28-11-2007 Bodog says Washington court did not have the power to seize its domain names

The online sports book operator filed a motion asking a Washington court to reconsider its prior ruling which permitted 1st Technology to seize Bodog domain names.

Bodog defense team lawyer James Nguyen said that because there are no current legal decisions in Washington, the judge should look to established law in the state of Virginia, where the second largest US domain name registrar is located, which holds that domain names should not be subject to seizure.

Furthermore, Nguyen also pointed out that in a number of jurisdictions, trademarks are not considered assets that are subject to seizure. "If a court does not have the power to permit seizure of trademarks, it likewise should not have the power to seize or transfer domain names which contain those trademarks," said Nguyen.

Bodog founder Calvin Ayre reiterated in multiple occasions that the case brought by 1st Technology was an extortion attempt and that 1st Technology CEO Scott Lewis was a patent troll. Mr Lewis said his lawyers tried for over a year between July 2005 and September 2006 to negotiate a licensing agreement with Bodog and only after not getting any reply they filed a lawsuit.