Suing for return of a Domain Name?
I'm wondering if anyone has any experience suing for possession of a domain name. Not being sued but actually doing the suing.
I am working with a local non-profit and the domain name that they've been using for several years and which is the name of the organization is currently owned by a former employee. This person first lied about he fact that he owned the domain (he used a fake name on the registration) and has now admitted that he owns it but is now lying about his ability to transfer the domain name.
It's becoming increasingly clear that he does not want to give up control though we can't figure out why. The name is only valuable to the organization and he has not requested any kind of payment to transfer it back to us though we have offered to cover his expenses.
He is continuing to allow our site to be hosted on the domain and is even willing to update the name server to a new hosting company if we want to switch but he will not transfer control.
Obviously, having an outsider have control over the content of our site is not acceptable in the long-term. On at least one occasion in the past he has taken down the site and put up a for sale sign and there's nothing guaranteeing that won't happen in the future. At that time he also deleted all of the email addresses, databases, etc which cost the organization a lot of time and money.
Since he's being a dick we're probably going to have to sue him to regain control of the domain so I'm looking for advice and resources. The organization is a Mexican non-profit but the domain is a .org registered through a US registrar.
Does anyone have any suggestions or experience with this kind of thing? how long does it usually take? Would we have to sue him through the US or the Mexican courts? Do we actually have to sue him or can we just file a complaint with ICANN and, if so, under which policy?
Thanks in advance for any suggestions you can give.
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