Case Number: D2022-3598
Complainant: Mind Gym PLC
Represented by: Lewis Silkin LLP
A corporate consultancy, based in the United Kingdom, which portrays itself as using psychology-based behavior science to help drive culture and well-being, has been hit with a ruling of Reverse Domain Name Hijacking for abusive use of the UDRP administrative process. The company, Mind Gym PLC, with offices in London and New York City, sought the transfer of mindgym.com from an Irish publishing company, Intuition Publishing Limited, which has owned mindgym.com since 1996. The case was filed with the World Intellectual Property Organization.
Mind Gym asserted, by and through its attorneys, of the firm of Lewis Silkin, LLP, that their numerous trademarks for the phrase, “Mind Gym”, including registrations in the United States, the United Kingdom and Europe. However, none of the registrations precedes the domain registration. In fact, the WIPO panel noted the company did not even exist until four years after the domain, itself, was registered.
For its part, the respondent argued it did have legitimate rights to keep the domain, even though the product for which it was registered was, ultimately, never developed.
The case was handled by a single WIPO panelist, W. Scott Blackmer. “In this case, the Domain Name was registered 26 years ago, a long delay for bringing a proceeding where the Complainant bears the ultimate burden of proof,” Blackmer wrote in his ruling. “Critically, the Domain Name was registered long before the Complainant acquired any trademark registrations and four years before the Complainant began doing business under the relevant name and claimed mark.”
The RDNH ruling was handed up November 23, 2022.
Source: https://www.wipo.int/amc/en/domains/decisions/pdf/2022/d2022-3598.pdf