Key Takeaways
- A two-year trademark dispute between Yuga Labs and artist Ryder Ripps over copycat Bored Ape NFTs has been resolved through settlement
- Ripps’ RR/BAYC project replicated Bored Ape Yacht Club visuals, which he defended as satirical commentary and constitutionally protected expression
- A district court had previously granted Yuga close to $9 million in damages before the decision was reversed on appeal
- Under the settlement agreement, Ripps and his associate Jeremy Cahen face a permanent prohibition on utilizing Yuga’s intellectual property and brand assets
- Financial details of the settlement agreement remain confidential
Yuga Labs has reached a settlement agreement with digital artist Ryder Ripps and his collaborator Jeremy Cahen, bringing closure to a contentious legal battle involving NFT collections that mimicked Bored Ape Yacht Club designs.
🚨UPDATE: @yugalabs has settled the Bored Ape NFT lawsuit over RR/BAYC copycat claims, avoiding trial and ending the dispute over alleged parody tokens of Bored Ape Yacht Club. pic.twitter.com/rr6AD7yNJB
— SolanaFloor (@SolanaFloor) April 8, 2026
The legal action was initiated in 2022. Yuga’s complaint alleged that Ripps and Cahen marketed duplicate tokens branded as RR/BAYC, generating substantial revenue by misleading purchasers into believing these tokens were affiliated with the authentic collection.
Ripps contested these allegations vigorously. He characterized his work as “expressive appropriation art” and maintained it constituted satirical commentary shielded by First Amendment protections. Additionally, he leveled allegations that the original Bored Ape Yacht Club incorporated racist and antisemitic elements within its designs—claims Yuga dismissed as components of a targeted harassment effort.
During 2023, U.S. District Judge John Walter delivered a verdict favoring Yuga. He determined the imitation tokens had the potential to generate marketplace confusion and infringed upon Yuga’s exclusive trademark protections.
Judge Walter mandated Ripps and Cahen remit approximately $9 million encompassing profit disgorgement, monetary sanctions, and attorney fees.
Appellate Court Intervention
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit subsequently reversed that judgment. Although the appellate panel rejected significant portions of Ripps’ fair use defense, it eliminated the $9 million financial penalty and mandated a jury trial to determine whether consumer confusion had genuinely occurred.
Legal experts view that Ninth Circuit decision as establishing important precedent regarding trademark protection applicability to NFTs.
The current settlement eliminates the need for that jury trial. Court documents submitted in California federal court propose permanent injunctions preventing Ripps and Cahen from future utilization of Yuga’s trademarks or creative assets.
Monetary aspects of the settlement remain undisclosed.
Context About the Involved Parties
Ripps had previously generated controversy by asserting he had eliminated the private keys associated with the RR/BAYC collection. Yuga subsequently petitioned the court to impose sanctions regarding that assertion.
Cahen, recognized online by the handle Pauly0x, had established an NFT trading platform titled Not Larva Labs. This designation alluded to Larva Labs, the original developers of CryptoPunks. Yuga Labs previously held ownership rights to the CryptoPunks intellectual property portfolio.
Bored Ape Yacht Club emerged as among the most prominent NFT franchises throughout the market’s zenith period. The collection attracted high-profile purchasers and commanded premium valuations within the NFT ecosystem.
The extended legal confrontation has now concluded with the settlement documentation filed on April 8, 2026.
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