Kremen v. Cohen (9th Cir. 2003)

Kremen v. Cohen (2003)

Citation: 337 F.3d 1024 · Court: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit · Decided: July 25, 2003 · Opinion: Kozinski, Circuit Judge.

Source note (2026-10-18):

• Links on this page to https://static.case.law/f3d/337/cases/1024-01.json are an (unofficial Caselaw Access Project copy, retrieved before 2026-10-18; host disallows automated access); no official or otherwise permitted full-text copy was located on 2026-10-18.

Case page. Legal information, not legal advice. Last verified: 2026-10-16.

Facts

Kremen registered the domain name sex.com. Cohen sent the registrar, Network Solutions, a forged letter, and Network Solutions transferred the registration to him. Kremen sued Network Solutions for, among other things, conversion; the district court held the domain name was intangible property to which conversion does not apply. (Source: https://static.case.law/f3d/337/cases/1024-01.json , retrieved 2026-10-16.)

Holding

Applying a three-part test — “First, there must be an interest capable of precise definition; second, it must be capable of exclusive possession or control; and third, the putative owner must have established a legitimate claim to exclusivity” — the court held that “[l]ike a share of corporate stock or a plot of land, a domain name is a well-defined interest,” that Kremen “had an intangible property right in his domain name,” and that “a jury could find that Network Solutions ‘wrongful[ly] dispos[ed] of’ that right.” Affirmed in part, reversed in part and remanded.

Practical impact

Under California law, a domain name is property that can be owned, transferred and converted, supporting its sale as a business asset in a forced sale. Other states differ: see network-solutions-v-umbro-2000 (Virginia; registration is a services contract not subject to garnishment).

Good-law status

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Applies in →

intellectual-property-and-licenses, california

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Legal information, not legal advice. Verify against the current primary source before relying on this summary.