Rules for Uniform Domain Name Dispute
Resolution Policy
(the "Rules")
Administrative proceedings for the resolution of disputes under the Uniform
Dispute Resolution Policy adopted by ICANN shall be governed by these
Rules and also the Supplemental Rules of the Provider administering the
proceedings, as posted on its web site.
1. Definitions
In these Rules:
Complainant means the party initiating a complaint concerning a domain-name
registration.
ICANN refers to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers.
Mutual Jurisdiction
means a court jurisdiction at the location of either (a) the principal
office of the Registrar (provided the domain-name holder has submitted
in its Registration Agreement to that jurisdiction for court adjudication
of disputes concerning or arising from the use of the domain name) or
(b) the domain-name holder's address as shown for the registration of
the domain name in Registrar's Whois database at the time the complaint
is submitted to the Provider.
Panel means an administrative panel appointed by a Provider to decide
a complaint concerning a domain-name registration.
Panelist means an individual appointed by a Provider to be a member of
a Panel.
Party means a Complainant or a Respondent.
Policy means the Uniform
Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy that is incorporated by reference
and made a part of the Registration Agreement.
Provider means a dispute-resolution
service provider approved by ICANN. A list of such Providers appears
at www.icann.org/udrp/approved-providers.htm.
Registrar means the entity with which the Respondent has registered a domain
name that is the subject of a complaint.
Registration
Agreement means the agreement between
a Registrar and a domain-name holder.
Respondent means the holder of a domain-name registration against which
a complaint is initiated.
Reverse Domain Name Hijacking means
using the Policy in bad faith to attempt to deprive a registered domain-name
holder of a domain name.
Supplemental
Rules means the rules adopted by the Provider
administering a proceeding to supplement these Rules. Supplemental Rules
shall not be inconsistent with the Policy or these Rules and shall cover
such topics as fees, word and page limits and guidelines, the means
for communicating with the Provider and the Panel, and the form of cover
sheets.
2. Communications
(a) When forwarding a complaint
to the Respondent, it shall be the Provider's responsibility to employ
reasonably available means calculated to achieve actual notice to Respondent.
Achieving actual notice, or employing the following measures to do so,
shall discharge this responsibility:
(i) sending the complaint to
all postal-mail and facsimile addresses (A) shown in the domain name's
registration data in Registrar's Whois database for the registered
domain-name holder, the technical contact, and the administrative
contact and (B) supplied by Registrar to the Provider for the registration's
billing contact; and
(ii) sending the complaint
in electronic form (including annexes to the extent available in that
form) by e-mail to:
(A) the e-mail addresses
for those technical, administrative, and billing contacts;
(B) postmaster@<the contested
domain name>; and
(C) if the domain name (or
"www." followed by the domain name) resolves to an active
web page (other than a generic page the Provider concludes is maintained
by a registrar or ISP for parking domain-names registered by multiple
domain-name holders), any e-mail address shown or e-mail links on
that web page; and
(iii) sending the complaint
to any address the Respondent has notified the Provider it prefers
and, to the extent practicable, to all other addresses provided to
the Provider by Complainant under Paragraph 3(b)(v).
(b) Except as provided in Paragraph
2(a), any written communication to Complainant or Respondent provided
for under these Rules shall be made by the preferred means stated by
the Complainant or Respondent, respectively (see Paragraphs 3(b)(iii) and
5(b)(iii)), or in the absence
of such specification
(i) by telecopy or facsimile
transmission, with a confirmation of transmission; or
(ii) by postal or courier service,
postage pre-paid and return receipt requested; or
(iii) electronically via the
Internet, provided a record of its transmission is available.
(c) Any communication to the Provider
or the Panel shall be made by the means and in the manner (including
number of copies) stated in the Provider's Supplemental Rules.
(d) Communications shall be made
in the language prescribed in Paragraph 11. E-mail
communications should, if practicable, be sent in plaintext.
(e) Either Party may update its
contact details by notifying the Provider and the Registrar.
(f) Except as otherwise provided
in these Rules, or decided by a Panel, all communications provided for
under these Rules shall be deemed to have been made:
(i) if delivered by telecopy
or facsimile transmission, on the date shown on the confirmation of
transmission; or
(ii) if by postal or courier
service, on the date marked on the receipt; or
(iii) if via the Internet,
on the date that the communication was transmitted, provided that
the date of transmission is verifiable.
(g) Except as otherwise provided
in these Rules, all time periods calculated under these Rules to begin
when a communication is made shall begin to run on the earliest date
that the communication is deemed to have been made in accordance with Paragraph 2(f).
