Yuga Labs and critics Ryder Ripps and Jeremy Cahen have quietly ended a high-profile NFT legal battle that put trademark law and artistic freedom in the crosshairs of the crypto world.
What happened
- Yuga Labs — the creator of the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) collection, one of the best-known NFT brands from the 2021–2022 boom — has reached a settlement with artist Ryder Ripps and collaborator Jeremy Cahen after a roughly two-year fight over a copycat project.
- The dispute centered on RR/BAYC, a token series Ripps and Cahen produced using imagery that Yuga said closely resembled BAYC. Yuga sued in 2022, alleging the defendants sold lookalike tokens, generated millions, and confused buyers into thinking the project was affiliated with Yuga. Ripps and Cahen said their work was satirical commentary on BAYC.
Legal timeline
- A federal district judge initially ruled for Yuga and awarded nearly $9 million in damages and fees.
- That decision was later overturned by an appeals court, which said the question of whether buyers were actually misled should be decided by a jury.
- Rather than proceed to a jury trial, the parties have now settled. A filing in California federal court shows proposed orders that would permanently bar Ripps and Cahen from using Yuga’s trademarks and imagery. Financial or other settlement terms were not disclosed.
Why it matters
- The case has been watched closely by the NFT and broader Web3 communities because it raises core questions about where satire and artistic critique end and trademark infringement begins.
- The settlement and proposed permanent injunctions signal Yuga’s continued effort to protect its brand and could influence how creators and critics approach derivative projects and commentary in NFTs going forward.
Bottom line
The settlement ends a contentious chapter without a jury verdict, leaving some legal questions unresolved but reinforcing the real-world legal risks that can accompany digital art and branding in the NFT space.
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