Terms & Conditions of Service

1. Merchant of Record & Operating Identity

Expert Forge (experts.fogsconsultants.com) is operated under the trade name FOGS Consultants. FOGS Consultants is a sole proprietorship owned and operated by Francis Thaliyacherry (MSME Udyam Registration: UDYAM-KL-02-0111828; GSTIN: 32AVFPT5755K1Z4), having its principal office at 19/274, Beth Shalom, Kongorpilly, Ernakulam - 683518, Kerala, India (“FOGS”, “we”, “us”, or “our”).

Under the FOGS Model A business architecture, FOGS Consultants is the sole Merchant of Record. All professional advisory engagements, milestone deliverables, client contracts, and fee collections are transacted directly with FOGS Consultants.

2. Professional Advisory Services & Scope

Expert Forge provides enterprise clients and organizations with access to verified senior practitioners across Legal, Finance & Taxation, ESG, Engineering, and Strategic Management Advisory. All expert engagements are governed by formal Statement of Work (SOW) agreements.

3. Billing, Fees & Statutory Tax Configuration

All advisory fees, milestone tranches, and retainers are denominated and billed in Indian Rupees (INR). In compliance with Indian Goods and Services Tax (GST) laws, advisory services are billed under the applicable Service Accounting Code (SAC) and statutory tax rates corresponding to the specific professional practice, with inter-state (IGST) or intra-state (CGST + SGST) tax determinations applied based on the client's registered place of business. Reverse Charge Mechanism (RCM) or export zero-rating is applied where statutorily mandated.

Client collections are securely processed via licensed payment gateway partner Cashfree Payments India Private Limited. FOGS does not surcharge payment gateway processing fees to clients unless expressly indicated in custom enterprise agreements.

4. Client Relationship Protection & Anti-Circumvention

To maintain the commercial integrity of the marketplace, both participating experts and client organizations agree to a 24-month non-circumvention covenant. All consulting engagements, communications, milestone funding, and deliverables originating through Expert Forge must be contracted and billed through FOGS Consultants. Direct solicitation or off-platform fee settlement constitutes a material breach subject to immediate account revocation and contractual damages.

5. Expert Remuneration & Payout Governance

Experts engaged through the platform act as independent professional advisors. Expert remuneration is governed separately under individual engagement contracts executed between FOGS Consultants and the expert. Automated marketplace split settlement and automated third-party disbursements are strictly prohibited under Model A. Remuneration is scheduled following client milestone deliverable acceptance and disbursed via standard institutional banking channels.

6. Intellectual Property & Confidentiality

All deliverables produced by experts upon full milestone settlement shall be assigned to the client organization as work-for-hire, subject to standard non-disclosure covenants and proprietary background IP reservations.

7. Governing Law & Dispute Jurisdiction

These Terms of Service are governed by and construed in accordance with the substantive laws of the Republic of India. Any legal dispute, arbitration, or proceeding arising under or in connection with these terms shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the competent courts in Ernakulam, Kerala, India (subject to final legal designation by FOGS Consultants).