(h) Any communication by
(i) a Panel to any Party shall
be copied to the Provider and to the other Party;
(ii) the Provider to any Party
shall be copied to the other Party; and
(iii) a Party shall be copied
to the other Party, the Panel and the Provider, as the case may be.
(i) It shall be the responsibility
of the sender to retain records of the fact and circumstances of sending,
which shall be available for inspection by affected parties and for
reporting purposes.
(j) In the event a Party sending
a communication receives notification of non-delivery of the communication,
the Party shall promptly notify the Panel (or, if no Panel is yet appointed,
the Provider) of the circumstances of the notification. Further proceedings
concerning the communication and any response shall be as directed by
the Panel (or the Provider).
3. The Complaint
(a) Any person or entity may initiate
an administrative proceeding by submitting a complaint in accordance
with the Policy and these Rules to any Provider approved by ICANN. (Due
to capacity constraints or for other reasons, a Provider's ability to
accept complaints may be suspended at times. In that event, the Provider
shall refuse the submission. The person or entity may submit the complaint
to another Provider.)
(b) The complaint shall be submitted
in hard copy and (except to the extent not available for annexes) in
electronic form and shall:
(i) Request that the complaint
be submitted for decision in accordance with the Policy and these
Rules;
(ii) Provide the name, postal
and e-mail addresses, and the telephone and telefax numbers of the
Complainant and of any representative authorized to act for the Complainant
in the administrative proceeding;
(iii) Specify a preferred
method for communications directed to the Complainant in the administrative
proceeding (including person to be contacted, medium, and address
information) for each of (A) electronic-only material and (B) material
including hard copy;
(iv) Designate whether Complainant
elects to have the dispute decided by a single-member or a three-member
Panel and, in the event Complainant elects a three-member Panel, provide
the names and contact details of three candidates to serve as one
of the Panelists (these candidates may be drawn from any ICANN-approved
Provider's list of panelists);
(v) Provide the name of the
Respondent (domain-name holder) and all information (including any
postal and e-mail addresses and telephone and telefax numbers) known
to Complainant regarding how to contact Respondent or any representative
of Respondent, including contact information based on pre-complaint
dealings, in sufficient detail to allow the Provider to send the complaint
as described in Paragraph 2(a);
(vi) Specify the domain name(s)
that is/are the subject of the complaint;
(vii) Identify the Registrar(s)
with whom the domain name(s) is/are registered at the time the complaint
is filed;
(viii) Specify the trademark(s)
or service mark(s) on which the complaint is based and, for each mark,
describe the goods or services, if any, with which the mark is used
(Complainant may also separately describe other goods and services
with which it intends, at the time the complaint is submitted, to
use the mark in the future.);
(ix) Describe, in accordance
with the Policy, the grounds on which the complaint is made including,
in particular,
(1) the manner in which
the domain name(s) is/are identical or confusingly similar to a
trademark or service mark in which the Complainant has rights; and
(2) why the Respondent (domain-name
holder) should be considered as having no rights or legitimate interests
in respect of the domain name(s) that is/are the subject of the
complaint; and
(3) why the domain name(s)
should be considered as having been registered and being used in
bad faith
(The description should, for elements (2) and
(3), discuss any aspects of Paragraphs 4(b) and 4(c) of the Policy that are applicable.
The description shall comply with any word or page limit set forth
in the Provider's Supplemental Rules.);
(x) Specify, in accordance with
the Policy, the remedies sought;
(xi) Identify any other legal
proceedings that have been commenced or terminated in connection with
or relating to any of the domain name(s) that are the subject of the
complaint;
(xii) State that a copy of
the complaint, together with the cover sheet as prescribed by the
Provider's Supplemental Rules, has been sent or transmitted to the
Respondent (domain-name holder), in accordance with Paragraph 2(b);
(xiii) State that Complainant
will submit, with respect to any challenges to a decision in the administrative
proceeding canceling or transferring the domain name, to the jurisdiction
of the courts in at least one specified Mutual Jurisdiction;
(xiv) Conclude with the following
statement followed by the signature of the Complainant or its authorized
representative:
"Complainant agrees
that its claims and remedies concerning the registration of the
domain name, the dispute, or the dispute's resolution shall be solely
against the domain-name holder and waives all such claims and remedies
against (a) the dispute-resolution provider and panelists, except
in the case of deliberate wrongdoing, (b) the registrar, (c) the
registry administrator, and (d) the Internet Corporation for Assigned
Names and Numbers, as well as their directors, officers, employees,
and agents."
