Summary

Board approved proposed amendments to the Implementation Rules for the UDRP.

Text

Whereas, the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) was adopted and implemented in 1999 to provide efficient and cost-effective means to resolve disputes about usage and intellectual property rights in domain names;

Whereas, the Rules for Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (Rules) set forth uniform base-line rules for UDRP Providers to follow when administering UDRP cases;

Whereas, historically the Rules have required for UDRP complaints and responses to be submitted in hard copy and electronic form to the opposing party and to the provider;

Whereas, removing the requirement for hard-copy submission of complaints and responses could result in significant reduction in paper used in UDRP proceedings and in savings on printing and postage costs, and is likely to further enhance the efficiency of the UDRP process;

Whereas, the provision of written notice of the UDRP complaint filing should still be provided to a UDRP respondent, and under the proposed amendments to the Rules, the UDRP providers must provide respondents with written notice to all physical addresses and/or facsimile numbers as required today;

Whereas, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) proposed amendments to the Rules to allow for this electronic filing implementation change;

Whereas, the proposed amendments to the Rules were posted for public comment for 30 days < http://icann.org/en/announcements/announcement-13jul09-en.htm >, and received significant support in principle, including support from UDRP providers, so long as the hard-copy written notice requirement was explicit;

Whereas, some commenters expressed concern over the ability for UDRP providers to unilaterally modify their Supplemental Rules for items that are not specifically reserved for the UDRP providers to address, which may result in conflict with the standard Rules, and potentially impact the uniformity of the UDRP process;

Whereas, subsequent to the public comment period WIPO submitted revised amendments to the Rules to make the requirement for written notice more explicit;

Resolved (2009.10.30.07), the proposed amendments to the Implementation Rules for the UDRP as proposed by WIPO on 17 September 2009 < http://www.icann.org/correspondence/wilbers-to-jeffrey-17sep09-en.pdf > are approved.

Implementation Actions

  • Implement revisions to the UDRP Implementation Rules
    • Responsible entity: ICANN Office of the General Counsel and Services staff
    • Due date: None specified
    • Completion date: 7 December 2009 (posting); made mandatory for all UDRP proceedings effective 1 March 2010

Other Related Resolutions

  • TBD

Additional Information

  • No additional funding provided.
  • The revisions to the UDRP Implementation Rules, posted at http://www.icann.org/en/dndr/udrp/uniform-rules.htm, included a transition period to allow for UDRP provider system modifications and was made applicable to all UDRP proceedings in which a complain is submitted to a provider on or after 1 March 2010.

Explanatory text does not modify or override Resolutions.  See Board Resolutions Page for more information.

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