Legal Issue Ongoing with Bodog Domain

A key motion in the Washington state court was filed on November 13 by Bodog Entertainment Group, S.A., claiming that 1st Technology, seized several of their domain names and related trademarks.


"This is a new legal issue triggered by the emergence of Internet technology," Defense team lawyer James Nguyen,  at Foley & Lardner LLP explained.


Currently there are no legal decisions in Washington on this issue, and the defending legal team wants the judge to look into the already established law of Virginia, where it states domain names should not be subject to seizure.


"In a number of jurisdictions, trademarks are not considered assets that are subject to seizure," states Nguyen.


Founder of Bodog, Calvin Ayre made his feelings known by saying, "The company in court from whom our domains were seized has never done any business in the U.S. nor was [it] aware of being served or that a subsequent default judgment had been issued in [its] absence," he said. "The company is now a defunct ex-supplier of data entry and domain management services to Bodog. Bodog is still and has always been the beneficiary of the Bodog domain names. We are confident that defendant's legal team can articulate these facts in addition to convincing the Washington judge to take consideration of the established Virgina law with regards to domain names. This is a groundbreaking case in the muddy waters of Internet law, and we are confident that we have many aspects in our favor to potentially solidify some clarity on this issue and have our domains returned to us."