Noodle Time, Inc. v. Taro Yamada / Personal
Claim Number: FA1312001535951
Complainant is Noodle Time, Inc. (“Complainant”), represented by Janet C. Moreira of MAVEN Intellectual Property, Florida, USA. Respondent is Taro Yamada / Personal (“Respondent”), Japan.
REGISTRAR AND DISPUTED DOMAIN NAME
The domain name at issue is <benihanasystems.com>, registered with GMO Internet, Inc. d/b/a Onamae.com.
The undersigned certifies that he or she has acted independently and impartially and to the best of his or her knowledge has no known conflict in serving as Panelist in this proceeding.
Kenneth L. Port as Panelist.
Complainant submitted a Complaint to the National Arbitration Forum electronically on December 23, 2013; the National Arbitration Forum received payment on January 28, 2014. The Complaint was submitted in both English and Japanese.
On February 2, 2014, GMO Internet, Inc. d/b/a Onamae.com confirmed by e-mail to the National Arbitration Forum that the <benihanasystems.com> domain name is registered with GMO Internet, Inc. d/b/a Onamae.com and that Respondent is the current registrant of the name. GMO Internet, Inc. d/b/a Onamae.com has verified that Respondent is bound by the GMO Internet, Inc. d/b/a Onamae.com registration agreement and has thereby agreed to resolve domain disputes brought by third parties in accordance with ICANN’s Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Policy”).
On February 6, 2014, the Forum served the Japanese language Complaint and all Annexes, including a Japanese language Written Notice of the Complaint, setting a deadline of February 26, 2014 by which Respondent could file a Response to the Complaint, via e-mail to all entities and persons listed on Respondent’s registration as technical, administrative, and billing contacts, and to postmaster@benihanasystems.com. Also on February 6, 2014, the Japanese language Written Notice of the Complaint, notifying Respondent of the e-mail addresses served and the deadline for a Response, was transmitted to Respondent via post and fax, to all entities and persons listed on Respondent’s registration as technical, administrative and billing contacts.
A timely Response was received and determined to be complete on February 6, 2014.
On February 10, 2014, pursuant to Complainant's request to have the dispute decided by a single-member Panel, the National Arbitration Forum appointed Kenneth L. Port as Panelist.
Having reviewed the communications records, the Administrative Panel (the "Panel") finds that the National Arbitration Forum has discharged its responsibility under Paragraph 2(a) of the Rules for Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the "Rules") "to employ reasonably available means calculated to achieve actual notice to Respondent" through submission of Electronic and Written Notices, as defined in Rule 1 and Rule 2.
Complainant requests that the domain name be transferred from Respondent to Complainant.
Respondent agrees to transfer the <benihanasystems.com> domain name to Complainant, claiming that it has no desire to infringe on the BENIHANA mark. The Panel finds that in a circumstance such as this, where Respondent has not disputed the transfer of the disputed domain name but instead agrees to transfer the domain name in question to Complainant, this Panel shall forego the traditional UDRP analysis and order an immediate transfer of the <benihanasystems.com> domain name. See Boehringer Ingelheim Int’l GmbH v. Modern Ltd. – Cayman Web Dev., FA 133625 (Nat. Arb. Forum Jan. 9, 2003) (transferring the domain name registration where the respondent stipulated to the transfer).
Pursuant to Rule 11(a), the Panel determines that the language requirement has been satisfied through the Japanese language Complaint and Commencement Notification, and, as the Response was submitted in English, this Panel determines that the remainder of the proceedings may be conducted in English. Respondent has filed a Response that is in perfectly acceptable English demonstrating its ability to read and comprehend the English language at a sophisticated level.
The Respondent concedes that it has no interest in the domain name <benihanasystems.com>. As such, it is not clear what the motivation was to register the domain name if not for some “malintention” [sic], as Respondent claims. That being the case, the Respondent is commended for making this concession and attempting to avoid conflict. This greatly eases the burden for the Complainant and this Panel and a simple order to transfer the domain name is appropriate.
The Panel concludes that relief shall be Granted.
Accordingly, it is Ordered that the <benihanasystems.com> domain name be transferred from Respondent to Complainant.
Kenneth L. Port, Panelist
Dated: February 19, 2014
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