General Terms and Conditions (GTC)

General Terms and Conditions

for the provision of services by

Christian von Baumbach

Chausseestr. 104, 10115 Berlin

(hereinafter referred to as "Contractor") to his clients (hereinafter referred to as "Client")

Last update: 22 September 2026 (version 2)

1. General Provisions

1.1 These General Terms and Conditions (GTC) for the provision of services apply to contracts concluded between the Client and the Contractor incorporating these GTC.

1.2 The Contractor is entitled to assign the required services in his own name and at his own expense to subcontractors, who in turn may also engage subcontractors. In such cases, the Contractor remains the sole contractual partner of the Client. Subcontractors will not be used if it is evident to the Contractor that their use would conflict with the legitimate interests of the Client.

1.3 If, in addition to these GTC, other contractual documents or terms and conditions in text or written form become part of the contract, the provisions of these other contractual documents shall take precedence in the event of a conflict.

1.4 The Contractor does not recognise terms and conditions deviating from these GTC, used by the Client, unless expressly agreed otherwise.

2. Subject Matter and Scope of Services

2.1 The Contractor provides the following services to the Client as an independent entrepreneur:

Mediation

Christian von Baumbach offers mediation services for individuals, couples, families, as well as organisations and companies. The goal of mediation is to achieve amicable conflict resolution that takes into account the interests and needs of all parties involved. Mediation can be conducted in German, English, or Japanese and can take place in person or online.

The framework conditions for mediation are jointly established at the outset. Responsibility for decisions and implementation of the results achieved lies with the parties to the conflict.

Supervision

Christian von Baumbach offers individual, team, and case supervision. The aim of supervision is to reflect on professional issues, support the development of professional competencies, and improve collaboration and job satisfaction within teams.

Training and further education

Christian von Baumbach conducts training, workshops, and seminars in the fields of mediation, communication, conflict management, and intercultural competence. These can be delivered in German, English, or Japanese and tailored to the needs of organisations and groups.

The content, scope, location, and target audience of the training sessions are agreed upon with the Client in advance. The training can be conducted either in person or online.

Facilitation

Christian von Baumbach offers facilitation services for events, workshops, meetings, and other formats requiring structured and outcome-oriented facilitation. The aim is to promote dialogue among participants, facilitate the exchange of ideas, and collaboratively develop sustainable solutions or outcomes.

Facilitation can be conducted in German, English, or Japanese, and is available for both in-person and online formats. Content and goals are agreed upon with the Client in advance.

Typical areas of application include:

Workshops for developing concepts, strategies, or projects.
Team meetings to promote collaboration or resolve conflicts.
Conferences and events to ensure a structured process and productive exchange.

Online Services

All services can be conducted via a secure online platform upon request. This requires a stable internet connection as well as a functioning microphone and camera on the part of the participants.

Exclusion of Success Guarantee

Christian von Baumbach provides his expertise, methods, and tools within the framework of the aforementioned services. A specific success (e.g., complete conflict resolution, improvement of the professional situation, learning success) is expressly not guaranteed. Active participation and individual responsibility of the parties involved are essential components of the process.

2.2 The specific scope of services is subject to individual agreements between the Contractor and the Client.

2.3 The Contractor provides the agreed services with the utmost care and diligence, based on the latest standards, rules, and knowledge.

2.4 The Contractor is obliged to deliver the contractually agreed services. However, the Contractor is not subject to instructions regarding the manner, location, or timing of service delivery. Nonetheless, the Contractor will organise the workdays and schedules to ensure optimal efficiency in the performance of duties and the realisation of the contract's objectives. Service delivery will take place in consultation and coordination with the Client.

3. Client's Duties to Cooperate

The Client is responsible for providing complete and accurate information, data, and other content necessary for the fulfilment of the service. The Contractor is not liable for delays in service provision resulting from the Client's late or incomplete cooperation. The provisions under "Liability/Indemnification" remain unaffected.

4. Remuneration

4.1 The fee is calculated on the basis of an hourly rate of 220.00 euros per hour (60 minutes), plus statutory VAT where applicable (for services subject to German VAT currently 19%, i.e. 261.80 euros gross). The duration and number of sessions are agreed in text form in advance; the agreed time also includes the necessary preparation and follow-up work (in particular documentation and correspondence) performed by the Contractor. The resulting fee is owed regardless of the time actually used; if a session ends before the agreed time has elapsed, no claim to a pro-rata reduction arises. The crediting rule in 5.1 applies accordingly.

4.2 If the actual time of a session exceeds the agreed schedule by more than 30 minutes, the Contractor reserves the right to bill the additional time on a pro-rata basis based on the hourly rate specified in 4.1. The parties will be informed as soon as it becomes foreseeable that the agreed timeframe will be exceeded.

