UDRP and URS: recovering or suspending a domain in .com, .net and the new gTLDs

UDRP is the only out-of-court procedure for recovering a domain in .com, .net, .org and any other gTLD, whatever the registrant's country. It is run by ICANN-accredited providers: WIPO, FORUM, CAC, ADNDRC and CIIDRC; we choose the provider for the case. For the new gTLDs there is also URS — a faster procedure that only suspends the domain.

What people come to us with

• a .com domain with your mark is for sale or held empty
• a clone site or phishing runs on a similar domain
• the registrant is abroad, and a demand letter will achieve nothing
• a site in a new gTLD (.shop, .online and the like) has to be stopped quickly
• the demand letter was ignored, or the reply was a price

The three elements

A complaint succeeds only when all three are proven — para. 4(a) of the UDRP Policy.

• The domain is identical or confusingly similar to your mark. Evidence: the trademark certificate or international registration and a comparison of the sign with the domain. An unregistered mark also qualifies if we prove the name has become your identifier: sales, advertising, press, recognition — the evidence needed is far greater.
• The registrant has no rights or legitimate interests in the domain. Evidence: they are not known by that name, hold no mark of their own, run no bona fide business under it, and the site is not a non-commercial or fair use.
• The domain was registered and is being used in bad faith. Evidence: an offer to sell you the domain, redirection to competitors, passive holding of a well-known mark, a series of such domains held by the registrant, registration after your mark appeared.

How we work

1. Assessment. We check the three elements against your documents and the registrant's site. If there is no chance, we say so at once and do not file.
2. Complaint. Under the chosen provider's rules (up to 5,000 words at WIPO, 15 pages at FORUM), with evidence: the certificate, screenshots, correspondence, the domain's history. We choose the provider and file.
3. Lock. The registrar locks the domain within 2 working days of the provider's notice: it can no longer be sold or transferred.
4. Response. The registrant has 20 days to respond (4 more automatically on request). Then a panelist is appointed, or a three-member panel if a party asks for one.
5. Decision. The panelist decides within 14 days of appointment. The registrar implements the decision after 10 working days, unless the registrant has filed a court claim. About two months in all — see the WIPO Center guide.

URS for the new gTLDs

URS is cheaper and faster than UDRP: a complaint of up to 500 words, the registry locks the domain within 24 hours, the registrant has 14 days to respond, and the decision comes a few days after the examination begins. The standard of proof is higher — "clear and convincing evidence" — and you need a registered word mark that you actually use, or a mark validated by a court or protected by statute or treaty. The outcome is only suspension of the domain until the end of its registration term (for one more year on your request); the domain is not transferred to you. URS is for stopping the harm, not for getting the domain. If you need the domain, we file UDRP.

What matters

UDRP does not award damages: the outcome is transfer or cancellation of the domain. If the domain was registered before your mark appeared and there is no evidence of bad faith, we will tell you that the complaint will lose, and we will not take it on.

The WIPO Center fee for a single panelist (1–5 domains) — $1,500, separate from our fee. At FORUM and CAC the fee is lower; we name the exact amount once the provider is chosen.

A three-member panel at WIPO — $4,000.

The FORUM fee for URS (1–14 domains) — $375.

A representative is not mandatory in UDRP. But a large share of the Reverse Domain Name Hijacking (RDNH) findings in 2025 — there were 86 of them (as of October 2026) — went against complainants who wrote the complaint themselves or with the help of AI. Panel practice is summarised in the WIPO Overview 3.1 (February 2026); we build the complaint on it.

Send the domain and the certificate number (if any) in a request — we will tell you whether the case passes the three elements.