Legal
Last updated: 21 March 2026
The most important thing to understand
A Prooflayer certificate proves that a particular piece of content existed at a particular point in time. It does not prove who created it, that it is original, or that the registering user owns any intellectual property rights in it. It is evidence of existence — nothing more.
Prooflayer is not a patent office, trademark registry, copyright registry, or any form of official intellectual property authority. A Prooflayer certificate does not grant, transfer, or confirm any intellectual property rights.
If you need formal intellectual property protection, you should seek independent legal advice and, where appropriate, apply for patents, registered trademarks, or other formal IP rights through the appropriate authorities (such as the UK Intellectual Property Office or the European Patent Office).
While a Prooflayer certificate — particularly one with an RFC 3161 trusted timestamp or blockchain anchor — may be useful as supporting evidence in a legal dispute, we make no representation that it will be accepted by any court, tribunal, or other authority.
The admissibility and weight of evidence is a matter for the courts. You should take independent legal advice before relying on any Prooflayer certificate in legal proceedings.
RFC 3161 is a standard for trusted timestamping recognised under the EU eIDAS regulation and applicable UK equivalents. Our timestamps are issued by freetsa.org, a public timestamp authority.
We do not guarantee that any specific timestamp will be recognised or accepted in any particular legal context. The legal status of electronic timestamps varies by jurisdiction and context.
Blockchain anchoring on Polygon provides an additional layer of independent verification. The Polygon blockchain is a public, decentralised network operated by third parties. We are not responsible for the availability, security, or continuity of the Polygon network.
Blockchain data is public and permanent. We are not able to remove data once it has been written to the blockchain.
We do not verify that registered content is original, that it was created by the registering user, or that registering it does not infringe third-party rights. We timestamp what users give us — we cannot and do not validate its origins or authenticity.
Registering content on Prooflayer that you did not create, or that infringes third-party rights, is a violation of our Acceptable Use Policy and may be unlawful.
We aim to provide a reliable service but we do not guarantee uninterrupted availability. Your proof records are stored securely, but you should retain copies of your certificates and content independently.
Nothing on this platform constitutes legal, financial, or professional advice. For advice specific to your situation, consult a qualified professional.
Where cryptocurrency payment options are available, exchange rates are indicative and may fluctuate. We are not responsible for exchange rate changes between the time of displaying a rate and receiving payment. Cryptocurrency transactions are irreversible.