Take this advice before it’s too late.

I’ve seen it countless times: a business hires a web developer or an IT management firm, has that contractor register a domain on their behalf, and then has the domain held hostage.

A recent lawsuit is another example of such alleged conduct.

Women’s fashion designer Bronx and Banco filed a lawsuit, alleging that its web developer ran off with its domain names when the company decided to switch development firms.

According to Bronx and Banco, the web developer cut off the firm’s access to BronxandBanco.com and the matching .com.au domain, as well as back-office software and email services.

The .com domain is now listed for sale on Afternic for $50 million.

Some of what happened isn’t clear based on the plaintiff’s case. For example, it alludes to the web developer telling the company that the domain had been on a lease-to-own plan through a broker, not owned outright.

Regardless of the circumstances, let Bronx and Banco save you from future headaches: always register your domains to your business, not your developer or other contractor.