Legal Question in Intellectual Property in Indiana

Re: Right to a domain name

Depends. Did your clearance search include the USPTO web site for all registered marks? Is the mark identical to the name you registered? What is the Fed. Registration no? Check it out and see if they really have a Federal mark. It may be a State Registration, which is almost worthless here. The fact that you couldn't find it does not get you off the hook. If they have a Federal Registration on the exact mark, and they were simply tardy in filing a registration for the domain name, they could probably win through the dispute resolution process set up for this purpose by ICANN. (Internet Corp. for Assigned Names and Numbers). As always, it is the specific facts of the situation that determines the respective parties' legal rights. TM rights are obtained through USE. Did they get an ITU (intent to use mark) and are still filing the Statement of Use? Did you have prior use of the mark in commerce? etc. etc. If the mark is valuable (a good location in Cyberspace) it may be worth fighting for. If the facts are against you, or the name is only so-so, sell it to them to recover your fees and transaction costs and simply register a new name for your enterprise. Good luck.

PS There are a lot of cyber-bullies out there who send out C&D (cease & desist) letters. Did this come from an attorney? Did it cite law? Is there an allegation of TM infringment? etc.