The proposed changes to Nominet’s policies and procedures for .uk domain name dispute resolution services (DRS) in the United Kingdom have been approved and implemented. The new provisions impact claims filed on or after July 29, 2008, while all prior claims will be processed under the rules in effect at the time the claim was filed. The amendments have been set to deal with the recent influx of bulk domain registration. More specifically, Nominet tailored the rules to address the 52 percent of cases where there is no response to the DRS complaint from the domain owner. Unopposed disputes will now automatically be resolved in favor of the party claiming a right to the domain name, and a summary decision or a full judgment with reasoning can be sought for a fee, ₤200 and ₤750 respectively.
While protecting trademark rights and business interests in branding, the goal of Nominet is also to decrease the number of frivolous complaints that are filed against registrants. This will protect domain owners from bully-tactics strategically employed by trademark owners. Under the new rules, a significant burden lies on the complainant to set out its rights and explain why the domain registrant has acted in an abusive manner. The burden placed on the complainant involves substantial work and can quickly drive up the cost of the action. In such, there is incentive to file only fully developed and legitimate complaints against domain registrants, and failure to do so could result in a lost pursuit if the complaint is opposed.Abusive registration has been a central concern of Nominet. Domain owners must be aware that under the new rules that an automatic presumption of abusive registration will be applied to registrants who have engaged in repetitive and abusive domain registration. Once a complaint has been filed, a domain owner’s response to the complaint is the only chance he/she will have to present evidence to rebut a challenge to their registration. Therefore, it would be valuable for domain owners to seek legal advice in some cases.
Source:By Amanda Hall, Legal Team Sedo.com -- Reprinted with permission -- October 14, 2008