Our Guarantee
We guarantee to apply a professional method to enthusiastically research your genealogical problems in a time-efficient manner.

We will do research by identifying, locating and researching the historical and genealogical records which are most likely to provide answers to your genealogical questions.
 

What We Cannot Guarantee
We cannot guarantee a specific genealogical result, such as proving a specific relationship. We seek the truth, whatever it may be. We cannot guarantee what we will find in a given searching time. What you pay for is our time in pursuit of an answer to your most pressing genealogical problems according to your priorities.
 

Research Fees
* $55 per hour plus expenses.  We will start when you furnish us a 4 hour ($220) "retainer" deposit  fee.  As we work we will charge from that deposit and then return any unused portion of the deposit to you.  If you want us to do more work then four hours, we will ask for payment of additional work, as you request, as we proceed.

* "Expenses" are any expenses incurred doing your specific research, including postage, telephone, copying costs, and travel expenses.  If travel is required we will tell you about it in advance and get your approval for travel time and expenses.

* The time charged does not include the time it takes us to consult with you by telephone, but it does include the time to  analyze your problem and research the records, as well as the time to analyze, organize, type, and report the results to you. In an average research task about 1/2 the time is spent in research and the other half spent in analysis and reporting.

In short:  you will be charged for time and for expenses, such as documents ordered. You will be provided with an itemized receipt, and documentation for all charges. Copies of all documents will be returned to you. 
 

When Will We Stop Work?
You are not responsible for any work we do beyond what you have paid for or agreed to pay for.  If you wish us to continue, you will be charged periodically upon completion of any additional research you request. You can always place a research time limit or tell us to stop at any time.
 

How Will We Communicate the Results to You?
We will write you a brief progress report by U.S. mail or by E-mail (to save time). The report will include which records we researched, what we learned and what the options are for continuing the research.
 

We find that an ongoing two-way conversation between ourselves and the client improves research productivity. Whenever we feel that you need to make a decision about which direction you want us to proceed with the research, we will stop work and await your decision. At any point during the research, upon your request, we will provide you with a full summary report of all the research to date including an analysis of the findings.  The report will include copies of major pertinent records. While this analysis and written report are time-consuming, the resulting additional insights and organized results in written form are quite rewarding and well worth the time spent.
 

Ownership
You, the client, have an unrestricted license to use and publish the results of our work.  However, what you are buying is our research services, not the words we use. While we will report to you all the results of our research on your account, the Joseph Bucklin Society's researcher retains the copyright on his/her reports, and the Joseph Bucklin Society's executive director will hold an unlimited license to publish, or grant rights to publish, the research findings, so that others can also benefit from the research.  Our copyright and licenses to publish do not include original materials supplied by the client, such as family bible records and family letters, which we will not publish without the client's permission.