4.3 Travel, accommodation and other expenses as well as room costs are not included in the fee under 4.1. No such costs arise for sessions with up to five people at the Contractor's office (address as stated in the heading of these GTC) or for online sessions. Room costs arise only where the Contractor additionally rents rooms for a session, for example for larger groups or at another location. Where the Client provides the rooms, no room costs arise. The Client reimburses these costs only if their assumption has been agreed in text form before the service is provided; the agreement specifies the type of costs and, where possible, their expected amount. The Client reimburses the costs actually incurred; the Contractor provides proof of them and encloses copies of the receipts with the invoice. The Contractor charges the costs at the proven net amounts plus statutory VAT where applicable.

4.4 Payment is due after services are rendered. If remuneration is based on time periods, payment is due after each period (§ 614 BGB). For effort-based billing, the Contractor may, unless otherwise agreed, issue monthly invoices for services rendered.

4.5 The Contractor will issue an invoice to the Client by mail or email (e.g., as a PDF); where there are several Clients, 4.9 applies. Payment is due within 14 days of receipt of the invoice.

4.6 The Contractor reserves the right to require advance payment for all services. The amount of the advance payment will be determined as part of the appointment scheduling or specified in the offer. Payment must be made no later than the date stated on the invoice. If advance payment is agreed upon, receipt of payment is a prerequisite for the provision of the service. If payment is not received on time, the Contractor reserves the right to unilaterally cancel the appointment or service. Where there are several Clients, each makes the advance payment in the amount of their share under 4.7; receipt of all shares is a prerequisite for the provision of the service. If the Contractor cancels an appointment because a share has not been received on time, payments already made for that appointment will be refunded less the costs under 4.3 incurred by the time of cancellation that can no longer be reversed, to the extent that the paying Client is liable for them under 4.7 and 4.8; 5.3 sentence 3 applies accordingly. As between the Clients, these costs are borne by the Client whose share was not received.

4.7 If several persons or organisations involved in a process commission the Contractor, these Clients bear the fee and the costs agreed under 4.3 in equal shares, unless otherwise agreed (4.10). This also applies to individual sessions that the Contractor holds with individual participants as part of the process, regardless of with whom and for how long they take place.

4.8 If several Clients commission the Contractor jointly, each in their own name, they are jointly and severally liable for the fee and the costs under 4.3 (§ 421 BGB). The Contractor may then demand payment in full or in part from any of the Clients, but only once in total. As between the Clients, the allocation under 4.7 continues to apply. If each Client concludes a separate contract for their own share, they owe only that share. Participants who have not themselves commissioned the Contractor, such as employees whose employer has commissioned the process, owe no remuneration.

4.9 Where there are several Clients, the Contractor issues each Client a separate invoice for their share under 4.7. Separate invoicing does not affect joint and several liability under 4.8. The Contractor will only claim another Client's share from a Client once that share is due and has not been paid within 14 days of a reminder; the Contractor will notify the Client concerned of this in text form.

4.10 In individual cases, the Clients may agree with the Contractor on a different allocation, or on one Client or a third party bearing the costs in full or in part. Such an agreement is recorded in text form and takes precedence over 4.7 to 4.9.

5. Cancellation and Rescheduling

5.1 Changes or cancellations by the Client: Cancellations or rescheduling of appointments incur no cancellation fee up to 48 hours before the scheduled appointment. For cancellations between 24 and 48 hours before the appointment, the Contractor reserves the right to charge 50% of the fee. For cancellations less than 24 hours before the appointment or in case of no-show without prior notice, the full fee will be charged. The Client is entitled to prove that the Contractor has suffered no loss or a significantly lower loss; expenses saved and anything the Contractor earns by making other use of his services will be credited. Cancellations may be made by email or phone. The decisive factor is the time the notification is received.

5.2 Changes or cancellations by the Contractor: The Contractor reserves the right to reschedule or cancel appointments for important reasons (e.g., illness, force majeure, or unforeseen scheduling conflicts). In such cases, the Client will be informed immediately, and a replacement appointment will be arranged in consultation with the Client. If no replacement appointment is possible, any payments made for the planned session will be fully refunded. Further claims, particularly for damages, are excluded unless there is intent or gross negligence.

5.3 Costs already incurred: If the Client cancels an appointment or does not attend, the Client reimburses the costs agreed under 4.3 that have already been incurred by the time the cancellation is received and can no longer be reversed, in particular for non-refundable tickets, accommodation and room hire. This also applies to a cancellation for which no cancellation fee is charged under 5.1. The Contractor keeps these costs as low as possible through reasonable cancellation or rebooking and provides proof of them.

5.4 Several Clients: Where several Clients are involved in a process and the cancellation comes from one of them alone, or only one of them does not attend, the Contractor invoices the amounts owed under this clause 5 to that Client alone, notwithstanding 4.7 and 4.9. Joint and several liability under 4.8 remains unaffected; 4.9 sentence 3 applies to any claim under it.

6. Liability / Indemnification

6.1 The Contractor is fully liable under any legal basis in cases of intent or gross negligence, for intentional or negligent injury to life, body, or health, based on a guarantee promise (unless otherwise specified), or under mandatory liability laws. In cases of negligent breaches of essential contractual obligations, liability is limited to foreseeable damages typical for the contract, unless unlimited liability applies as stated above. Essential contractual obligations are those duties necessary for achieving the purpose of the contract and on whose compliance the Client regularly relies. In all other cases, liability of the Contractor is excluded. The above liability rules also apply to the Contractor's legal representatives and agents.

