National Arbitration Forum

 

DECISION

 

Citigroup Inc. and Diners Club International Ltd. v. Citibank, N.A.

Claim Number: FA0507000508460

 

PARTIES

Complainant is Citigroup Inc. and Diners Club International Ltd. (collectively, “Complainant”), represented by Paul D. McGrady, of Greenberg Traurig, LLP, 77 West Wacker Drive, Suite 2500, Chicago, IL 60601.  Respondent is Citibank, N.A. (“Respondent”), represented by Paul D. McGrady, of Greenberg Traurig, LLP, 77 West Wacker Drive, Suite 2500, Chicago, IL 60601.

 

REGISTRAR AND DISPUTED DOMAIN NAMES 

The domain names at issue are <citigroupcib.com>, <citibankon-line.com>, <citionlin.com>, <dinersclubsus.com> and <dinnercardclub.com>, registered with Compana, Llc.

 

PANEL

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.

 

Steven L. Schwartz as Panelist.

 

PROCEDURAL HISTORY

Complainant submitted a Complaint to the National Arbitration Forum electronically on July 1, 2005; the National Arbitration Forum received a hard copy of the Complaint on July 5, 2005.

 

On July 8, 2005, Compana, Llc confirmed by e-mail to the National Arbitration Forum that the domain names <citigroupcib.com>, <citibankon-line.com>, <citionlin.com>, <dinersclubsus.com> and <dinnercardclub.com> are registered with Compana, Llc and that 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 July 14, 2005, a Notification of Complaint and Commencement of Administrative Proceeding (the “Commencement Notification”), setting a deadline of August 3, 2005 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@citigroupcib.com, postmaster@citibankon-line.com, postmaster@citionlin.com, postmaster@dinersclubsus.com and postmaster@dinnercardclub.com by e-mail.

 

A timely Response was received and determined to be complete on July 18, 2005.

 

On July 14, 2005, pursuant to Complainant’s request to have the dispute decided by a single-member Panel, the National Arbitration Forum appointed Steven L. Schwartz as Panelist.

 

 

RELIEF SOUGHT

Complainant requests that the domain names be transferred from Respondent to Complainant.

 

Procedural Issues

 

The WHOIS information currently reflects that the domain names are registered to Citibank N.A., an affiliate of Co-Complainant Citigroup, Inc.  Prior to initiation of the Complaint, the Registrant of the disputed domain names was listed as Manila Industries, Inc.  After the Complaint was filed, the WHOIS contact information for the disputed domain name was changed to “Citibank N.A.,” so it would appear that an affiliate of Complainant is the current Registrant of the domain name.  However, the disputed domain names are password protected, and, as such, Complainant is unable to access the domain names and assert control of them. 

 

Therefore, Complainant has gone forward in filing this amended Complaint naming its affiliate, Citibank N.A., as Respondent, in accordance with the current WHOIS information.  Respondent, Citibank N.A, then responded to the Complaint, agreeing to and authorizing transfer of the domain name to Complainant.  The Panel finds that where such a stipulation is made, the Panel may forgo the usual UDRP analysis and need only order the transfer of the domain name registration.  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 Respondent stipulated to the transfer); see also Malev Hungarian Airlines, Ltd. v. Vertical Axis Inc., FA 212653 (Nat Arb. Forum Jan. 13, 2004):

 

In this case, the parties have both asked for the domain name to be transferred to the Complainant . . . Since the requests of the parties in this case are identical, the Panel has no scope to do anything other than to recognize the common request, and it has no mandate to make findings of fact or of compliance (or not) with the Policy.

 

In PSC Mgmt. Ltd. P’ship v. PSC Mgmt. Ltd. P’ship, FA 467747 (Nat. Arb. Forum June  6, 2005), a previous UDRP decision involving nearly identical circumstances and also featuring Manila Industries, Inc. as the originally-listed Registrant, the panel authorized transfer of the disputed domain name where the complainant and the respondent were listed as the same party, PSC Management Limited Partnership, and the transfer request was uncontested.

 

DECISION

Having concluded that parties have stipulated to the transfer of the disputed domain names and pursuant to the ICANN Policy and decisions pertinent to this case, the Panel concludes that relief shall be GRANTED.

 

Accordingly, it is Ordered that the <citigroupcib.com>, <citibankon-line.com>, <citionlin.com>, <dinersclubsus.com> and <dinnercardclub.com> domain names be TRANSFERRED from Respondent to Complainant.

 

 

 

 

Steven L. Schwartz, Panelist
Dated: August 3, 2005