Yuga Labs, creator of the Bored Ape Yacht Club, has settled its nearly four-year lawsuit against artists Ryder Ripps and Jeremy Cahen. The artists are permanently banned from using Yuga’s trademarks and must transfer all assets from their RR/BAYC NFT project to Yuga Labs. The settlement concludes a legal saga where a court previously ordered the pair to pay $9 million, a judgment later overturned in 2025.
Yuga Labs has settled its long-running lawsuit with artists Ryder Ripps and Jeremy Cahen, who were accused of profiting from lookalike NFTs. According to documents filed in the District Court for the Central District of California, the parties informed the court they reached a settlement agreement.
As part of the settlement, Ripps and Cahen are permanently banned from using Yuga Lab’s imagery and trademarks. They must transfer control of the smart contracts, domains, and any remaining NFTs associated with their RR/BAYC project to Yuga Labs within 10 days.
The court also ordered the pair not to dispose of any referenced assets to avoid compliance. The matter was initially scheduled for a jury trial after a prior ruling in Yuga’s favor was appealed.
Yuga Labs first filed a lawsuit in June 2022, accusing Ripps and Cahen of copying its Bored Ape images and profiting from user confusion. Lawyers for the artists argued the RR/BAYC NFTs, first minted in May 2022, were “satire and a parody” protected under free speech laws.
In April 2023, the court ruled they violated copyright laws and ordered them to pay $1.57 million. The penalty later grew to $9 million after they lost a counterclaim in 2024.
An appeals court later overturned the $9 million judgment in 2025 and ruled a jury trial was required. The newly filed settlement ends the legal dispute without that trial proceeding.
