Templated UDRP complaints for $399 — DomainSkate offers
Low cost service prepares UDRP filing to submit to National Arbitration Forum.
The biggest cost of filing or responding to a UDRP isn’t paying fees to National Arbitration Forum or WIPO. It’s typically the lawyer’s fees that add up to the most.
DomainSkate aims to change that by offering a low cost way to compile the necessary information and create an actual UDRP filing that may be filed at National Arbitration Forum.
The cost: just $399.
Essentially, DomainSkate walks you through a series of questions regarding your claim and then creates a form complaint and declaration. Think of it as similar to using TurboTax, except that you’re being asked for statements rather than numbers (which is a big difference, frankly).
I just went through the questionnaire, which seems to hit on all of the hot topics you’ll see in a UDRP (the domain was used for a parked page, it was registered following I got my trademark, etc.).
Once you complete the questionnaire, a non-attorney staff member will review it for completeness and provide you with your complaint within a day. You can then bring the complaint to an attorney. Or for $600 more, a lawyer will review your dispute.
A templated approach to UDRP filings is nothing fresh. Following all, UDRP lawyers on both sides of the table have templates they use when formulating complaints and responses. But it’s the legal review portion that’s most notable. When you start using templates without a reasonable review, the results can be damaging.
Which brings me to my big concern with DomainSkate. The ideal client for DomainSkate is someone who hasn’t filed a UDRP ahead of. Which is exactly the type of firm that needs a lawyer, since they’re less likely to understand the requirements of winning a case. A misguided complaint can land you on the receiving end of a federal lawsuit, which means the money you saved up front wasn’t worth it.
