IP: Heck look at the Freq Flyer miles you would get -- NSI Supports Forcing All Domain Disputes to Virginia

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

> NSI Supports Forcing All Domain Disputes to Virginia
>
>   Opposes EFF in Case Seeking Fairness in Where Such Disputes Are Heard
>
>     Electronic Frontier Foundation Media Release
>
>     For Delayed Release: August 2, 2001
>
>     Contact:
>
>      Eric Grimm, Attorney, Cyberbrief PLC,
>        eric.grimm () cyberbrief net,
>        +1 734-332-4900
>
>      Cindy Cohn, EFF Legal Director,
>        cindy () eff org,
>        +1 415 436 9333 x108
>
>    San Francisco - The EFF expressed dismay that Network Solutions, Inc.
>    (NSI) has stepped in to support the opposing side in an EFF case
>    involving a dispute between Canadian parties over a Canadian
>    trademark. NSI filed an amicus brief supporting the position that
>    small domain holders located all over the world should be forced to
>    defend their domain names in Virginia simply because NSI, which holds
>    the master list of domain names, is located there.
>
>    Pro bono counsel Eric Grimm of Cyberbrief PLC and the EFF had argued
>    that due process guarantees prevent a Virginia court from using the
>    fact that NSI is located in Virginia as a basis to force the Canadian
>    individual, Elliot Salmons, to defend his domain name in Virginia
>    rather than Canada. The case is a dispute between Mr. Salmons and a
>    large Canadian company about a Canadian trademark. NSI is not a party
>    to the suit.
>
>    Grimm said, "The notion that the United States Courts should extend
>    their reach extraterritorially to adjudicate wholly foreign lawsuits
>    is stunningly wrong and defies common sense. U.S. residents and
>    companies have found themselves on the receiving end of this problem
>    -- for example the recent Yahoo! case about electronic auctions. The
>    United States should set a better example."
>
>    The dispute arises from the domain name "technodome.com." Canadian
>    citizen Elliot Salmons registered the domain and was using it in a web
>    site for use by theater workers in Canada. Subsequently, a large
>    Canadian company, Heathmount A.E. Corporation decided that it wanted
>    to use the name for a planned amusement park, also to be located in
>    Canada. Rather than sue Mr. Salmons in Canada, where it clearly could
>    do so, Heathmount brought an action in Virginia under the
>    controversial Anti-cybersquatting Consumer Protection Act (ACPA)
>    against the domain name itself, forcing Mr. Salmons to locate
>    attorneys to defend the domain in a far away location under the
>    foreign law. Heathmount later abandoned its case, but on July 25,
>    2001, NSI filed an amicus brief supporting Heathmount's position over
>    that of the small domain holder.
>
>    "The EFF joined this case because we'd like to see an end to this kind
>    of rank 'forum shopping.' Individuals like Mr. Salmons, many of whom
>    have never even been to the United States -- much less Virginia --
>    should not be forced to defend their domains far from home, especially
>    when their opponents are located in the same jurisdiction and the case
>    arises under foreign law," noted Cindy Cohn, EFF's Legal Director. "It
>    is bad enough when large corporations do this kind of jurisdictional
>    maneuvering to gain an unfair advantage over smaller domain holders,
>    but now NSI has thrown its support behind this unconstitutional abuse
>    of the legal system. This act belies NSI's often made claim that it
>    remains neutral during domain name disputes. By filing a brief in
>    support of forcing small businesses and individuals to defend their
>    domains in Virginia, it has clearly shown itself to be on the side of
>    the large businesses that are seeking to gain an unfair advantage by
>    suing smaller domain holders far from home."
>
>    The case, Heathmount A.E. Corporation v. Technodome.com, 106 F.Supp.2d
>    860 (E.D. Va. 2000), is on appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the
>    Fourth Circuit. EFF will file a reply brief in August and oral
>    argument in the case is expected to be heard in September.
>
>    EFF's Brief in the Technodome case is available at:
>      http://www.eff.org/sc/heathmount/20010329_appellant_brief.html
>    or:
>      http://www.eff.org/sc/heathmount/20010329_appellant_brief.pdf
>
>    The NSI brief is not available in electronic format currently. If it
>    becomes available, the EFF will publish it on our website at
>    http://www.eff.org/sc/heathmount/ as soon as possible.
>
>   About EFF:
>
>    The Electronic Frontier Foundation is the leading civil liberties
>    organization working to protect rights in the digital world. Founded
>    in 1990, EFF actively encourages and challenges industry and
>    government to support free expression, privacy, and openness in the
>    information society. EFF is a member-supported organization and
>    maintains one of the most linked-to Web sites in the world:
>      http://www.eff.org/
>
>                                   - end -



For archives see: http://www.interesting-people.org/