Legal

Domain disputes are generally resolved by a number of standards set up by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers in the Uniform Dispute Resolution Policy. Usually, a group of retired lawyers or judges with knowledge of intellectual property law will convene to decide who owns a specific Internet domain name.

Domain disputes are becoming more and more common because of the increasing value of domain names to businesses and corporations. Having the right domain name can make or break some companies. If a consumer cant easily find the company he is looking for, hell just move on to another company that is easy to find with the same product or service. Location! Location! Location!

Using the Lanham Act for Domain Disputes
Although the Lanham Act has been around since 1946–a long time before domain disputes–it is still the primary law used to settle domain disputes. The law deals with trademarks, and most domain disputes occur because a trademark owner finds that a domain name has been registered that is either identical or strikingly similar to the mark. The intellectual property lawyers working a domain name case are no doubt familiar with the Lanham Act.

There have been several important amendments to the Lanhan Act. In 1995 the Trademark Dilution Act was set up to protect famous trademarks from dilution by other marks. Also, the Anti-cybersqatting Consumer Protection Act of 1999 helps trademark owners delete or transfer domain names that are similar to their mark. These fairly recent amendments are crucial in settling domain disputes today.