I built a site for a friend of mine for his business. I purchased the domain in my own name on my GD account, one which reflected his company name. His business then went bankrupt, rendering the site useless for him. I then decided to develop the site for my own means, now he has started up a new company, and wants the domain and site. He's threatening legal action, friends in the police, I'll be banged up for years etc, getting a lot of nasty emails. He didn't have the domain trademarked, and its a ccTLD, so it's not like I can just push it to him anyway. Also, who legally owns the content of the site?
that's an interesting one... i'm hearing your say first that you purchased the domain under his company name on your account. when that company went bankrupt - what happened to the assets? there's a few kinds of bankruptcy - one in which things continue to operate and another in which everything is liquidated / sold / etc. if things were liquidated, then the bankrupt company name should of sold that domain along with it's assets. that might be a starting point for ya to investigate? after that - its best if you can find a solution outside of court.. and threatened legal action is far from actual legal action... it costs a lot of money and time to pursue these things legally - so he might just be bluffing. you could try to sit down and talk (although it sounds a little beyond that), or request you talk together with a mediator. also, where the domain is registered, what do they show for ownership? if you could contact them and let them know the company is bankrupt and do some administration (change that name or move it to your own personal account), then it might "secure" the site for you. content? if you created it all... you could take it all down and save it to your computer (and remove it from the site) until this thing settles out - given you've uploaded it previously. good luck!
It really depends on what, if any, agreement was. If it was agreed that you purchased the domain for him, then it is his domain. If the content was his, you can't take it just because he went out of business or bankrupt. If the content was created by you, then it would be yours, but not the domain. In the US, a person can acquire trademark rights upon usage. They do not have to obtain a registered trademark. After 3 years on non-use, it can be abandoned, but that doesn't appear to be the case. Since you registered the domain with his company name, I would say he is going to have a good legal argument that it was his domain. If he went through a legal bankruptcy, the ownership could have been sold to pay creditors. I don't really see your argument that it is yours just because you used your account to purchase it for him. If there is more to the story, then you should consult an attorney - otherwise I would suggest you try to work it out with him.
Thanks for that, appreciate your detailed reply. I couldn't be sure what kind of bankruptcy it was, is there any way of finding out? I'm guessing its a bluff, but can't be sure. Some of the threats are quite vicious, bordering on me being attacked if i don't comply. We have tried to negotiate something, but talks keep breaking down. whois shows his old company name and old address. Regarding the content I have it all here and on my server, as does he on his, but as I have control of the domain its pointing to mine.
There was no agreement. All content was created by me, he had no input with the site whatsoever. There is a bit more to the story. His company was rather unscrupulous to say the least - lets just say if I were to print off the database of all customers and somebody were to contact each one I could guarantee over 50% would complain about the service they received, from refunds not given to parts not delivered. Just from a moral stance I don't believe he deserves the site and domain, as I believe he will go on to do the same if he can. Also, he was rejected when applying for a new merchant account for the new company because of his past history with the old company, so im not sure what his plans are for the site.
If he hired you or gave you compensation for the content, then the content isn't yours. The domain ownership certainly doesn't sound like it is yours. Your moral compass does not give you the right to keep something that isn't yours. It doesn't matter is 100% of his customers are unhappy, it still doesn't grant you ownership. If you had no agreement, then you are going to be on shaky grounds on claiming ownership of any of it. If he decides to sue you, you could be looking at some hefty legal fees. I would buy the site from him, or give it back to him. You don't want to keep working on a site that is subject to be taken in a court decision - especially when it doesn't sound like you have a very solid argument for ownership. Spend a little money and see an intellectual property rights attorney and fully disclose everything to them. They could then tell you your options.
Thanks for the replies guys. I'm going to be sad to see something go that I worked so hard on, especially into the hands of a complete moron who doesn't have the slightest clue about websites. Better get on with the transfer. thanks again.
It depends on what country you are in. If you purchased the domain under your account on behalf of the company, let that company (not the individual) prove that it paid you, the company that went bust needs to provide paperwork showing that they are the legal owner, not the individual trying to take the high ground and threaten you. At the end of the day, he is operating under a different company, which is not the one that supposedly brought it in the first place! I would hold onto it and wait until you get a formal letter from his lawyer, at that stage then I would consider handing it over, but other than that just keep a low profile, shut the site down to a blank page, whois guard it and tell him you let it expire. Do not let arrogance win, hold on, until these threats turn into real formal letters, you have nothing to worry about. Just cease contact with him and if he is that serious, you will get a letter from his lawyer asking for your cooperation. Best of luck. Andy.
let him prove it is his, i mean we all know that if somebody has a domian and then does not renew it then it is public doman for others to register it - seems like a similar case here
I haven't handed it over yet. I've told him to go through the process so I can transfer. He hasnt replied for a few days, so I'm guessing he hasn't got a clue how to do that so far. What worries me is these threats of Police action, and being arrested here, having my passport taken away and thrown in jail. Can that happen?
Not aware of what the law says, my opinion is something like this: none of you have actually obtained any copyright certificate for your works so it will be a matter of hard debate if it goes to court. Legally you own the domain name since you purchased it and it appears in your account. Even if your friend obtains trademark on his business name, he cannot sue you now, since date of purchase of your domain is prior to his trademark registration. Now about contents of website, there is no proof, apart from digital footprints on server, as to who actually created or uploaded the data into web server. In case of no proof, maybe court will accept the IP Address infos and content owner will be the one who uploaded. Domain ownership still remains yours. Lastly, try not to refer to that person as a "friend", a friend will never threaten to sue you. Offer him an agreement price, sell the domain to him and get rid of the trouble. If you face legal issues, speak clearly and tell the truth, and express your wish that you do not want to grab his name or reputation of business, tell that it is not a profit but a liability for you, so let him buy the domain - off course, you being owner, you'll fix the price of domain.
One more thing, as much as you contest a legal issue, it will grow larger, so try to settle it out of court; if he is your friend, manage him somehow. These are smaller issues, doesn't deserve to be taken to court, it's loss of time & money for both of you.
Trademarks are established upon usage, NOT date of registration. You don't even need to register a trademark. It's best not to guess about legal matters that you have no knowledge about.
I had wondered this, and did a check on Companies House website in the UK, and the name is not trademarked. Not sure if UK laws differ from US on this.
I am not real familiar with trademark law in the UK, but in the US, it's called a common law trademark and it would appear that it also applies in the UK. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdom_trade_mark_law