Because TGG is the best place to seek legal advice ... I'm wondering if any of the resident lawyers have experience with trademarks and domains. Specifically, I am considering registering a business and trademarking the company name but the domain name is already taken and used for nothing and it has been for years. I think someone is holding it with hopes to sell. If I have the trademark though - could I have some rights to the domain even though they registered it years ago?
This all depends on when you received the trademark and when that domain was bought. If you have the trademark and received it before that domain, then you definitely have a case. You really have one either way. You could use ICANN, which is a company that helps resolve issues such as these or you could file a trademark infringement lawsuit. I would go with the latter. You would need to show that you own the trademark and that a domain exists that is actively holding you back and impacting your potential profit, etc. etc.
If they have no good argument for keeping the domain name you have a good shot of getting it but here is a link to the anti-cybersquating legislation. http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/property00/domain/legislation.html There is a link in that page to the entire text of the bill.
What domain have they got - just the .com one? Surely there are others to register, there sure are here in the UK anyway. That's what I did, before approaching the holders of the domain I really wanted and offering them a very small transfer of ownership fee, which they accepted because they couldn't hold me to ransom any more and no-one else could realistically buy it now.
It's called squatting I believe... I know a few people that do it and from my understanding if you already have the name BEFORE the site was purchased you MAY have some claim to it but other than that...SOL... Just like everything else...I could be wrong
