2025 4 15 Regular Session PACKET 1

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ARTICLE 9. CONTROLLING LAW

This Contract shall be governed by and construed by the laws of the State of Tennessee. The exclusive

venue for any litigation between the parties shall lie in the Circuit Court for McMinn County, Tennessee.
Both parties waive and surrender any right to a jury trial.

ARTICLE 9.1 ALTERNATE DISPUTE RESOLUTION

Both parties shall attempt to resolve conflicts or disputes under this Agreement in a fair and reasonable
manner and agree that if an informal resolution cannot be achieved, the parties shall submit the matter
to a mutually agreed upon mediator in an attempt to resolve the dispute through the mediation process.
Such mediation process shall be initiated by a request in writing by either party. If mediation is
unsuccessful then either party may initiate a legal proceeding within the State Courts located within
McMinn County, Tenn. The prevailing party in any legal proceeding hereunder by and between the

parties shall be entitled to their reasonable attorney’s fees and court costs incurred in said legal
proceeding(s).

ARTICLE 10. RELATION OF THE PARTIES

The performance by Contractor of its duties and obligations under this Contract shall be that of an
independent contractor. This Contract shall not be construed to create an employment relationship,
agency relationship, joint venture, or partnership between the parties. Any person performing services
pursuant to this Contract is an employee of Contractor and not an employee of the City of Athens.

ARTICLE 11. NON-ASSIGNMENT

Contractor shall not have the right to assign this Contract in whole or in part.

ARTICLE 12. ENTIRE CONTRACT

This Contract constitutes the entire understanding and agreement between the parties hereto and

supersedes all prior and contemporaneous written and oral agreements between the parties regarding
the subject matter of this contract.

ARTICLE 13. CONTRACT DOCUMENTS

It is mutually agreed by both parties that the following documents are made part of this contract and
are incorporated herein by reference as if copied verbatim:

a. RFB #25-05 MOWING & MAINTENANCE OF ATHENS CITY CEMETERIES
b. Contractor’s written response

ARTICLE 14. ADDITIONAL ITEMS

The Agreement shall have an initial term of one year, with the option to extend the Agreement for two
successive one-year terms, under the same terms and conditions as the original Agreement. The original
Agreement shall not under any circumstance have a term beyond 3 years.

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