Terms of Service

What LanceNest is

LanceNest is a marketplace connecting veteran freelancers with clients, including federal contractors seeking cleared talent (LanceNest Federal) and general freelance and trade work (LanceNest Marketplace). LanceNest is operated by Ossa LLC.

Platform fee

LanceNest takes a platform fee from the freelancer's side of each completed job, as described on our pricing page. Fees are subject to change with notice.

Veteran verification

Freelancer accounts require verification of military or veteran status through ID.me. Misrepresenting veteran status is grounds for account termination.

Company review

Client and company accounts are subject to manual review before job postings become publicly visible. LanceNest reserves the right to decline or remove any account or posting.

Payments

Payments are processed through Stripe. LanceNest is not a party to the underlying work agreement between freelancer and client, and does not guarantee the outcome of any project.

Non-circumvention

Clients agree not to solicit, hire, or pay a freelancer they were introduced to through LanceNest outside the platform for a period of 12 months following introduction, except by paying LanceNest a buyout fee of $2,500 per freelancer. This clause protects the verified job history and payment protection LanceNest provides to freelancers.

Placement / conversion fee

If a client hires a LanceNest freelancer for a full-time or long-term position as a result of an introduction made through the platform, the client agrees to pay LanceNest a placement fee equal to the greater of $5,000 or 15% of the freelancer's first-year compensation. This fee decreases on a straight-line basis over the 12 months following introduction.

Off-platform communication

Sharing contact information or negotiating payment outside LanceNest prior to a confirmed booking or deposit is discouraged and may be logged for platform integrity purposes. Off-platform transactions are not covered by LanceNest's payment protection or dispute process.

Limitation of liability

LanceNest is provided "as is." To the fullest extent permitted by law, LanceNest and Ossa LLC are not liable for disputes, damages, or losses arising from use of the platform.

This is a general-purpose placeholder. The Non-circumvention and Placement/conversion fee clauses above are the two most likely to be contested by a buyer and should get a flat-fee attorney review (roughly $500–1,000) before public launch. The rest is reasonable to operate on as written, but full review is still recommended before LanceNest operates at scale, particularly given veteran status data and federal contract-adjacent work.