One year on from its launch, AFNIC's PREDEC procedure is hitting its stride

AFNIC launched the PREDEC procedure one year ago in line with the provisions of the decree of 6 th February 2007 as an alternative to the extrajudicial proceedings used to settle disputes relating to .fr domain names.
To date :

AFNIC has received 92 claims ;

AFNIC has judged 75 claims to be admissible ;
64 rulings have been delivered by the PREDEC Committee, including 40 domain name transfers accepted by AFNIC (11 pending) against 24 rejections ;
4 rulings, concerning the same domain name holder, are currently on appeal.

AFNIC’s primary aim with this procedure is to simplify the way in which domain name disputes are resolved. However, rulings are only delivered in case of clear violations of the provisions of the decree. Furthermore, the procedure ensures that rulings are consistent with the latest case law and invites claimants to consult relevant legislation before filing a claim.
As such, over the past year :

20 claims have been based on Article R20-44-43 of the decree, which stipulates that “The name of the French Republic, its national institutions and national public services, whether used alone or in combination with other words referring to such institutions or services, may only be registered as a domain name within the top-level domain corresponding to the national territory by its institutions or services” ;
59 claims have been based on Article R20-44-45 of the decree, which stipulates that “A name that is identical to or likely to be confused with a name for which intellectual property rights have been granted by national or EU legislation or by this Act may not be chosen as a domain name, unless the applicant has a right or legitimate claim to the name and is acting in good faith”.

 
For futher information
See detailed information concerning the procedure and access the resolution service.
See the latest rulings

About AFNIC
(Association Française pour le Nommage Internet en Coopération )
Non-profit organization, AFNIC is in charge of the administrative and technical management of the .fr (France) and .re (Reunion Island) Internet domain names.On 22 July 2008, AFNIC set up a specific procedure (commonly known as PREDEC) for handling clear violations of the provisions set forth in France’s Domain Name Allocation and Management Act 2007. One year on and the results of the procedure are overwhelmingly positive: 92 claims were filed with the .fr registry, which delivered 64 rulings. The procedure has become standard practice in legal firms and intellectual property consultancies and has even taken hold as an integral part of the French legal scene in the same way as other ADR proceedings. Read on for details.
AFNIC brings together public and private members: representatives from the French government, Internet users and Internet Service Providers (Registrars).
Further information.