A U.S. District Court judge has issued a ruling in a long-standing dispute involving non-fungible token (NFT) artists Ryder Ripps and Jeremy Cahen and Yuga Labs, the founder of the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC). The judge ordered Ripps and Cahen to pay Yuga Labs a total of $1.57 million, which includes disgorgement and damages, as well as legal fees, effectively ending the copycat NFT lawsuit.
The dispute originated from Yuga Labs' claim on April 21 that Ryder Ripps and Jeremy Cahen had violated copyright law by creating knock-off versions of BAYC collectibles. District Court Judge John Walter ruled that Yuga Labs was entitled to a total of $1.37 million in profits that the defendants had to return. In addition, $200,000 was awarded in statutory damages related to cybersquatting violations. The judge also ruled that Yuga Labs could recover attorney's fees and costs from the NFT artists, deeming the trademark infringement as an "extraordinary case."
The judge rejected the defendants' argument that their copycat BAYC versions were "caricature" and "parody," affirming that the defendants knowingly infringed Yuga's BAYC trademark and profited from it with malicious intent. Moreover, the judge highlighted that even after partial summary judgment was granted against the defendants in April, they continued to market and promote their copycat BAYC versions.
Yuga Labs initiated the lawsuit against the artists in June 2022. The case reached the U.S. Court of Appeals on October 16, where the attorneys for Ripps and Kahn sought to have the lawsuit dismissed under California's anti-SLAPP statute, arguing on free speech grounds. However, the three-judge panel did not seem swayed by these arguments during the hearing.
