{ "case_number": "CAC-UDRP-108943", "time_of_filling": "2026-08-25 10:53:31", "domain_names": [ "ghirardellisell.com" ], "case_administrator": " Iveta Špiclová (Czech Arbitration Court) (Case admin)", "complainant": [ "Chocoladefabriken Lindt & Sprüngli AG" ], "complainant_representative": "SILKA AB", "respondent": [ "普 王" ], "respondent_representative": null, "factual_background": "

The Complainant, founded in 1845, is a Swiss chocolate manufacturer and the holding company of the Lindt & Sprüngli Group. The Group produces chocolate at 12 production sites in Europe and the United States, sells its products through 41 subsidiaries and branch offices, approximately 650 own stores and approximately 100 distributors, employs approximately 15,500 people and reported sales of CHF 5.92 billion in 2025.<\/span><\/p>\n

In 1998, the Ghirardelli Chocolate Company, founded in 1852 and headquartered in California, became part of the Lindt & Sprüngli Group. In fiscal year 2024, the Ghirardelli Chocolate Company generated sales of approximately USD 888 million. GHIRARDELLI products are sold through the company’s own stores, retail partners and wholesale distributors, as well as online through the Complainant’s official website at <ghirardelli.com>.<\/span><\/p>\n

The disputed domain name <ghirardellisell.com> was registered on July 29, 2026, by the Respondent, <\/span>普 王. At the time of filing of the Complaint, the disputed domain name resolved to a website presenting itself as an official GHIRARDELLI online store, which displayed the Complainant’s GHIRARDELLI logo and images of GHIRARDELLI-branded products offered at discounted prices, reproduced content from the Complainant’s official website, bore the copyright notice “© 2026 Ghirardelli Chocolate Company” and requested Internet users’ personal and payment card details at checkout.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Respondent did not file a Response.<\/span><\/p>", "other_legal_proceedings": "

The Panel is not aware of any other legal proceedings which are pending or decided and which relate to the disputed domain name.<\/p>", "no_response_filed": "

The Complainant contends that each of the three elements set out in paragraph 4(a) of the Policy is satisfied. Its contentions may be summarised as follows.<\/p>\n

As to the first element, the Complainant submits that it holds numerous trademark registrations for the GHIRARDELLI mark, which satisfy the threshold requirement of trademark rights for standing under the first element (WIPO Overview 3.1, section 1.2.1). It contends that the disputed domain name incorporates the GHIRARDELLI mark in its entirety and merely adds the descriptive term “sell”, the mark remaining clearly recognisable within the disputed domain name (WIPO Overview 3.1, sections 1.7 and 1.8), and that the generic Top-Level Domain “.com” is to be disregarded (WIPO Overview 3.1, section 1.11.1). The Complainant refers to CAC-UDRP-108648, in which the panel found domain names incorporating the GHIRARDELLI mark together with the additional terms ‘us’, ‘mall’ and ‘shop’ to be confusingly similar, holding that those additions did not distinguish the domain names or prevent a finding of confusing similarity.<\/p>\n

As to the second element, the Complainant submits that it is required only to make out a prima facie case, whereupon the burden of production shifts to the Respondent (WIPO Overview 3.1, section 2.1), and that none of the circumstances listed in paragraph 4(c) of the Policy applies. The Complainant contends that the Respondent does not hold trademark rights in, and is not commonly known by, “ghirardellisell” or any similar term, which has no dictionary meaning; that the Respondent is not affiliated with the Complainant and has not been licensed or otherwise authorised to use the GHIRARDELLI mark; and that mere registration of a domain name does not confer rights or legitimate interests, referring to NAF Case No. 2009654.<\/p>\n

The Complainant further contends that the disputed domain name resolves to a website impersonating the Complainant as an official GHIRARDELLI online store, which displays the Complainant’s logo and images of GHIRARDELLI-branded products purportedly offered at discounted prices, and which invites Internet users to proceed to a checkout page requesting their full name, postal address, telephone number, email address and payment card details. According to the Complainant, such impersonation and passing off, exposing users to a clear risk of phishing or fraud, can never confer rights or legitimate interests (WIPO Overview 3.1, section 2.13.1). The Complainant further submits that the Respondent cannot rely on the Oki Data criteria (WIPO Overview 3.1, section 2.8.1), since the website does not disclose the absence of any relationship with the Complainant but, on the contrary, copies content from the Complainant’s official website, including portions of its “About Us” pages, and displays the copyright notice “© 2026 Ghirardelli Chocolate Company”. Finally, the Complainant contends that the combination of the GHIRARDELLI mark with the inherently commercial term “sell” suggests an official or authorised online sales channel, carries a high risk of implied affiliation and cannot constitute fair use (WIPO Overview 3.1, section 2.5.1).<\/p>\n

As to the third element, the Complainant submits that the GHIRARDELLI mark enjoys substantial goodwill and recognition, having been used for over a century, and that its trademark registrations long predate the registration of the disputed domain name in 2026. It states that the reputation of the GHIRARDELLI mark has been recognised in prior UDRP decisions, citing WIPO Case No. D2007-0446 (<ghirardellichocolates.com>), CAC-UDRP-107226 (<ghiraradelli.com>), CAC-UDRP-108014 (<ghirardelll.com>) and CAC-UDRP-108441 (<ghirardellidark.com>), that the mark is readily identifiable in publicly accessible trademark databases, and that a Google search for “ghirardellisell” returns results relating to the Complainant’s brand. The Complainant argues that the combination of its distinctive mark with the commercial term “sell” cannot be coincidental and evidences the Respondent’s prior knowledge of, and intention to target, the Complainant.<\/p>\n

