[ppml] Policy Proposal 2007-15: Authentication of LegacyResources

[Owen DeLong]

> Imagine that ARIN denies a new allocation to a member who has complied
> with ARIN rules for years. The request is denied because ARIN has just
> run out of addresses. However, there are still many legacy blocks  
> whose
> holders have never justified their use. The disgruntled ARIN member
> decides to sue ARIN and points out to the courts that ARIN is  
> materially
> damaging their business and is refusing to allocate address blocks  
> which
> have never been reviewed and justified with ARIN. I suspect that the
> courts will side, more or less, with the member who has worked with  
> the
> rules over many years, and against the legacy holder who has never  
> shown
> any justification for holding their allocation.
>
The fallacy in your argument, Michael, is that there are many legitimate
blocks which ARIN has never reviewed.  For example, all of those issued
by RIPE, APNIC, AfriNIC, and LACNIC.  ARIN is merely a custodian of
records for the legacy blocks in the ARIN region.  ARIN does not have
any more authority to issue those addresses until they are returned
that ARIN does to issue addresses out of ranges delegated to other
RIRs.

Owen