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Objections and Appeals Funding: At-Large Advisory Committee (ALAC)

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Objections and Appeals Overview

The general public, including other applicants, has the opportunity to file an objection on any application and have it considered before a panel of qualified experts. For an objection to be considered by a panel, it must be filed on specific grounds (see Section 3.5.1 Grounds for Objection and the party filing must have standing (see Section 4.5.2 Standing to Object). If an application is subject to an objection, the applicant will have an opportunity to file a response. All applied-for gTLDs and applied-for allocatable variant strings will be subject to the objection processes.

The Objection and Appeal Procedures will require different payments to be submitted directly to the Dispute Resolution Service Provider (DRSP) at different times. To support the multistakeholder model, ICANN offers certain funding possibilities to the At-Large Advisory Committee (ALAC) and national governments. Such funding is to cover costs payable to the DRSP and made directly to the DRSP, that is, filing fees and advance payment of costs, as described in Section 4.5.6 Objections and Appeals Costs.

Funding for ALAC

Per Section 4.5.7 Objections and Appeals Funding Possibilities of the New gTLD Program: 2026 Round Applicant Guidebook (Applicant Guidebook), the At-Large Advisory Committee (ALAC) may request ICANN to fund objections and appeals in the context of the 2026 Round. The ALAC has developed and published its own procedure for filing comments and objections.

Objections and appeals are administered in accordance with Appendix 3 of the Applicant Guidebook by the following Dispute Resolution Service Providers (DRSPs):

  • String Confusion and Legal Rights Objections: World Intellectual Property Organization.
  • Limited Public Interest and Community Objections: International Chamber of Commerce.

If the ALAC seeks to have objections or appeals funded by ICANN, it must first have its funding request approved by ICANN and only then file the objections or appeals; ICANN will only make payments directly to the DRSPs and will not refund any payments made by the ALAC to the DRSPs or other parties. ICANN will verify the authenticity of the request, perform necessary due diligence and, if the funding request is approved, the DRSPs will issue invoices directly to ICANN.

ICANN’s funding is only to cover the DRSP filing fees and costs and ICANN will make such payments directly to the DRSPs. ICANN funding will not be provided for other fees associated with submitting an objection or appeal, such as fees for legal advice. In the event that the ALAC is determined to be the prevailing party, ICANN will receive the refund from the DRSPs for all funds advanced to the DRSPs by ICANN.

Point(s) of Contact

The ALAC will have to appoint one or more individuals who will act as points of contact for all objections and appeals for which funding from ICANN is requested and be responsible for:

  • Submitting the funding requests.
  • Filing objections and appeals.
  • Ensuring that all requests from the DRSPs are met timely.
  • Engaging with the applicant and the DRSP in case of requests for a three-person panel and/or consolidation of objections/appeals.
  • Raising conflict of interest issues, if needed.
  • Providing any additional written statements and/or evidence to the DRSP/Panel as required.
  • Participating in hearings where required.
  • Participating in mediation and settlement processes, where appropriate.
  • Appealing to Panel Determinations, where appropriate, should objections they have filed not prevail.

It should be noted that, while the point(s) of contact will of course be able to engage with ALAC members and other parties throughout the process, they will be the only one(s) allowed to perform the tasks listed above. It is therefore crucial that the appointed individuals have the authority to speak on behalf of the ALAC.

Process

No later than seven business days before the deadline for the general public to file objections/appeals, if applicable, the ALAC must submit the relevant funding form to ICANN at 26r-objections-appeals@icann.org. ICANN will perform necessary due diligence on the request and confirm whether it is accepted within two business days, absent extraordinary circumstances. To submit objections/appeals, the ALAC should adhere to the ICANN Procedures and the DRSP Rules. The point(s) of contact will have to remain available to follow up on any requests from the DRSPs until the process is concluded.

Reference Materials

For more information on the objection and appeal processes, refer to Section 4.5 Objections and Appeals and Appendix 3 Materials Related to Objections and Appeals of the Applicant Guidebook. In case of discrepancy between this webpage and the Applicant Guidebook, the Applicant Guidebook is to be considered the authoritative version.

For any questions, contact Global Support at globalsupport@icann.org.