The Procedure Act of 26 June 2003

In 2003, the Belgian legislator decided to fight cyber- and  typosquatting  crime by enacting the Act of 26 June 2003 (Belgisch Staatsblad [Belgian Official Gazette] of 9 September 2003) (now enshrined as Article XII.22 of the Code of Economic Law). 

This law shall apply: 

  • to all domain names from the .be zone (regardless of where the domain name holder lives or is established)
  • to all generic domain names (such as .com, .org, .net, .vlaanderen, .brussels, .club) and to country code domain names (such as .nl, .fr, .de), provided that the domain name holder lives or is established in Belgium.

 The Act differs essentially from the scope of application of the ADR procedure. 

The procedure is initiated and processed as a claim in interlocutory proceedings before the president of the court of first instance or the commercial court.  

Does it concern a .be, .vlaanderen or .brussels domain name? Then we advise you to send us a copy of the summons and ask us to block the domain name. This way, no changes can be made to the status of the domain name while the procedure is in progress.