Decisions: Oh Brother!

The National Arbitration Forum (NAF) does not typically have to resolve family feuds, but that is what the body was tasked with when Reed Bousada filed a UDRP complaint against his brother, Jay Bousada, over the domain name Bousada.com.

The Complainant, Reed Bousada, alleges that his surname has been affiliated with a number of family businesses since the 1950’s, one of which, Bousada Interiors, he is now in charge of. He explains that he hired his brother “many years ago” to set up the website for the business using the disputed domain, but his brother registered the domain in his own name instead and after allowing his brother to use the domain for the business for a short period, decided to use it for personal purposes.

Jay Bousada, the Respondent, contends that he was never paid for his services of registering the domain and setting up the site and that, because the domain is registered in his name, he has the right to use it for whatever purpose he sees fit.

The NAF Panelist who had to sort through all of this dirty laundry ultimately decided that the dispute is more of a business or contractual dispute than a UDRP issue and dismissed the case, suggesting that another legal forum could better handle the matter (perhaps they should bring this matter before their mother?)

This sort of family drama rarely sees the UDRP stage, but when it happens in cases like this one, it’s clear that it is not the appropriate venue. Ultimately, the Complainant, seeking a quick fix, wasted time and money in choosing to file a UDRP case, which should be a lesson to all business owners facing similar issues.