Domain Names
The web is essential to ensure one’s online visibility to clients and consumers. However, no website without a domain name! The domain name is a distinctive sign that identifies companies, their products, and services. As an online address, but also as a rallying element for customers, the domain name represents a major stake for all economic actors, large groups as well as small companies. Arénaire Avocats lawyers assist you in the protection, enhancement, and defence of your domain names.
Arénaire Avocats: legal counsel on domain names
The protection of your domain names is part of a global strategy for the management of your distinctive signs, which include your trademarks, names, signs, and trade names.
Our expertise:
- Assistance and legal counsel in the choice and reservation of domain names with regard to their distinctiveness and protection possibilities.
- Prior art searches to verify the availability of domain names with respect to third party rights (prior domain names, trademarks, copyrights, company names, trade names, etc.).
- Risk assessment according to your objectives, your constraints, and your market. We are pragmatic and always strive to find the right balance between risk management and peaceful exploitation.
Once the domain name(s) have been validated, we proceed to reserve them with the competent organisations. We monitor the domain name portfolios, as well as their regular management (particularly for renewals).
Arénaire Avocats: drafting and negotiating domain name agreements
New projects, product diversification, international development, etc. are all reasons to transfer, license or acquire domain names. Our lawyers provide legal counsel and assist you in negotiating contracts. We draft your domain name transferring and licensing agreements, for optimal protection of your rights and interests.
Arénaire Avocats: domain name litigation lawyers
It is so easy to register domain names that cases of cybersquatting and infringement are frequent. As soon as a domain name is available, any person can, materially, register it, even if it is identical to a previous trademark or domain name! This can lead to commercial confusion for the holder of a prior right and confusion for the public.
Registering a domain name does not give its holder a property right, such as trademark rights. On the other hand, the use of an identical or similar domain name by a third party can be challenged on the basis of unfair competition and parasitism.
We assist and represent you in domain name disputes:
- Identification of fraudulent registrants via personal data disclosure procedures and pre-trial investigation measures (Article 145 of the French Code of Civil Procedure).
- Transparent analysis of cases: evaluation of chances of success and risks.
- Pre-litigation phase: cease and desist letters, safeguarding of evidence, negotiations, attempts at amicable settlement.
- Alternative dispute resolution via dedicated administrative procedures: in particular the UDRP procedure at WIPO for .com domain names, and PARL or SYRELI at AFNIC for .fr domain names.
- Litigation actions for trademark infringement and/or unfair competition before the competent courts.
Contact our team
Arénaire law firm is at the service of companies and designers based in Paris, in the Ile de France region, but also throughout France and abroad.
Domain names: our clients trust us
Over the years, our lawyers have developed expertise in domain name matters, both in legal counsel and in litigation:
- Legal counsel and representation of a leading French insurer in the recovery of domain names registered in bad faith.
- Legal counsel and representation of a European leader in decoration and furnishing in the recovery of a domain name registered in bad faith.
- Legal counselling and representing a uniform design agency in a dispute relating to a fraudulent trademark registration and the fraudulent registration of a domain name.
- Legal counselling in the context of domain name redemption proceedings.
- Setting up SnapBack procedures in order to recover domain names of interest.
- Management of domain name portfolios (registration of domain names, monitoring and supervision of the portfolio to ensure renewals)
- Legal counsel and representation of a SME in a dispute concerning the use of its domain name accused of infringing prior trademarks in the banking sector.
Are you looking for expert lawyers to assist you on the choice of your domain names? Do you need assistance in registering, renewing, or transferring your domain names? Are you a victim of cybersquatting, counterfeiting or unfair competition? Please contact us.