California Milk Processor Board v. Joseph verdone
Claim Number: FA1702001718561
Complainant: California Milk Processor Board of San Clemente, California, United States of America.
Complainant Representative: Stephen J Byers, of Gold River, California, USA.
Respondent: Joseph verdone, of Scottsdale, Arizona, United States.
Respondent Representative:
REGISTRIES and REGISTRARS
Registries: NeuStar
Registrars: GoDaddy.com, LLC
The undersigned certifies that he has acted independently and impartially and to the best of his knowledge has no known conflict in serving as Examiner in this proceeding.
Jeffrey M. Samuels, as Examiner.
Complainant submitted: February 22, 2017
Commencement: February 27, 2017
Default Date: March 14, 2017
Having reviewed the communications records, the Examiner finds that the Forum has discharged its responsibility under usRS Procedure Paragraphs 3 and 4 and Rule 4 of the Rules for the .usTLD Rapid Suspension System (the "Rules").
Complainant requests that the domain name be suspended for the life of the registration.
Clear and convincing evidence.
Complainant California Milk Processor Board was formed by the State of California to promote the consumption of milk through marketing, advertising, promotion, and public relations. Complainant owns a number of U.S. trademark registrations for the mark “got milk?,” including Registration Nos. 1,903,870 and 2,689,741, as well as registrations for the mark around the world.
The disputed domain name, gotcannamilk.us, resolves to a pay-per-click (PPC) website with links to adult sex sites.
Even though the Respondent has defaulted, usRS Procedure 1.2.6 requires Complainant to make a prima facie case, proven by clear and convincing evidence, for each of the following three elements to obtain an order that a domain name be suspended.
1. The Examiner determines that the disputed domain name is identical or confusingly similar to a mark for which Complainant holds a valid national registration and that is in current use. In this regard, the Examiner notes that the disputed domain name incorporates the terms “got” and “milk.” The fact that such terms are separated by the term “canna” does not alleviate the confusing similarity between “got milk?” and gotcannamilk.us. Complainant indicates that “canna milk” is also known as “marijuana milk” and the Examiner takes judicial notice of the fact that California voters, in November 2016, approved Proposition 64 which legalizes recreational use of marijuana. The evidence further indicates that Complainant owns a number of registrations for its “got milk?” mark and that such mark in in current use.
2. The Examiner finds that Complainant has met its burden of establishing that Respondent has no rights or legitimate interests in the disputed domain name. As noted above, the domain name resolves to a PPC site and the domain name is confusingly similar to Complainant’s “got milk?” mark. Under such circumstances, it cannot be held that Respondent is making a bona fide offering of goods or services at the gotcannamilk.us website.
3. The Examiner concludes that the disputed domain name was registered or is being used in bad faith. The evidence supports a determination that Respondent has intentionally attempted to attract, for commercial gain, internet users to its gotcannamilk.us site by creating a likelihood of confusion as to the source, sponsorship, affiliation, or endorsement of such site. The fact that the disputed domain name resolves to PPC site featuring links to adult sex sites also supports a finding of the requisite bad faith.
After reviewing Complainant’s submissions, the Examiner determines that
Complainant has demonstrated all three elements of the usRS by a standard of clear and convincing evidence. The Examiner hereby Orders the following domain name be SUSPENDED for the duration of the registration.
gotcannamilk.us
Jeffrey M. Samuels, Examiner
Dated: March 17, 2017
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