Published Works | World Trademark Review | 11 July 2023

UDRP: personal names generally evidence respondents’ rights

Hale Law, the owner of the mark GO TO HALE, sought the transfer of ‘gotohale.com’ under the UDRP.

The panel found that the respondent held the legitimate right of priority, as he registered the domain name 20 years before the registration of the complainant's mark. Use of one's own surname in a domain name is generally sufficient evidence of a right or legitimate interest in that domain name.

Download PDF Back To Listing