4 January 2000: See mirror of britanniabuildingsociety.org. which seems defunct at the present: http://homepages.go.com/homepages/b/r/i/britanniafraud/
3 January 2000. Thanks to Paul Todd.
JAN-03-2001 WED 10:03 AM VERIO INC FAX NO. 3037082445 P. 02
Hammond Suddards Edge
Verio Inc.
8005 South Chester Street
Suite 200
Englewood
80112
CO
United States
Our ref KXR1/sw
Your ref
Date 14 November 2000
Dear Sirs,
re: britanniabuildingsociety.org
We act on behalf of Britannia Building Society of Staffordshire, UK, who have asked us to write to you regarding the above named website.
Our client is in the business of providing banking and financial services throughout the United Kingdom and has traded uner the name Britannia Building Society for many years. Our client is the registered proprietor of a number of trade marks for "Britannia" including the trade mark "Britannia the Sharing Society".
The domain name britanniabuildingsociety.org has been registered by britanniafraud. We understand that your are the service provider for this website.
We are of the view that this website contravenes your Acceptable Use Policy. We believe that the domain name britanniabuildingsociety.org is idnetical or confusingly similar to our client's own trading name that britanniafraud does not have any rights or legitimate interests in respect of the domain name. We believe therefore that britanniafraud has infringed and misappropriated our client's trade mark contrary to that part of your policy headed Intellectual Property Violations.
Further, we believe that britanniafraud have registered the domain name in bad faith and we are extremely concerned as to the nature of the material published on that website.
The information published on the website contains defamatory statements and makes false accusations of fraud, theft and criminal conspiracy.
The home page of the website states that it is not the official site of the
Britannia Building Society, does not seek to pass itself off as being in
any way connected with Britannia Building society but that the site is
established to warn potentially investing and borrowing members of an onging
fraud. It then goes on to state that certain, named, persons have made untrue
statements, assisted the continuation of the fraud and have been involved
in a cover up. Finally it publishes photographs of persons who it accuses
of theft. We believe that such statement are contrary to that part of your
policy headed Defamatory or Abusive Language.
Hammond Suddards Edge
2 Park Lane Leeds LS3 1ES DX 26441 Park Square Leeds
Telephone +44 (0) 113 284 7000 Fax +44 (0) 13 284 7001 Email
kate.reid@hammondstuddardsedge.com
Directr line +44 (0) 113 284 7459 Direct fac +44 (0) 113 284 7001
Offices Birmingham Bradford Brussels Leeds Lloyd's London Manchester www.hammondstuddardsedge.com
A list of the partners and their professional qualifications is open to inspection at our offices. The partners are either solicitors or registered foreign lawyers. the firm is regulated by the Law Society in the conduct of investment business.
I:\Kreid\letters\BritanniaBS\E-mail\VErio14.11.doc
JAN-03-2001 WED 10:03 AM VERIO INC FAX NO. 3037082445 P. 03
Hammond Suddards Edge
Verio Inc.
14 November 2000
Page 2 of 2
We believe that britanniafraud are using Verio's network as a means to transmit
or post defamatory language and, whilst we understand that britanniafraud
has a right to express its views concerning Britannia Building Society on
the internet, we believe that those views are not within the boundaries of
laws relating to libel and similar causes of action and by using Britannia
Building Society's name britanniafraud is exploiting our client's rights
in its name in an attempt to attract or divert internet users to britanniafraud's
site and is in contravention of your Acceptable Use Policy.
We assure you that our client has not instructed us to take any proceedings against you since they are sure that you were unaware of the unlawful material being supported on your server until now.
However, in the circumstances we would be obliged therefore if you would take action to stop britanniafraud's harmful activities.
Yours faithfully,
[Illegible initial, Kate Reid]
Hammond Suddards Edge
I:\Kreid\letters\BritanniaBS\E-mail\VErio14.11.doc
Date: Wed, 3 Jan 2001 23:58:16 +0100 (CET)
From: Paul Todd <paul_todd_fr@yahoo.fr>
Subject: Verio threatened by UK again
To: jy@jya.com
--- Paul Todd <paul_todd_fr@yahoo.fr> a écrit : >
Date: Wed, 3 Jan 2001 23:49:00 +0100 (CET)
De: Paul Todd <paul_todd_fr@yahoo.fr>
Objet: Re: Britanniabuildingsociety.org
À: Dana Thompson <dlthompson@verio.net>
CC: paul@rstu.co.uk
Dear Dana
Thanks again for your personal courtesy, decency and prompt response.
The reason we came to verio originally was because you hosted jya.com and were not going to be persuaded to impede free speech on the internet without lawful Court authority. Clearly the few dollars our site currently spends isn't going to set your world ablaze but we are talking to one of your representatives about colocation because we value the stance that you have taken.
When you initially contacted us you referred to a breach of copyright situation and invited us to remove the material which infringed the copyright. You offered a copy of the letter of complaint to enable us to consider this but nowhere in the letter can we identify a breach pursuant to the DCMA or otherwise.
I am not in the circumstances sure how much more of the letter from Hammond Suddards Edge that you would like us to address if at all.
If Britannia had a legitimate complaint they have the wherewithal to litigate their case and to litigate it quickly. In respect of the allegations of theft there is a UK solicitor who is widely respected on the internet and his name is David Swarbrick. He runs various databases for the Law Society. His view, posted on the net, was that our photographs evinced theft. Whilst we appreciate that the Britannia would prefer not to have their employees photographed stealing documents intended for the shareholders at the Annual General Meeting they should not therefore have requested that their employees engage in criminal activity. Swarbricks comments were on the update html file on your site and can also be found at
In respect of my position. If Britannia Building Society allege that I have defamed them then they know my address and they know who my solicitors are. I would refer you to The Times newspaper law reports of 28th February 1996 which can be viewed at the following url.
http://www.times-archive.co.uk/news/pages/tim/96/02/28/timlawlaw01001.html
This involved a case that we took to the Court of Appeal and won. Britannia know that in the Court of Public Opinion or if they sue for libel we would be delighted to let them have their day in Court. That is why they won't sue.
This e-mail is long and perhaps too long. We have excellent faith in verio because of your stance over the jya.com. We do not believe that we are guilty of any breach of copyright. Hammond Suddards Edge seek to wave a big stick and hope to quell free speech by prevailing upon you to prevent a wider public audience from seeing their clients fraud and deceit. I personally am an equity interested part owner of their client and am lawfully free and entitled to communicate with my fellow equity interested part owners using any medium I see fit. I would like to think that we enhance Verio's standing in the internet age of free speech by publicising Britannia's continuing misconduct and attempt to impede our rights whilst referring to your own decency. In order to do so I need for you to make a decision that our conduct is not something for which you are responsible nor in breech of the DCMA or your own AUP. The intrinsic value of such a stance would be measured in more than the value of our small business.
Please let me have your view as soon as possible.
Thanks again.
___________________________________________________________
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