This July, the World Intellectual Property Association (WIPO) proposed a series of amendments to ICANN’s Uniform Domain-Name Dispute-Resolution Policy (UDRP) to make the UDRP process paperless.  In its proposal, WIPO mentioned that it had received over one million pages from UDRP filings in 2008 alone, and approximately ten million pages since the establishment of the UDRP.  The new process, dubbed eUDRP, will not require any hard copy submissions, but rather will be done completely electronically.  WIPO believes that these amendments will make the process more effective, saving both time and money; more forward-looking, because most participants already file electronically; more effective, because it is generally easier to reach other parties through email; more modern; more expedited; and obviously, greener.

I think it’s great that WIPO has taken the initiative to streamline the UDRP process in this way, since a paperless procedure can be much more practical and much more efficient. For one, the changes will eliminate the costs associated with printing and shipping hard copies of documents. They will also allow complainants to contact respondents via email, which has proven to be effective—according to WIPO, email notification is successful in 96% of cases.  

For some, however, this is a point of contention; among the comments submitted to ICANN regarding this matter, the main criticism has been that email is not as reliable as a hard copy letter or a fax, and as such, could put Respondents at a disadvantage, or otherwise lead to default decisions based on non-response.  However, WIPO has proposed that Complainants still be required to provide a written notice to inform the Respondent of the complaint, along with detailed contact information, in order to give the Respondent adequate opportunity to participate in the proceedings.
 
WIPO’s proposed amendments take advantage of technology’s ability to expedite procedures, reflect current attitudes toward environmental conservation and will ultimately make the whole UDRP process much more efficient and easier for all parties.