Panelist admonishes musician’s company and lawyers for filing cybersquatting case.
Mexican-American singer and songwriter Ivan Cornejo has risen to fame in the past few years. Unfortunately for him, another person named Ivan Cornejo registered the domain name IvanCornejo.com before he did.
That didn’t stop his company, Ivan Cornejo LLC, from filing a cybersquatting complaint against the domain name. But panelist Sebastian Hughes ruled that it didn’t show the domain was registered and used in bad faith, and also found that the case was abusive and qualifies as reverse domain name hijacking.
Cornejo’s company was incorporated in 2022, filed a trademark in 2023, and claimed a first use in commerce for the trademark in 2021.
IvanCornejo.com was registered in 2020.
While his company argued that he rose to prominence in 2020, it did not provide evidence of this. It also didn’t show that common law trademark rights in his name were transferred to his company.
Hughes wrote:
In light of the fact both the [Complainant’s company] and its registration for the Trademark did not exist at the time of registration of the disputed domain name, Complainant and its legal representatives ought to have known that it would be impossible to demonstrate that, as contended by Complainant in the Amended Complaint, Respondent registered the disputed domain name with actual or constructive knowledge of Complainant’s then non-existent Trademark….
…Nonetheless, in all the circumstances, there can be no question that Complainant and its legal representatives ought to have appreciated that it would be unable to establish the third limb under paragraph 4(a) of the Policy.
The domain registrant reported that a buyer offered $20,000 for the name through GoDaddy’s broker service, but it could not be proven to be the musician’s company.
Even if the musician’s trademarks predated the domain registration, he would likely have lost the case because the registrant has a legitimate interest in registering a domain that matches his name.
Blank Rome LLP represented the musician’s company, and Howard & Howard Attorneys PLLC represented the domain name owner.
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