Yuga Labs, the developer behind the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), has reached a settlement with conceptual artist Ryder Ripps and his business partner, Jeremy Cahen, ending a years-long trademark lawsuit. According to Reuters, the parties have reached an out-of-court agreement that officially prohibits Ripps from using Yuga Labs’ imagery and trademarks.
The legal dispute began in 2022, when Ripps and Cahen launched an NFT collection called RR/BAYC, which directly utilized the BAYC ape imagery. Ripps claimed the project was a form of "expressive appropriation art" intended to satirically expose alleged racist and antisemitic symbols hidden within the BAYC artwork. Yuga Labs, however, accused the pair of trademark infringement and malicious harassment.
Legal Battles and Industry Precedent
The case saw several twists and turns in the courtroom. In 2023, U.S. District Judge John Walter ruled that the copycat collection caused confusion in the NFT market, violating trademark law, and ordered Ripps and Cahen to pay nearly $9 million in damages and legal fees.
However, the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals later overturned that summary judgment. While the court rejected some of Ripps' "fair use" defenses, it also dismissed certain claims made by Yuga Labs and remanded the case for further proceedings. The appellate court’s ruling has been viewed by industry experts as a significant legal precedent for how trademark law applies to NFTs.
The specific terms of the settlement have not been disclosed. During the litigation, Yuga Labs had sought sanctions against Ripps after he claimed to have destroyed the private keys for the RR/BAYC project. The reaching of this settlement marks the official conclusion of a high-profile intellectual property case that had captured the attention of the entire Web3 industry.