Fellowes Inc v Virtual System Management Ltd [2010] DRS 8752 (21 September 2010)

Fellowes Inc v Virtual System Management Ltd [2010] DRS 8752 (21 September 2010)

The complainant has established rights in the FELLOWES mark, which is identical or similar to the disputed domain names. The respondent's registration and potential use of the domains is likely to take unfair advantage of the complainant's rights and reputation, and there is no credible non-abusive use. The respondent failed to rebut the presumption of abusive registration. The domains are therefore abusive registrations and should be transferred to the complainant.

Citation
[2010] DRS 8752
Parties
Complainant: Fellowes, Inc.; Respondent: Virtual System Management Ltd
Jurisdiction
United Kingdom
Judgment Date
21 September 2010
Procedural Posture
Domain Name Dispute (nominet Drs) / Expert Decision
Outcome
Complaint upheld; domain names to be transferred to complainant.
Legal Topics
Trade Marks, Abusive Registration, Domain Name Transfer, Bad Faith Registration
Intellectual Property Domain Name Law Trade Marks Abusive Registration Domain Name Transfer Bad Faith Registration

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Parties

Fellowes, Inc.

Complainant

Virtual System Management Ltd

Respondent

Procedural Posture

Domain Name Dispute (nominet Drs) / Expert Decision

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the complainant has rights in a name or mark identical or similar to the domain names
  2. 2 Whether the domain names constitute abusive registration in the hands of the respondent

Ratio Decidendi

The complainant has established rights in the FELLOWES mark, which is identical or similar to the disputed domain names. The respondent's registration and potential use of the domains is likely to take unfair advantage of the complainant's rights and reputation, and there is no credible non-abusive use. The respondent failed to rebut the presumption of abusive registration. The domains are therefore abusive registrations and should be transferred to the complainant.

Court Disposition

Complaint upheld; domain names to be transferred to complainant.

Orders

  • Transfer of fellowes-store.co.uk to Fellowes, Inc.
  • Transfer of fellowesstore.co.uk to Fellowes, Inc.