Rights of use regarding a domain name are largely determined by the applicable trademark law (which can be difficult to ascertain because of the global nature of the Internet).

Thus, even though you have validly registered a domain name, you do not necessarily have the right to use it in any way you choose.

In most cases, your right to use the domain name is determined by trademark law, not the rules and regulations involved in the registration. A scenario may help to explain the situation:

Scenario1: After a search of the .COM registry, Ace Plumbing, a small unincorporated business, determines that there is no registration for “aceplumbing.com”.

It then registers that domain name. However, a company called SuperPlumbing has a trademark registration in Canada for Ace Plumbing, covering plumbing products and services.

Can Ace Plumbing use the domain name?

Commentary: In this scenario, Ace Plumbing has validly registered the domain name ‘aceplumbing.com.’ However, if Ace Plumbing uses this name to sell or promote its plumbing products or services, then it is likely infringing the trademark owned by SuperPlumbing. As the trademark owner, SuperPlumbing has prior rights to the use of the name “Ace Plumbing” for plumbing products and services.

It could launch a court action for trademark infringement, and/or make a complaint under the .COM dispute resolution policy, if the dispute qualifies for this process.

Ace has the “right” to the domain name, in the sense that it has properly followed the technical requirements for registration and it can use this domain name to point to its IP number. However, its use of the name is limited, because of trademark law.

As this scenario shows, it is important to do further research into the proposed domain name. A thorough search, based on the use, products and/or services you intend to offer on the site, is essential.

This should include trademark, corporate, business name and domain name searches, for Canada and internationally. The purpose is to determine how useable the domain name is for its intended purposes. It may also provide you with information about potential legal problems based on trademark infringement.