The UDRP Blog™

In Family Watchdog LLC v. Lester Schweiss , WIPO Case No. D2008-0183 (William R. Towns, April 23, 2008), the Panel refused to transfer familywatchdog .com, familywatchdog .net, and familywatchdog .org to the owner of a U.S. Trademark Registration for the mark FAMILY WATCHDOG. In so doing, the Panel made clear the limitations of seeking redress under the UDRP . The Panel spent considerable effort recounting the facts and allegations between the parties, which involved multiple cease-and-desist letters, offers to sell the disputed domains, filing of trademark infringement complaints with the concerned registrars, and a pending petition before the TTAB to cancel the Complainant's federal trademark registration. Faced with conflicting factual claims and an assortment of legal claims, the Panel took the high road: "On the basis of the statements and documents submitted by the Parties, the Panel has concluded that this case involves disputes regarding trademark rights and usage, t...