MySchool.com lawsuit moves forward with a number of twists and turns

Lawyers withdraw, defendant asks for attorneys fees based on comment on DNW.

A lawsuit over the domain name MySchool.com is heating up, with the defendant’s lawyers citing a comment made on Reglike as grounds to recover attorneys fees.

Joseph Carpenter, who runs the site MySchool411.com, filed a federal lawsuit to get the domain name MySchool.com. This was following he lost two separate UDRP cases for the domain name.

Carpenter has switched lawyers in the case multiple times. Most recently, his attorneys withdrew from the case citing Rule 1.16(b) of the Rules of Professional Conduct. Carpenter is now representing himself.

The owner of the domain name, Original Web Ventures, bought the domain name for $42,000. Original Web Ventures’ attorneys, Wiley Rein, have filed a motion for summary judgement in the case. The motion also requests Carpenter to pay attorneys fees. One of the reasons cited for recovery of attorneys fees is a comment Carpenter allegedly made on Reglike.

That comment states (in part) that Carpenter is pursuing this litigation to “keep running up [the registrant’s] bills on purpose and make this the most expensive domain he will ever buy in his life.”

Meanwhile, Carpenter’s MySchool is also suing developers (pdf) that worked on its site.