With the help of one of Trustiics's vetted IP lawyer, an Amazon seller successfully fought domain name squatting in China remotely from her office in Illinois, the U.S.. Here is more on the story:
The client: an Amazon seller in Illinois, the U.S.
An Amazon seller from Illinois, the U.S. primarily sells animal and insect nesting boxes under a unique brand name.
The problem: Her domain was registered by someone in China
In May 2022, the Amazon seller planned to register the domain name under her unique brand name but found out someone in China had already registered it.
What to do if your domain name is registered in a foreign country?
The Amazon seller spoke to her trademark lawyer in the U.S. and asked a series of questions:
- How could he find out who in China had registered the domain name, and whether the domain name squatting was illegal in China?
- Would she be able to get the domain name back?
- Could a lawyer in the U.S. help her with this? If not, where could she find a lawyer that had the knowledge and experience to accomplish this?
Her lawyer is a very experienced trademark lawyer in the U.S. and answered his questions, but could not help because the cybersquatting didn't happen in the United States.
The simple process to consult a vetted IP lawyer in China
Given the U.S. lawyer has used Trustiics platform for quite a few clients on China-related legal matters, he recommended the Amazon seller use Trustiics to connect with a vetted and experienced intellectual property (IP) lawyer in China to resolve this issue.
The Amazon seller soon registered on Trustiics and booked a free 15 minutes discovery call with a Trustiics support lawyer. She then placed a request with an IP lawyer Mr. Hong Zheng (profile view requires login) an English-speaking IP lawyer in Beijing with almost 20 years of practice experience in domain squatting and trademark protection. In less than three business days, the Amazon seller was able to book and completed a one-on-one consultation with this recommended IP lawyer on Trustiics, at a very reasonable pre-agreed fixed fee.
Efficient process to fight cybersquatting in China
The IP lawyer confirmed that what he was facing was a bad-faith "cybersquatting" case (glossary: domain name squatting) and that the most practical solution was to file a complaint to the "Asian Domain Name Dispute Resolution Centre."
The IP lawyer then submitted the complaint on behalf of the Amazon seller to the Asian Domain Name Dispute Resolution Centre. About one week later, the Asian Domain Name Dispute Resolution Centre assigned a panellist to decide the case. Fourteen days later, the panellist concluded that the Chinese squatter registered the domain name in bad faith and issued a judgment instructing the registrant to transfer the domain name back to the Amazon seller. The IP lawyer then assisted the Amazon seller in the process of transferring the domain to her ownership.
Getting your domain name back from a bad-faith squatter in less than 2 months
The Amazon seller was given a precise fee quote at the beginning of each step. Her fees amounted to about U.S.$3,000, including the arbitration cost, which he believes to be a small price to permanently recover such a valuable domain name. More importantly, with Trustiics, the Amazon seller successfully resolved the issue in China from start to finish in less than two months, all done without leaving her office in Illinois.
If your business facing domain squatting, trademark infringement or other legal issues in China, Sign up for a free Trustiics account, and browse, select and get a free quote from a lawyer based on your needs, including the highly recommended IP lawyer Mr. Hong Zheng.