Woodfin Suite Hotels, LLC v.
Claim Number: FA0710001094577
PARTIES
Complainant is Woodfin Suite Hotels, LLC (“Complainant”), represented by John
C. McElwaine, of Nelson Mullins Riley &
REGISTRAR AND DISPUTED DOMAIN NAME
The domain name at issue is <woodfinsuiteshotels.com>, registered
with Compana,
LLC.
PANEL
The undersigned certifies that he has acted independently and
impartially and to the best of his knowledge has no known conflict in serving
as Panelist in this proceeding.
James A. Carmody, Esq., as Panelist.
PROCEDURAL HISTORY
Complainant submitted a Complaint to the National Arbitration Forum
electronically on
On October 31, 2007, Compana, LLC confirmed by e-mail to the
National Arbitration Forum that the <woodfinsuiteshotels.com> domain name
is registered with Compana, LLC and that
the Respondent is the current registrant of the name. Compana, LLC
has verified that Respondent is bound by the Compana,
LLC registration agreement and has thereby agreed to resolve domain-name
disputes brought by third parties in accordance with ICANN’s Uniform Domain
Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Policy”).
On November 2, 2007, a
Notification of Complaint and Commencement of Administrative Proceeding (the
“Commencement Notification”), setting a deadline of November 23, 2007 by which
Respondent could file a Response to the Complaint, was transmitted to
Respondent via e-mail, post and fax, to all entities and persons listed on
Respondent’s registration as technical, administrative and billing contacts,
and to postmaster@woodfinsuiteshotels.com
by e-mail.
A Response was received and determined to be complete on
On November 30, 2007, pursuant to Complainant’s
request to have the dispute decided by a single-member Panel, the National
Arbitration Forum appointed James A. Carmody, Esq., as Panelist.
RELIEF SOUGHT
Complainant requests that the domain name be transferred from
Respondent to Complainant.
PARTIES’ CONTENTIONS
A. Complainant
1. The <woodfinsuiteshotels.com> domain name at issue is confusingly similar to Complainant's marks.
2. Respondent has no rights or legitimate interests in the disputed domain name.
3. Respondent registered the disputed domain name in bad faith.
B. Respondent
Respondent filed a Response which consents to the relief requested by Complainant.
FINDINGS
Prior to the
registration of the domain name at issue, Complainant established its common
law rights in the WOODFIN trademark and its family of related WOODFIN marks,
including WOODFIN SUITE HOTEL, through its extensive use of such marks for
almost twenty years prior to the registration of <woodfinsuiteshotels.com>.
See ZRT Lab., LLC v.
The Respondent has
filed a Response which does not dispute Complainants allegations and which
consents to the relief requested by Respondent.
DISCUSSION
Paragraph 15(a) of the Rules for Uniform Domain
Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Rules”) instructs this Panel to “decide a
complaint on the basis of the statements and documents submitted in accordance
with the Policy, these Rules and any rules and principles of law that it deems
applicable.”
Paragraph 4(a) of the Policy requires that the Complainant must prove
each of the following three elements to obtain an order that a domain name
should be cancelled or transferred:
(1) the domain name registered by the Respondent
is identical or confusingly similar to a trademark or service mark in which the
Complainant has rights;
(2) the Respondent has no rights or legitimate
interests in respect of the domain name; and
(3) the domain name has been registered and is being
used in bad faith.
Preliminary Issue: Consent to Transfer the
Subject Domain Name
Respondent has not disputed Complainant’s allegations
regarding the <woodfinsuiteshotels.com> domain
name. Rather, Respondent has
consented to a decision in favor of Complainant and has authorized the
immediate transfer of the subject domain name.
The Panel finds that in a circumstance such as this, where
Respondent has consented to the transfer of the disputed domain name, the Panel
decides to forego the traditional analysis and order the immediate transfer of
the domain name. See Boehringer
Ingelheim Int’l GmbH v. Modern Ltd. – Cayman Web Dev., FA 133625 (Nat. Arb.
Forum
DECISION
Having established all three elements required under the ICANN Policy,
the Panel concludes that relief shall be GRANTED.
Accordingly, it is Ordered that the <woodfinsuiteshotels.com> domain name
be TRANSFERRED from Respondent to Complainant.
James A. Carmody, Esq., Panelist
Dated: December 10, 2007
Click Here to return
to the main Domain Decisions Page.
Click
Here to return to our Home Page
National
Arbitration Forum