Traverse Internet Law Disclaimer
The facts are unproven allegations of the Plaintiff and all commentary is based upon the allegations, the truthfulness and accuracy of which are likely in dispute.
UNITEDHEALTH GROUP INCORPORATED v. JOHN DOE a/k/a “DWIGHT COPPES”
DISTRICT OF MINNESOTA
0:09-CV-02274
FILED: 8/28/2009
More and more cybersquatting lawsuits are being filed through rather creative interpretations of trademark law. In this instance, “Unitedhealth” believes that the domain name containing “healthcare-united” is confusingly similar. From a domain name/cybersquatting standpoint, that is not the strongest argument. You should be aware that the use of a business’s exact trademark is not required for there to be trademark infringement or cybersquatting. Most uses are not exact copies of the trademark and the question of what exactly confuses the public is very much open to debate. Consequently, you may believe that you cannot obtain relief from domain name misuse when you can do so. And you may feel like you should be able to obtain a domain name when you cannot do so.
The Plaintiff is a Minnesota corporation engaged in the business of providing insurance and health related services since 1984. The Defendant, using an alias, acquired the domain name “healthcare-united.biz”. The Plaintiff alleges that the site is a phishing site being used to solicit bank account information and defraud consumers by deceiving Unitedhealth’s customers into believing that Defendant’s website is affiliated with Unitedhealth.
The Defendants have been sued for federal trademark infringement, common law trademark infringement, federal trademark counterfeiting, federal dilution, unfair competition, false advertising, cybersquatting, common law trademark infringement, dilution under state law, common law unfair competition, common law passing off, deceptive trade practices under the Minnesota Deceptive Trade Practices Act, and unjust enrichment. Plaintiff has requested preliminary and permanent injunctive relief, an order requiring Defendant to provide Plaintiff with detailed report on traffic to “healthcare-united.biz”and submit any and all domain names that contain the infringing mark to the court, actual damages, treble damages, statutory damages, attorneys’ fees, costs, and interest, and other relief the court deems just and proper. Traverse Internet Law Cross-Reference Number 1349.