The Complainant further contends that the Respondent uses the disputed domain name in bad faith within the meaning of paragraph 4(b)(iv) of the Policy, by intentionally attracting Internet users for commercial gain to a website impersonating the Complainant, reproducing its logo, product images and content from its official website, displaying the copyright notice “© 2026 Ghirardelli Chocolate Company” and collecting users’ personal and payment information (WIPO Overview 3.1, sections 3.1.4 and 2.13.1). The Complainant refers to CAC-UDRP-106393 (<linditbrasil.com>) and CAC-UDRP-108648 (<ghirardelliusmall.com> et al.).<\/p>\n

Finally, the Complainant submits that the same Respondent was found in CAC-UDRP-108867 to have registered and used the domain name <ghirardellistore.com> in bad faith in materially similar circumstances, including the display of the same copyright notice, and that this prior finding confirms a deliberate and repeated targeting of the GHIRARDELLI brand.<\/p>\n

NO ADMINISTRATIVELY COMPLIANT RESPONSE HAS BEEN FILED.<\/p>", "rights": "

The Complainant has, to the satisfaction of the Panel, shown the disputed domain name is confusingly similar to a trademark or service mark in which the Complainant has rights (within the meaning of paragraph 4(a)(i) of the Policy).<\/p>", "no_rights_or_legitimate_interests": "

The Complainant has, to the satisfaction of the Panel, shown the Respondent to have no rights or legitimate interests in respect of the disputed domain name (within the meaning of paragraph 4(a)(ii) of the Policy).<\/p>", "bad_faith": "

The Complainant has, to the satisfaction of the Panel, shown the disputed domain name has been registered and is being used in bad faith (within the meaning of paragraph 4(a)(iii) of the Policy).<\/p>", "procedural_factors": "

The Complaint was filed with the Czech Arbitration Court (the “CAC”) in accordance with the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Policy” or “UDRP”), the Rules for the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Rules”) and the CAC Supplemental Rules (the “Supplemental Rules”).<\/p>\n

The CAC verified that the Complaint satisfied the formal requirements of the Policy, the Rules and the Supplemental Rules. The CAC formally notified the Respondent of the Complaint and the proceedings commenced. The due date for a Response was duly set.<\/p>\n

The Respondent did not submit any Response. Accordingly, the CAC notified the Respondent of its default. The Panel was appointed in accordance with the Rules. The Panel has submitted its Statement of Acceptance and Declaration of Impartiality and Independence, as required by the CAC to ensure compliance with the Rules.<\/p>\n

The language of the proceedings is English.<\/p>\n

The Panel is satisfied that all procedural requirements under UDRP were met and there is no other reason why it would be inappropriate to provide a decision.<\/p>", "decision": "Accepted", "panelists": [ "Petr Hostaš" ], "date_of_panel_decision": "2026-09-22 00:00:00", "informal_english_translation": "

The Complainant, Chocoladefabriken Lindt & Sprüngli AG, relies on its rights in the word mark GHIRARDELLI, which is protected by an extensive portfolio of trademark registrations worldwide. A representative selection of those registrations includes:<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
1. <\/span>U.S. trademark registration No. 205776 GHIRARDELLI, registered on November 17, 1925, for goods in class 30;<\/div>\n
2. <\/span>U.S. trademark registration No. 1645206 GHIRARDELLI, registered on May 21, 1991, for goods and services in classes 16, 18, 21, 25, 30 and 42;<\/div>\n
3. <\/span>U.S. trademark registration No. 3508893 GHIRARDELLI, registered on September 30, 2008, for goods in classes 6, 16, 18, 21, 25 and 28;<\/div>\n
4. <\/span>European Union trademark registration No. 003716453 GHIRARDELLI, registered on July 27, 2005, for goods and services in classes 30, 35, 42 and 43;<\/div>\n
5. <\/span>International trademark registration No. 826074 GHIRARDELLI, registered on March 30, 2004, for goods and services in classes 30, 35 and 43;<\/div>\n
6. <\/span>International trademark registration No. 936941 GHIRARDELLI, registered on July 27, 2007, for goods and services in classes 6, 14, 16, 18, 21, 25, 28 and 41;<\/div>\n
7. <\/span>Canadian trademark registration No. TMA378615 GHIRARDELLI, registered on January 18, 1991, for goods in class 30; and<\/div>\n
8. <\/span>Canadian trademark registration No. TMA763505 GHIRARDELLI, registered on April 8, 2010, for goods and services in classes 16, 18, 21, 25, 30, 35 and 43.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
The Complainant further relies on the domain name <ghirardelli.com>, registered in 1998, through which it operates its official website.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
The disputed domain name <ghirardellisell.com> was registered on July 29, 2026.<\/div>", "decision_domains": { "ghirardellisell.com": "TRANSFERRED" }, "panelist": null, "panellists_text": null }