"Complainant certifies
that the information contained in this Complaint is to the best
of Complainant's knowledge complete and accurate, that this Complaint
is not being presented for any improper purpose, such as to harass,
and that the assertions in this Complaint are warranted under these
Rules and under applicable law, as it now exists or as it may be
extended by a good-faith and reasonable argument."; and
(xv) Annex any documentary
or other evidence, including a copy of the Policy applicable to the
domain name(s) in dispute and any trademark or service mark registration
upon which the complaint relies, together with a schedule indexing
such evidence.
(c) The complaint may relate to
more than one domain name, provided that the domain names are registered
by the same domain-name holder.
4. Notification of Complaint
(a) The Provider shall review the
complaint for administrative compliance with the Policy and these Rules
and, if in compliance, shall forward the complaint (together with the
explanatory cover sheet prescribed by the Provider's Supplemental Rules)
to the Respondent, in the manner prescribed by Paragraph
2(a), within three (3) calendar days following receipt of the fees
to be paid by the Complainant in accordance with Paragraph
19.
(b) If the Provider finds the complaint
to be administratively deficient, it shall promptly notify the Complainant
and the Respondent of the nature of the deficiencies identified. The
Complainant shall have five (5) calendar days within which to correct
any such deficiencies, after which the administrative proceeding will
be deemed withdrawn without prejudice to submission of a different complaint
by Complainant.
(c) The date of commencement of
the administrative proceeding shall be the date on which the Provider
completes its responsibilities under Paragraph 2(a)
in connection with forwarding the Complaint to the Respondent.
(d) The Provider shall immediately
notify the Complainant, the Respondent, the concerned Registrar(s),
and ICANN of the date of commencement of the administrative proceeding.
5. The Response
(a) Within twenty (20) days of
the date of commencement of the administrative proceeding the Respondent
shall submit a response to the Provider.
(b) The response shall be submitted
in hard copy and (except to the extent not available for annexes) in
electronic form and shall:
(i) Respond specifically to
the statements and allegations contained in the complaint and include
any and all bases for the Respondent (domain-name holder) to retain
registration and use of the disputed domain name (This portion of
the response shall comply with any word or page limit set forth in
the Provider's Supplemental Rules.);
(ii) Provide the name, postal
and e-mail addresses, and the telephone and telefax numbers of the
Respondent (domain-name holder) and of any representative authorized
to act for the Respondent in the administrative proceeding;
(iii) Specify a preferred
method for communications directed to the Respondent in the administrative
proceeding (including person to be contacted, medium, and address
information) for each of (A) electronic-only material and (B) material
including hard copy;
(iv) If Complainant has elected
a single-member panel in the Complaint (see Paragraph 3(b)(iv)), state whether Respondent elects instead to have the
dispute decided by a three-member panel;
(v) If either Complainant or
Respondent elects a three-member Panel, provide the names and contact
details of three candidates to serve as one of the Panelists (these
candidates may be drawn from any ICANN-approved Provider's list of
panelists);
(vi) Identify any other legal
proceedings that have been commenced or terminated in connection with
or relating to any of the domain name(s) that are the subject of the
complaint;
(vii) State that a copy of
the response has been sent or transmitted to the Complainant, in accordance
with Paragraph 2(b); and
(viii) Conclude with the
following statement followed by the signature of the Respondent or
its authorized representative:
"Respondent certifies that the information
contained in this Response is to the best of Respondent's knowledge
complete and accurate, that this Response is not being presented
for any improper purpose, such as to harass, and that the assertions
in this Response are warranted under these Rules and under applicable
law, as it now exists or as it may be extended by a good-faith and
reasonable argument."; and
(ix) Annex any documentary
or other evidence upon which the Respondent relies, together with
a schedule indexing such documents.
(c) If Complainant has elected
to have the dispute decided by a single-member Panel and Respondent
elects a three-member Panel, Respondent shall be required to pay one-half
of the applicable fee for a three-member Panel as set forth in the Provider's
Supplemental Rules. This payment shall be made together with the submission
of the response to the Provider. In the event that the required payment
is not made, the dispute shall be decided by a single-member Panel.
(d) At the request of the Respondent,
the Provider may, in exceptional cases, extend the period of time for
the filing of the response. The period may also be extended by written
stipulation between the Parties, provided the stipulation is approved
by the Provider.
(e) If a Respondent does not submit
a response, in the absence of exceptional circumstances, the Panel shall
decide the dispute based upon the complaint.
6. Appointment of the Panel
and Timing of Decision
(a) Each Provider shall maintain
and publish a publicly available list of panelists and their
qualifications.
