legal: add dual MIT+Apache 2.0 license, trademark policy, and CLA (#941 )

- LICENSE: add trademark notice and dual-license reference to MIT file
- LICENSE-APACHE: add full Apache 2.0 license text with ZeroClaw
  trademark clause in section 6
- TRADEMARK.md: define permitted/prohibited uses of the ZeroClaw name,
  list known unauthorized forks (openagen/zeroclaw), and document
  contributor trademark protections
- CLA.md: add Contributor License Agreement granting rights under both
  MIT and Apache 2.0, with explicit patent grant and attribution
  guarantees; contributors retain copyright ownership
- NOTICE: add official repository notice, dual-license summary, and
  contributor protection statement
- README.md: add impersonation warning section with official repo link,
  replace single MIT badge with dual-license table, add trademark and
  contributor protection summary, link CLA.md from Contributing section

2026-02-19 09:20:03 -05:00

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ZeroClaw Contributor License Agreement (CLA)

Version 1.0 — February 2026
ZeroClaw Labs

Purpose

This Contributor License Agreement ("CLA") clarifies the intellectual property rights granted by contributors to ZeroClaw Labs. This agreement protects both contributors and users of the ZeroClaw project.

By submitting a contribution (pull request, patch, issue with code, or any other form of code submission) to the ZeroClaw repository, you agree to the terms of this CLA.

1. Definitions

"Contribution" means any original work of authorship, including any modifications or additions to existing work, submitted to ZeroClaw Labs for inclusion in the ZeroClaw project.
"You" means the individual or legal entity submitting a Contribution.
"ZeroClaw Labs" means the maintainers and organization responsible for the ZeroClaw project at https://github.com/zeroclaw-labs/zeroclaw.

2. Grant of Copyright License

You grant ZeroClaw Labs and recipients of software distributed by ZeroClaw Labs a perpetual, worldwide, non-exclusive, no-charge, royalty-free, irrevocable copyright license to:

Reproduce, prepare derivative works of, publicly display, publicly perform, sublicense, and distribute your Contributions and derivative works under both the MIT License and the Apache License 2.0.

3. Grant of Patent License

You grant ZeroClaw Labs and recipients of software distributed by ZeroClaw Labs a perpetual, worldwide, non-exclusive, no-charge, royalty-free, irrevocable patent license to make, have made, use, offer to sell, sell, import, and otherwise transfer your Contributions.

This patent license applies only to patent claims licensable by you that are necessarily infringed by your Contribution alone or in combination with the ZeroClaw project.

This protects you: if a third party files a patent claim against ZeroClaw that covers your Contribution, your patent license to the project is not revoked.

4. You Retain Your Rights

This CLA does not transfer ownership of your Contribution to ZeroClaw Labs. You retain full copyright ownership of your Contribution. You are free to use your Contribution in any other project under any license.

5. Original Work

You represent that:

Each Contribution is your original creation, or you have sufficient rights to submit it under this CLA.
Your Contribution does not knowingly infringe any third-party patent, copyright, trademark, or other intellectual property right.
If your employer has rights to intellectual property you create, you have received permission to submit the Contribution, or your employer has signed a corporate CLA with ZeroClaw Labs.

6. No Trademark Rights

This CLA does not grant you any rights to use the ZeroClaw name, trademarks, service marks, or logos. See TRADEMARK.md for trademark policy.

7. Attribution

ZeroClaw Labs will maintain attribution to contributors in the repository commit history and NOTICE file. Your contributions are permanently and publicly recorded.

8. Dual-License Commitment

All Contributions accepted into the ZeroClaw project are licensed under both:

MIT License — permissive open-source use
Apache License 2.0 — patent protection and stronger IP guarantees

This dual-license model ensures maximum compatibility and protection for the entire contributor community.

9. How to Agree

By opening a pull request or submitting a patch to the ZeroClaw repository, you indicate your agreement to this CLA. No separate signature is required for individual contributors.

For corporate contributors (submitting on behalf of a company or organization), please open an issue titled "Corporate CLA — [Company Name]" and a maintainer will follow up.

10. Questions

If you have questions about this CLA, open an issue at: https://github.com/zeroclaw-labs/zeroclaw/issues

This CLA is based on the Apache Individual Contributor License Agreement v2.0, adapted for the ZeroClaw dual-license model.

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