How to Resolve a Domain Name Dispute in England

If you own a business in England or are considering starting one, you may consider buying an internet domain name. Ideally, if you are a brand new business, you would pick a business name for which you can register as your limited company, file a trade mark, and secure an internet domain name. However, suppose you are an established business and are just considering setting up a website. In that case, you may find that someone else has already registered a domain name identical to the name you have been trading under. This article will explain how domain name dispute resolution works in England.

How Domain Names Work

If you have not set up your business website yet, or you do not have any previous experience setting up websites, you may be wondering what a domain name is and how you can obtain one. The domain name is the URL address of a website. In an ideal world, you would decide on a business name and register the business name, limited company name, and domain name as the same. These days, however, there is a lot of competition over domain names, and you may find that someone else owns the specific one you want.

Example

Suppose you are an established local business in England but are only just looking to create an internet presence for your business. In that case, you may find yourself in a situation where someone else owns the domain name that your established business operates under. Unfortunately, if that person is legitimately using that domain name, there is little you can do. You can approach them to see if they may be willing to sell that domain name to you. However, they can refuse, and probably will, if they have an established and longstanding internet presence and business that people relate to that particular domain name. 

However, suppose you have run a business for decades and decide it is time to create a business website. You have a unique name that is well known in your local area. Subsequently, you find that someone else has registered a domain name in the same or very similar name to your business, precisely to profit from your established business name and the goodwill you have built up. They may even have bought the name because they know you will want it at some point, and they are hoping you will be willing to pay a large amount of money to get it. In this situation, you may be able to raise a dispute resolution claim.

Dispute Resolution Claims

Filing a dispute resolution claim depends on how the domain name ends. Most businesses in the UK will have either a domain name that ends in ‘.com’ or ‘.co.uk’. If your business is located in England, but your target a global customer base, you probably want a ‘.com’ address. Alternatively, if you focus on UK customers, you will probably want a ‘.co.uk’ address. Indeed, you may want to secure both addresses, which is what many UK-based businesses do.

The ‘.com’ Domains Dispute Resolution Process

To file a dispute resolution concerning a ‘.com’ domain name, you must file your dispute through the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP). To succeed in a UDRP claim, you must be able to show:

• the domain name is identical or very similar to your business name or your business trade mark so that people would reasonably believe it was your business website;
• the person or company who registered the domain name does not have any legitimate right to the domain name; and
• that they registered the domain name and are using it in bad faith.

The ‘.co.uk’ Dispute Resolution Process

The ‘.co.uk’ domains are handled by Nominet UK through its Dispute Resolution Service (DRS).

Registration is likely to be considered abusive if it was deliberately registered to: 

• stop you from using that domain name; 
• profit off your business’ goodwill; or 
• sell the domain to you at an inflated price.

Who Owns the Domain Name?

To file a domain name dispute, you will need to know who the domain owner is. You can use a ‘who is’ search to try and establish this. However, for ‘.co.uk’ domains, you may find that, due to GDPR, the registrant details have not been made public. In this case, you can ask Nominet to provide you with the details.

Costs Involved in Dispute Resolution.

The cost to file a dispute resolution claim can vary. For UDRP claims, the price starts at US $1,500. For Nominet claims, the cost depends on how long the case goes on, as Nominet claims have different stages:

Mediation

Mediation is a free service. If you can agree at this stage, Nominet will help you and the domain registrant fulfil the agreement you reach.

Expert Decision

If you cannot agree at the mediation stage, an independent expert will make a binding decision in the case.

Appeal Stage

If you lose your claim, you can submit an appeal. This costs £3,000 plus VAT, and you must file your appeal within 10 days of the decision date.

Remedy

If Nominet decides in your favour, they will transfer the domain name to you.

Legal Proceedings

You can also choose to bring a legal claim through court. Moreover, this may be a better option if you wish to seek damages. However, legal proceedings are expensive and tend to take a long time.

Key Takeaways 

Suppose you own an established business in England and find someone else has already registered your desired domain name. In that case, your options depend on why the domain was registered. Your choices are limited if the domain registrant has a legitimate reason to own and use the domain name. However, suppose they registered the name to profit off your business’ goodwill, to prevent you from using it, or with the intent of selling the domain name to you at a vastly inflated price. In that case, you can raise a domain name dispute. If you are successful, the registrar will transfer the domain name to you. You can also bring legal proceedings if you believe your business suffers financial harm due to the domain name’s registration.

If you need help with a domain name dispute, our experienced IT lawyers can assist as part of our LegalVision membership. For a low monthly fee, you will have unlimited access to lawyers to answer your questions and draft and review your documents. Call us today on 0808 196 8584 or visit our membership page.

Frequently Asked Questions