Domain was part of a consolidated cybersquatting case decided last month.
A man in Greece has filed a lawsuit (pdf) to overturn a UDRP decision against his domain name merit .bet.
Andreous Theoklis filed the lawsuit against NET Holding A.Ş., a Turkish Joint Stock Corporation, and Merit Turizm Yatirim ve Işletme A.Ş., a Turkish Joint Stock Corporation.
The defendants filed a UDRP in February against four domain names. The World Intellectual Property Organization panel consolidated the cases, even though Theoklis said he wasn’t affiliated with the other respondents.
Theoklis didn’t file a formal response to the UDRP, and the panelist ordered the domains transferred in a decision rendered on April 29.
The lawsuit was filed in Arizona, where the domain registrar is located.
Theoklis is asking for declaratory judgment that his registration of the domain is lawful, and that the court find this was a case of reverse domain name hijacking.
This situation illustrates why a UDRP decision is not necessarily the final word. Under Paragraph 4(k) of the UDRP Rules, a registrar must suspend a transfer order if the domain registrant files a lawsuit in a court of mutual jurisdiction (such as a US federal court under the ACPA) within 10 business days. This pivots the dispute from a quick administrative process into federal litigation with de novo review. For a step-by-step checklist on how to halt a transfer and challenge a panel decision in court, see this guide: Challenging a UDRP Decision in Court – https://udrpauthority.com/how-to-challenge-udrp-decision-detailed-guide-and-checklist.html