Received a UDRP or UA-DRP complaint? Defending your domain

A letter from the WIPO Center or another UDRP provider with a complaint against your domain is not yet a decision. But the deadline is strict: 20 days for the response, plus 4 days granted automatically if requested before it runs out (more only in exceptional cases), and in the .UA zone under martial law up to 14 days instead of them. Silence is the worst strategy: then the panelist sees only the complainant's arguments.

What people come to us with

• your domain was registered before the complainant's trademark appeared
• the domain is a common word or your surname, and someone has registered it as a mark
• a real business runs under this name, and you learned of someone else's mark from the complaint
• a former partner or client demands a domain you registered and paid for
• the complaint came in English, the clock is running, and it is unclear where to start

How we work

1. The complaint and the deadlines. We establish which policy the complaint was filed under — UDRP or UA-DRP — when the deadline expires and exactly what the complainant has to prove. Under UDRP they must show bad faith both at registration and in use; under UA-DRP one of the two is enough.
2. Evidence of legitimate interests. We gather what the policy recognises as a defence: the domain matches your name or business name; you offered goods or services under it in good faith before the complaint; the use is non-commercial and not misleading. A domain registration date earlier than the mark is a strong argument.
3. Response. We write the response in the language of the proceedings under the chosen provider's rules (up to 5,000 words at WIPO, 15 pages at FORUM) and file it in time. If needed, we opt for a three-member panel — then the Center's fee is split between the parties.
4. Reverse Domain Name Hijacking. If the complaint is clearly groundless — the complainant knew the domain was older than their mark, or is using the complaint as pressure instead of negotiating — we ask the panelist to find Reverse Domain Name Hijacking. If the panelist sees it, they are obliged to record it in the decision.
5. After the decision. If you lose — a settlement, or a claim in the court of mutual jurisdiction within 10 working days (in the .UA zone under martial law that period can be extended by up to 14 more days): while the court hears the case, the domain is not transferred. In court you are represented by the advocate on our team.

What matters

If the domain really was registered to target someone else's mark and resell it, we will not advise fighting. We say so plainly and help negotiate a transfer on acceptable terms — better than a lost decision with a finding of bad faith.

A response is filed without a fee: for a single panelist the complainant pays. You pay the Center only if you yourself insist on a three-member panel — and then only your share.

The procedure does not award damages: the worst outcome for you is transfer or cancellation of the domain. Panelists find Reverse Domain Name Hijacking more and more often: 86 such decisions at WIPO and FORUM in 2025 against 47 in 2022 — as of October 2026, many of them against complainants without a lawyer or with complaints written by AI.

Send us the complaint — we will tell you whether there is something to fight for, within one working day.