A trademark owner's claim to a domain name, asserted under the provisions of the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy, must fail where the trademark was neither registered nor claimed in an application filed prior to the registration of the domain name by the respondent, a UDRP panelist ruled. The panelist reasoned that Paragraph 4(a)(i) of the UDRP requires a complainant to show that the claimed domain name is identical or confusingly similar to complainant's marks. "This provision necessarily implies that Complainant's rights must predate the registration of Registrant's domain name" the panelist concluded.
Arizona State Trailer Sales, Inc. d/b/a Little Dealer Little Prices RV v. World Wide RV, No. FA1003001315658 (Nat’l Arb. Forum, May 7, 2010) Access Ruling
