descriptions and links in XML to individuals who use RSS readers or aggregators. A podcast is an audio program for which individuals can subscribe. EY makes podcasts available to individuals for their own personal use. RSS, podcasting and email update aggregators may incorporate the EY feeds into their directories for the benefit of individuals using the aggregator. Any other use is prohibited, including copying, reproducing, republishing, uploading, posting, transmitting, or distributing our feeds or podcasts in any way by any means.

EY reserves the right to discontinue our feeds, podcasts and email updates at any time. All content, imagery, and logos that appear within the EY RSS feed, podcasts and email updates are owned by EYGN Limited (“EYGN”) and all rights are reserved. EYGN is a member firm of EYG. EYGN is a central coordinating entity and does not provide services to clients.

Linking
You may link to this Site provided that such link does not involve:

• unauthorized use of our logo;
• any false claim (actual or implied) of endorsement by, or other relationship with, EY or local member firm(s);
• framing or embedding of any pages of our Site; or
• other infringement of our trademarks, copyright and/or other intellectual property rights

 EY does not bear any responsibility whatsoever for the content, accuracy or security of any websites that are linked (by way of hyperlink or otherwise) to this website.

Certain links on this Site lead to servers maintained by individuals or organizations over which EY has no control. EY makes no representations or warranties regarding the accuracy or any other aspect of the information located on such servers. A link to a third party’s website should not be construed as an endorsement by either EY or that third party of the other or its products and services.

Copyright Notice

Except where noted otherwise, all material on the global portion of the Site is Copyright © EYGM Limited, and on the individual country sites, local material is Copyright © to the relevant member firm(s). All rights reserved. No part of the materials on this Site, including but not limited to the text, graphics and html code, may be reproduced or transmitted in any form, or by any means without EYGM's written permission or, in respect of local content on an individual country site, the written permission of the relevant member firm(s). 

“EY” and the stylised EY symbol are registered or pending registration with the US Patent and Trademark Office or other trademark offices around the world.

Audit Firm Governance Code
EY welcomes the publication of the UK’s Audit Firm Governance Code. Issued by the UK Financial Reporting Council and The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, the Code provides us with the opportunity to bolster the public’s confidence in the quality of our organisation and the services we provide.