6.2 The Client shall indemnify the Contractor against any claims by third parties arising from the Client's violations of these contractual terms or applicable law.

7. Contract Duration and Termination

7.1 The contract duration and notice periods for ordinary termination are agreed upon individually between the parties.

7.2 The right of either party to terminate the contract without notice for good cause remains unaffected.

7.3 Upon termination of the contract, the Contractor shall promptly return or destroy all documents and other materials provided by the Client, as per the Client's preference. Electronic data shall be completely deleted, except for documents and data subject to legal retention obligations, which will be retained only for the required period. Upon request, the Contractor will confirm the deletion in writing.

8. Copyright

8.1 All documents, materials, and content provided or shared by the Contractor in the course of service delivery are protected by copyright. The Client and participants are not granted any right to use these materials for commercial purposes. The materials may only be used within the narrow limits of copyright law, in particular for personal use.

8.2 Audio and video recordings as well as other reproductions (in particular screencasting and screenshots) of content transmitted during sessions or events are only permitted with the express written consent of the Contractor. Regardless of this, the personal rights of all participants must be respected; in particular, no recordings or other documentation of other participants may be made without their consent.

9. Confidentiality and Data Protection

9.1 The Contractor shall treat all matters that come to his attention in connection with the contract as strictly confidential. The Contractor is obligated to impose confidentiality obligations on all employees and/or third parties who have access to the information related to the contract. This obligation of confidentiality shall remain in effect indefinitely, even after the termination of the contract.

9.2 The Contractor commits to complying with all applicable data protection regulations, particularly the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the German Federal Data Protection Act (BDSG), during the performance of the contract.

10. Final Provisions

10.1 The laws of the Federal Republic of Germany shall apply, excluding the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG).

10.2 If any provision of these GTC is or becomes invalid, the validity of the remaining provisions shall remain unaffected.

10.3 The Client shall support the Contractor in the performance of contractual services by providing necessary information and data as required.

10.4 If the Client is a merchant, a legal entity under public law, or a special fund under public law, or if the Client has no general jurisdiction in Germany, the place of jurisdiction for all disputes arising from this contractual relationship shall be the Contractor's registered office. Exclusive jurisdictions remain unaffected.

10.5 The Contractor reserves the right to amend these GTC for objectively justified reasons (e.g., changes in law, case law, market conditions, or business strategy) by providing appropriate notice. Existing clients will be notified of changes at least two weeks before they take effect. If the Client does not object within the period specified in the notice, the changes shall be deemed accepted, provided the Client is not a consumer within the meaning of applicable law. Amendments to these GTC require the express consent of consumers. If the Client objects, the changes will not take effect; however, the Contractor is then entitled to terminate the contract extraordinarily as of the effective date of the changes. The notice of amendment will include information about the objection period and its consequences.

11. Information on Online Dispute Resolution / Consumer Dispute Resolution

We participate in a dispute resolution procedure before a consumer arbitration board.

The responsible entity is the Universal Arbitration Board of the Center for Arbitration e.V., Straßburger Straße 8, 77694 Kehl am Rhein (https://www.universalschlichtungsstelle.de).

Our email address is provided in the header of these GTC.

Right of Withdrawal for the Provision of Services

The right of withdrawal applies exclusively to consumers within the meaning of applicable law.

Right of Withdrawal

You have the right to withdraw from this contract within fourteen days without giving any reason. The withdrawal period is fourteen days from the date the contract is concluded. To exercise your right of withdrawal, you must inform us (Christian von Baumbach, Chausseestr. 104, 10115 Berlin, E-Mail: mail@baumbachmediation.com) of your decision to withdraw from this contract by means of a clear statement (e.g., a letter sent by post or an email). You may use the model withdrawal form below, but it is not mandatory. To meet the withdrawal deadline, it is sufficient that you send your communication concerning the exercise of the right of withdrawal before the withdrawal period has expired.

Consequences of Withdrawal

If you withdraw from this contract, we shall reimburse to you all payments received from you, without undue delay and in any event not later than fourteen days from the day on which we are informed about your decision to withdraw from this contract. We will carry out such reimbursement using the same means of payment as you used for the initial transaction, unless you have expressly agreed otherwise; in any event, you will not incur any fees as a result of such reimbursement.

If you requested that the services begin during the withdrawal period, you shall pay us an amount which is in proportion to what has been provided until you have communicated to us your withdrawal from this contract, in comparison with the full coverage of the contract.

End of Right of Withdrawal Notice

Model Withdrawal Form

(If you want to withdraw from the contract, please fill in and return this form.)

To: Christian von Baumbach, Chausseestr. 104, 10115 Berlin, E-Mail: mail@baumbachmediation.com

I/We () hereby give notice that I/we () withdraw from my/our (*) contract for the provision of the following service:

Ordered on () / received on ():

Name of consumer(s):

Address of consumer(s):

Signature of consumer(s) (only if this form is notified on paper):

Date:

(*) Delete as appropriate.