WVEC.COM reports that Judge Claude Hilton of the U.S. District Court in Virginia has ruled that Christopher Lamparello, a gay activist in New York, must stop using the domain name www.falwell.com due to confusion with the registered trademark JERRY FALWELL and the JERRY FALWELL MINISTRIES website.
Lamparello's site criticized Falwell's position on homosexuality and displayed a disclaimer. (The domain name has already been directed to Jerry Falwell's site).
Pleased with the result, Fallwell said: "one cannot infringe on the trademark of another person or company and pretend it is within their First Amendment rights."
Lamparello's attorney, Paul Levy of Public Citizen Litigation Group, said they planned to appeal. Trademark law does not allow people to "appropriate a name for yourself for all purposes," Levy said.
To continue a theme raised earlier:
Where is the line drawn on such cases? If the content involves free speech, is one entitled to register the personal name or trademark of another? Or, if alternatives are available to convey the same message, can the court properly restrict the use of the personal name or trademark as the domain name?
We look forward to the published case to understand where and how Judge Hilton draws the line.
