Oct 26 (Reuters) – Bored Ape Yacht Club non-fungible token maker Yuga Labs is entitled to more than $1.5 million in damages from a conceptual artist and his business partner who copied Bored Ape’s NFT art, a California federal judge said in an order made public on Thursday.
U.S. District Judge John Walter said that artist Ryder Ripps and partner Jeremy Cahen must pay Yuga all of their profits from their copies, which they have defended as an art project meant to criticize racist “dog whistles” in Yuga’s works.
Ripps and Cahen’s attorney Louis Tompros of Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr said that they disagreed with parts of the decision and expect to appeal.
A spokesperson for Yuga said that the ruling “not only defeats scammers but supports creators advancing web3 experiences worldwide.”
Yuga accused Ripps and Cahen in a lawsuit last year of making millions of dollars from counterfeiting its Bored Ape tokens under the false pretense of satire. Ripps has described his copies as works of appropriation art that lampoon supposedly racist and anti-Semitic imagery in Yuga’s NFTs and branding.
Walter ruled for Yuga in April, finding that Ripps’ NFTs were “no more artistic than the sale of a counterfeit handbag.” Walter said Ripps’ copies were likely to confuse potential buyers and held a trial this summer to determine the scope of Yuga’s damages and other relief.
Walter said in his Thursday ruling that Yuga was entitled to all $1.3 million of Ripps and Cahen’s profits from the copies because they were “fully aware” of the confusion they would cause. He said they also refused to stop selling them even after Yuga sued.
“Defendants were not creating a parody or satire,” Walter said. “Instead, they were intentionally using the BAYC Marks in an effort to profit off of Yuga’s success.”
Walter said Yuga was also entitled to attorneys’ fees and $200,000 in damages for cybersquatting. He issued orders blocking sales of the copies and requiring Ripps and Cahen to transfer their NFT smart contract and project-related websites and social-media accounts to the company.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is reconsidering Ripps and Cahen’s earlier loss on their bid to dismiss the case based on a California law protecting free speech.
The case is Yuga Labs Inc v. Ripps, U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, No. 2:22-cv-04355.
For Yuga: Eric Ball of Fenwick & West
For Ripps: Louis Tompros of Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr
Read more:
Bored Ape NFT maker Yuga Labs sues artist, claiming he copied tokens
Artist fires back at Bored Ape lawsuit with racism accusations
US judge sides with Yuga Labs in Bored Ape NFT trademark lawsuit
US appeals court weighs NFT ‘counterfeiting’ in Bored Ape case
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Reporting by Blake Brittain in Washington
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