(b) If neither the Complainant
nor the Respondent has elected a three-member Panel (Paragraphs 3(b)(iv) and
5(b)(iv)), the Provider shall appoint,
within five (5) calendar days following receipt of the response by the
Provider, or the lapse of the time period for the submission thereof,
a single Panelist from its list of panelists. The fees for a single-member
Panel shall be paid entirely by the Complainant.
(c) If either the Complainant or
the Respondent elects to have the dispute decided by a three-member
Panel, the Provider shall appoint three Panelists in accordance with
the procedures identified in Paragraph 6(e). The fees
for a three-member Panel shall be paid in their entirety by the Complainant,
except where the election for a three-member Panel was made by the Respondent,
in which case the applicable fees shall be shared equally between the
Parties.
(d) Unless it has already elected
a three-member Panel, the Complainant shall submit to the Provider,
within five (5) calendar days of communication of a response in which
the Respondent elects a three-member Panel, the names and contact details
of three candidates to serve as one of the Panelists. These candidates
may be drawn from any ICANN-approved Provider's list of panelists.
(e) In the event that either the
Complainant or the Respondent elects a three-member Panel, the Provider
shall endeavor to appoint one Panelist from the list of candidates provided
by each of the Complainant and the Respondent. In the event the Provider
is unable within five (5) calendar days to secure the appointment of
a Panelist on its customary terms from either Party's list of candidates,
the Provider shall make that appointment from its list of panelists.
The third Panelist shall be appointed by the Provider from a list of
five candidates submitted by the Provider to the Parties, the Provider's
selection from among the five being made in a manner that reasonably
balances the preferences of both Parties, as they may specify to the
Provider within five (5) calendar days of the Provider's submission
of the five-candidate list to the Parties.
(f) Once the entire Panel is appointed,
the Provider shall notify the Parties of the Panelists appointed and
the date by which, absent exceptional circumstances, the Panel shall
forward its decision on the complaint to the Provider.
7. Impartiality and Independence
A Panelist shall be impartial and independent and
shall have, before accepting appointment, disclosed to the Provider any
circumstances giving rise to justifiable doubt as to the Panelist's impartiality
or independence. If, at any stage during the administrative proceeding,
new circumstances arise that could give rise to justifiable doubt as to
the impartiality or independence of the Panelist, that Panelist shall
promptly disclose such circumstances to the Provider. In such event, the
Provider shall have the discretion to appoint a substitute Panelist.
8. Communication Between Parties
and the Panel
No Party or anyone acting on its behalf may have any
unilateral communication with the Panel. All communications between a
Party and the Panel or the Provider shall be made to a case administrator
appointed by the Provider in the manner prescribed in the Provider's Supplemental
Rules.
9. Transmission of the File
to the Panel
The Provider shall forward the file to the Panel as
soon as the Panelist is appointed in the case of a Panel consisting of
a single member, or as soon as the last Panelist is appointed in the case
of a three-member Panel.
10. General Powers of the Panel
(a) The Panel shall conduct the
administrative proceeding in such manner as it considers appropriate
in accordance with the Policy and these Rules.
(b) In all cases, the Panel shall
ensure that the Parties are treated with equality and that each Party
is given a fair opportunity to present its case.
(c) The Panel shall ensure that
the administrative proceeding takes place with due expedition. It may,
at the request of a Party or on its own motion, extend, in exceptional
cases, a period of time fixed by these Rules or by the Panel.
(d) The Panel shall determine
the admissibility, relevance, materiality and weight of the evidence.
(e) A Panel shall decide a request
by a Party to consolidate multiple domain name disputes in accordance
with the Policy and these Rules.
11. Language of Proceedings
(a) Unless otherwise agreed by
the Parties, or specified otherwise in the Registration Agreement, the
language of the administrative proceeding shall be the language of the
Registration Agreement, subject to the authority of the Panel to determine
otherwise, having regard to the circumstances of the administrative
proceeding.
(b) The Panel may order that any
documents submitted in languages other than the language of the administrative
proceeding be accompanied by a translation in whole or in part into
the language of the administrative proceeding.
12. Further Statements
In addition to the complaint and the response, the
Panel may request, in its sole discretion, further statements or documents
from either of the Parties.
13. In-Person Hearings
There shall be no in-person hearings (including hearings
by teleconference, videoconference, and web conference), unless the Panel
determines, in its sole discretion and as an exceptional matter, that
such a hearing is necessary for deciding the complaint.
14. Default
(a) In the event that a Party,
in the absence of exceptional circumstances, does not comply with any
of the time periods established by these Rules or the Panel, the Panel
shall proceed to a decision on the complaint.
