Domain name administrators and registrars operate on a first-come first-served basis. Over time, using a domain name will in itself establish some rights to that domain name, particularly if you also publicise that domain name (for example, on your letterhead).
However, the fact that someone has registered a domain name does not automatically mean that they have the best right to it. If the domain name incorporates a registered trademark, the owner of that trademark may well have stronger rights to the name. For this reason, you should consider registering your domain name as a trademark.
In many cases, several businesses could have rights to a domain name, particularly when a domain name describes a product rather than using a company name or trademark.
In practice, two other important factors come into play in many domain name disputes.
- You are more likely to win a dispute with someone who has registered a domain name if you can show that they registered it (or they are using it) in bad faith. Bad faith might include registering a domain name using your trade mark in order to sell it to you (or a competitor), or to pass their website off as being related to your business.
- Large companies, with deep pockets, may be prepared to run up large legal bills pursuing a domain name.
As disputes can be complex, you should take advice on your particular circumstances.
