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Negotiation Disclaimer

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Hello Mods and Mems,

What I'd like to discuss here... have any of you used any type of a Negotiation Disclaimer?
I've seen them before but never took the time to actually copy one.

What I'm talking about is, (just an example) you have a 3LLL com. A company approaches you with an offer. You go back and forth, lots of documented convo, and BAM, they file on you

Now we have seen this turn into a reverse hijack situation in the past.
It's been suggested that with an upfront disclaimer, ie, "any convo cannot be used in a case, etc.",you're safe.

Anyone have any examples of these types of disclaimers?

Peace,
Cyberian
 
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The views expressed on this page by users and staff are their own, not those of NamePros.
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This is a wheel which gets re-invented by domainers time and time again. Every now and then, someone comes up with the idea that there is some magic legal voodoo token which will ward off UDRP complaints.

Short answer - it's a waste of time.

Longer answer - UDRP panels have used this sort of thing to argue that the domain registrant was a cybersquatter, thus having the exact opposite effect from that intended.

This is like the dumb "legal notices" that are used in online prostitution advertising.... "By contacting me, you agree that you are not law enforcement, and that you are not soliciting prostitution." Yeah, right. The only thing that does is scream "This is a prostitution ad."

These things always remind me of how small children "hide" by putting their hands over their faces, thinking that if they can't see you, then you can't see them. It looks about as sophisticated as well.

So, let's say you follow the suggestion above, and put this in your emailed attempt to unilaterally impose some kind of binding condition on the other side, and say your communications:

"cannot be considered as binding agreement or be used as evidence in a judicial or administrative proceeding."

Okay, fine. Now they go and file a UDRP and include all the communications. What happens? Does lightning come down from the sky and strike them dead? No. There are no "UDRP Rules of Evidence". The same Panel which is going to decide whether to "consider" those communications is the same Panel which is going to rule on the case. It's not as if they are going to "unsee" the evidence, and it is not at all comparable to a court proceeding in which a judge decides whether the jury is going to see a piece of evidence or not.

If you have a name like, say, BudweiserBeers.tld, it's not going to make a smidgeon of difference to a panel whether or not you have some magic incantation in your emails or on your site.

Oh, incidentally, by reading this post, you hereby agree to pick me up some sandwiches and beer, and send over someone to give me a foot massage. That condition on this post is about as practically effective for your emails in the situation you are describing.

A much, much better approach is to build your defense into your reply in the first place. For example, you have the domain name MyCat.tld. You get an email asking about the name. You reply with a price, and then you find out that the inquirer was representing the Caterpillar equipment company and they file a UDRP.

You'd be much better off if your reply stated, upfront, "I think this is a great name for selling cat care products or other subjects having to do with cats..." and then go on to what you would want for it. By doing that, you've "built in" the defense to the UDRP and they aren't going to want to use your email as evidence. In fact, if they don't, then you get to point out that they left out the part where you were going on about why it's a valuable domain name.

You can see this sort of thing in action in this dispute:



In the present case, there had been correspondence between the parties before the Complaint was filed. The Complainant has relied on part of that correspondence – an offer for sale – to try and establish bad faith on the part of the Respondent. In this Panel’s view, that offer did not assist the Complainant because the disputed domain name has value independently of its significance as the Complainant’s trademark. That is, it has value because it is the name of a popular tourist destination and, as the Panel has found above, the Respondent did not register the disputed domain name in bad faith.


The Respondent points to a different part of that correspondence. On March 21, 2014, the Respondent (or its broker) sent an electronic message to the Complainant seeking to justify its position:


“I am sorry we were unable to come to agreement about this domain name. ‘Puket’ is a common spelling of a well-known resort island in Thailand, and the owner has used the domain name to advertise Thailand travel for a very long time. The owner does not believe use of the domain name as a common geographic indicator has anything to do with your claimed trademark, and looks forward to addressing your UDRP complaint if necessary.”

If you are concerned about your communications during a negotiation being used as evidence, then think about that for a moment. You are generating the evidence. You get to decide what is IN that evidence when you write it. Rather than engaging in a futile, pointless and ultimately counterproductive exercise to avoid the use of your communications as evidence, then what you should be doing is thinking about what you want that record to look like instead of how you intend to argue that the Panel shouldn't pay any attention to what's been put under their noses.

Finally, hurry up with those sandwiches.

A bit long winded, but I agree 100%.
 
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well put, Sir!

and

Thanks

imo...
 
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Thanks for stepping in Mr. Berryhill.
My question was geared more toward your MyCat example than the BudBeers example.
In any case, I, and the community as a whole, appreciate your time in giving such a detailed explanation.
So bottom line, don't bother. Gotcha.

Peace,
Cyberian

Oh yea, and the masseuse is on her way, with the sandwiches. Dill pickles, right?
 
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How about something included in your existing email signature disclaimer with a line something along the lines of:

"The contents of this email can not under any circumstances be used to form part of a legal case or legal dispute of any nature against the sender or the company represented on this email"

Edit: My bad, I only say the detailed kick @ss response from My Berryhill now :)
 
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i think a great defensive example was presented, should you feel the need to use one and if you have a domain that fits similar scenario:

where you're not really being defensive, but the statements of "generic usage" serve as... in a benign way, that position - to the aggressor... where it ( the email negotiation) cannot be presented as evidence of infringement.


at least that's what i got out of it for "incoming inquires".


:)

imo....
 
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So bottom line, don't bother.

You get lost in a strange city, and are looking for your hotel. You go up to some guy and ask for directions and he says, "Go three blocks and turn left. By the way, I assure you that's the way to the hotel, and it's not going to lead you into an alleyway where you will be jumped by my two brothers, one of them has a knife and one of them has a gun, and as long as you cooperate you won't get hurt. Nothing of that sort will happen. As a condition of following these directions, you agree not to tell the police about this conversation."

So, instead you get into a cab, and the cabbie says, "Oh, you want to go to the Hilton, no problem. I will take you straight there, and will not drive around to run up the meter and then hand you over to kidnappers who will force you to take all of your money out of an ATM before leaving you stranded. Nope. The Hilton here we come, just as long as you sign this form relieving me of responsibility for anything that might happen to you after I drop you off."

Be real. Be honest. Be yourself. Say why you think the name is worth what you are asking. Your defense to being blindsided by some obscure trademark claim you've never heard of is then built-in to what you've said. Always assume that whatever you send by email is going to show up as evidence somewhere. As you think about what you want to say to whomever you are addressing, also think about how it will look to someone else reading it.

If you've had the domain name since 2010, and you know there is someone running around with a trademark they acquired in 2015, then (a) first make sure the domain name isn't doing anything related to that trademark and (b) mention in your reply, "I've owned this domain name since 2010, and I believe it would be useful for (something other than the subject of the trademark)." Then, when you run across the usual statement in a c&d letter or a UDRP complaint which uses the stock phrase, "We recently became aware that you registered whatever.tld," you can point to where you TOLD them you've had it since 2010.

http://www.wipo.int/amc/en/domains/search/text.jsp?case=D2011-0005

In this case, the Panel is satisfied that the Complainant’s representatives were well aware of the importance of the chronological issue - the Respondent’s attorney had alluded to it in pre-action correspondence and indeed the Complaint specifically referred to the question of whether the disputed domain names predated the trade marks.
 
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@jberryhill ^^^^^

John,

See, this is a perfect example of why you are such a treasured member of this community.
Your posts are always helpful and educational, always concise and on point, and entertaining as well
We know how valuable your time is, and that you share some of it with us...
Well, it's just who you are.

Thanks brother, it is appreciated.

Peace,
Kenny
 
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