(b) If a Party, in the absence
of exceptional circumstances, does not comply with any provision of,
or requirement under, these Rules or any request from the Panel, the
Panel shall draw such inferences therefrom as it considers appropriate.
15. Panel Decisions
(a) A Panel shall decide a complaint
on the basis of the statements and documents submitted and in accordance
with the Policy, these Rules and any rules and principles of law that
it deems applicable.
(b) In the absence of exceptional
circumstances, the Panel shall forward its decision on the complaint
to the Provider within fourteen (14) days of its appointment pursuant
to Paragraph 6.
(c) In the case of a three-member
Panel, the Panel's decision shall be made by a majority.
(d) The Panel's decision shall
be in writing, provide the reasons on which it is based, indicate the
date on which it was rendered and identify the name(s) of the Panelist(s).
(e) Panel decisions and dissenting opinions shall
normally comply with the guidelines as to length set forth in the Provider's
Supplemental Rules. Any dissenting opinion shall accompany the majority
decision. If the Panel concludes that the dispute is not within the
scope of Paragraph 4(a) of the
Policy, it shall so state. If after considering the submissions the
Panel finds that the complaint was brought in bad faith, for example
in an attempt at Reverse Domain Name Hijacking or was brought primarily
to harass the domain-name holder, the Panel shall declare in its decision
that the complaint was brought in bad faith and constitutes an abuse
of the administrative proceeding.
16. Communication of Decision
to Parties
(a) Within three (3) calendar
days after receiving the decision from the Panel, the Provider shall
communicate the full text of the decision to each Party, the concerned
Registrar(s), and ICANN. The concerned Registrar(s) shall immediately
communicate to each Party, the Provider, and ICANN the date for the
implementation of the decision in accordance with the Policy.
(b) Except if the Panel determines otherwise (see Paragraph 4(j) of the Policy),
the Provider shall publish the full decision and the date of its implementation
on a publicly accessible web site. In any event, the portion of any
decision determining a complaint to have been brought in bad faith (see
Paragraph 15(e) of these Rules) shall be published.
17. Settlement or Other Grounds
for Termination
(a) If, before the Panel's decision,
the Parties agree on a settlement, the Panel shall terminate the administrative
proceeding.
(b) If, before the Panel's decision
is made, it becomes unnecessary or impossible to continue the administrative
proceeding for any reason, the Panel shall terminate the administrative
proceeding, unless a Party raises justifiable grounds for objection
within a period of time to be determined by the Panel.
18. Effect of Court Proceedings
(a) In the event of any legal
proceedings initiated prior to or during an administrative proceeding
in respect of a domain-name dispute that is the subject of the complaint,
the Panel shall have the discretion to decide whether to suspend or
terminate the administrative proceeding, or to proceed to a decision.
(b) In the event that a Party
initiates any legal proceedings during the pendency of an administrative
proceeding in respect of a domain-name dispute that is the subject of
the complaint, it shall promptly notify the Panel and the Provider.
See Paragraph 8 above.
19. Fees
(a) The Complainant shall pay
to the Provider an initial fixed fee, in accordance with the Provider's
Supplemental Rules, within the time and in the amount required. A Respondent
electing under Paragraph 5(b)(iv) to have the dispute
decided by a three-member Panel, rather than the single-member Panel
elected by the Complainant, shall pay the Provider one-half the fixed
fee for a three-member Panel. See Paragraph 5(c).
In all other cases, the Complainant shall bear all of the Provider's
fees, except as prescribed under Paragraph 19(d).
Upon appointment of the Panel, the Provider shall refund the appropriate
portion, if any, of the initial fee to the Complainant, as specified
in the Provider's Supplemental Rules.
(b) No action shall be taken by
the Provider on a complaint until it has received from Complainant the
initial fee in accordance with Paragraph 19(a).
(c) If the Provider has not received
the fee within ten (10) calendar days of receiving the complaint, the
complaint shall be deemed withdrawn and the administrative proceeding
terminated.
(d) In exceptional circumstances,
for example in the event an in-person hearing is held, the Provider
shall request the Parties for the payment of additional fees, which
shall be established in agreement with the Parties and the Panel.
20. Exclusion of Liability
Except in the case of deliberate wrongdoing, neither
the Provider nor a Panelist shall be liable to a Party for any act or
omission in connection with any administrative proceeding under these
Rules.
21. Amendments
The version of these Rules in effect at the time of
the submission of the complaint to the Provider shall apply to the administrative
proceeding commenced thereby. These Rules may not be amended without the
express written approval of ICANN.