"Confusingly Similar" in the Canadian Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy"

By Sheldon Burshtein^*

The Canadian Internet Registration Authority (CIRA) has adopted a domain name dispute resolution policy for the .ca registry. The CIRA Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (CDRP) and its related procedural rules, the CIRA Domain Name Dispute Resolution Rules (Rules), became operative on June 27, 2002.¹ The CDRP provides a domain name dispute resolution procedure that adopts many aspects of the Uniform Dispute Resolution Policy²(UDRP) adopted by the World Intellectual Property Organization in 1999. However, there are a number of very important differences from the UDRP. The first group of differences is directed to Canadian issues, including the Canadian Presence Requirements for Registrants.³ The second category of variations relates to the significantly narrower scope of complaint which can be decided under the CDRP. The third group is directed to procedural variations. These differences, which permeate the CDRP and the Rules, require careful attention by