Domain Names: Your Legal Rights In Scotland
Domain names have been the subject of legal disputes for several years now with companies complaining about domain name farming around brand and corporate names. Do you know what your rights are here in Scotland?
The registering and ownership of domain names here in Scotland is covered under UK law and provides substantial relief for many businesses. The most important issue when disputing a domain name is to establish your rights to that brand or business name.
In many cases this can be done by simply proving registration of your business name or trademark. This will almost always satisfy previous rights to domain names for both .uk and .eu domains. It may often be enough to satisfy complaints when challenging ’similar’ domain names that try to take advantage of slight changes to your brand or trademark.
If you have not registered your trademark then you will need to demonstrate a history of ‘use’ of that trademark and that the trademark is associated with your business. You would need to provide historical evidence including sales and advertising material bearing that trademark.
In simple terms, no one can take your registered business name or trademark and ‘beat you’ to registering it as a domain. You may also be able to dispute similar names that take advantage of your reputation.
There are several bodies that may hear your dispute including Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) and the Nominet Dispute Resolution Services (DRS). If you feel that your business, trademark of brand has been registered as a domain then speaking to your web service provider in Scotland may help. You should also approach a legal representative that specialises in internet law.
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