Domain Names

The Treasury Solicitor is not bound to sell domain names, however, it is his usual practice to do so. The domain name is first advertised for sale for one month on the Treasury Solicitor’s auction website. The minimum sum that can be bid is £500. At the end of this period the Treasury Solicitor will usually offer to sell the domain name to the person who offered the highest sum through this process. It is not the Treasury Solicitor’s usual practice to sell domain names without first advertising them on the website.

The sale price is the higher of £500 or the highest sum bid for the domain name on-line together with the Treasury Solicitor’s costs of £250 (plus VAT); and the Treasury Solicitor’s disbursements (if any). A buyer will also be responsible for paying any transfer charges or other sums due to Nominet UK.

Assets, including domain names, only pass to the Crown as bona vacantia if the last registered office of the former owning company was in England or Wales (other than in the Duchies of Cornwall or Lancaster). If the company’s last registered office was in either of these Duchies then the Treasury Solicitor cannot deal with the domain name.

The Treasury Solicitor can only deal with assets, including domain names, if they are situated in England and Wales or Northern Ireland. In cases where there is doubt about the location of a domain name, it is probable that the Treasury Solicitor will decline to deal with it. The current practice of the Treasury Solicitor is to only sell domain names ending in “.uk”.

The Treasury Solicitor is not obliged to sell or otherwise deal with domain names and reserves the right to decline to do so.

All dealings by the Treasury Solicitor with a domain name shall remain strictly subject to contract until the sale has been completed by the receipt by the Treasury Solicitor of the total sum due and the signature and posting of all transfer documents by the Treasury Solicitor.

The Treasury Solicitor will not provide any title guarantee or warranty.

The Treasury Solicitor has a statutory power under section 656 of the Companies Act 1985 to disclaim the Crown’s title to assets which have vested as bona vacantia. The right of the Treasury Solicitor to disclaim a domain name without notice at any time is hereby expressly reserved.

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