Appeals Court in the U.S. Reverses Decision on Yuga Labs' $9 Million Trademark legal case judgment
In a significant turn of events, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has partially overturned a previous ruling in the ongoing legal dispute between Yuga Labs and artists Ryder Ripps and Jeremy Cahen over the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) NFT collection.
In 2023, a federal district court in California ruled in favor of Yuga Labs, awarding them $9 million and enjoining Ripps and Cahen from marketing NFTs under the "Ryder Ripps Bored Ape Yacht Club" name, citing trademark infringement and cybersquatting. However, on July 3, 2025, the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the $9 million judgment, ruling that Yuga Labs had not sufficiently proven that Ripps and Cahen’s collection caused consumer confusion.
The current status of the legal dispute now requires a retrial in the California federal court to determine whether the trademark infringement and cybersquatting claims meet legal standards. Yuga Labs co-founder Greg Solano stated that they will continue fighting the case in district court, viewing the appeals outcome as a validation of their brand's strength and a win for the industry.
The original court ruling in 2023 established Yuga Labs as the rightful owner of the BAYC trademarks, as they were the first to use the marks in commerce. Yuga Labs filed a trademark infringement lawsuit against Ripps and Cahen in 2022, alleging deception and damage to their reputation. Ripps and Cahen, on the other hand, launched the Ryder Ripps Bored Ape Yacht Club (RR/BAYC) collection in 2022, which included identical copies of Yuga Lab's NFT collection and similar marketing tactics.
The panel concluded that defendants' NFTs were "goods" under the Lanham Act and that Yuga Labs' marks were not used in a way that constituted nominative fair use or was protected by the First Amendment. The initial court ruling awarded Yuga Labs $1.6 million in damages, which was later raised to $9 million.
Ripps and Cahen countersued Yuga Labs under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), seeking declaratory relief that the company had no copyright protection over the Bored Apes. The district court dismissed Ripps and Cahen's counterclaims for a "lack of subject-matter jurisdiction."
This ongoing litigation highlights the complex challenges NFTs pose for intellectual property law, balancing trademark protection and freedom of artistic expression in emerging digital markets. The ruling reaffirmed that NFTs qualify as "goods" under U.S. trademark law and recognized BAYC NFTs as protectable trademarks, but emphasized the difficulty of applying traditional trademark law to digital assets.
Meanwhile, Ryder Ripps characterized the appeals court ruling as a significant victory for artistic expression, noting that his NFT collection was intended as satire critiquing alleged racist imagery in the BAYC NFTs. The ruling serves as a reminder that the intersection of art and commerce in the digital world continues to push the boundaries of legal interpretation.
[1] CNBC. (2023). Yuga Labs wins $9 million in trademark lawsuit against Ryder Ripps, Jeremy Cahen. [online] Available at: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/03/23/yuga-labs-wins-9-million-in-trademark-lawsuit-against-ryder-ripps-jeremy-cahen.html
[2] Variety. (2023). Yuga Labs Wins $9 Million Trademark Lawsuit Against Ryder Ripps, Jeremy Cahen. [online] Available at: https://variety.com/2023/biz/news/yuga-labs-wins-9-million-trademark-lawsuit-against-ryder-ripps-jeremy-cahen-1235360485/
[3] The Verge. (2025). Ninth Circuit Court overturns $9 million judgment in Bored Ape Yacht Club trademark lawsuit. [online] Available at: https://www.theverge.com/2025/7/3/23781703/ninth-circuit-court-overturns-9-million-judgment-bored-ape-yacht-club-trademark-lawsuit
[4] Coindesk. (2025). Ninth Circuit Overturns $9M Judgment in Bored Ape Yacht Club Trademark Dispute. [online] Available at: https://www.coindesk.com/business/2025/07/03/ninth-circuit-overturns-9m-judgment-in-bored-ape-yacht-club-trademark-dispute/
[1] In this digital art vs. commerce case, the conflict between Yuga Labs and artists Ryder Ripps and Jeremy Cahen over the Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT collection is a testament to the complexities technology poses for intellectual property law.
[2] The ongoing legal battle regarding the BAYC NFT collection underscores the challenge of balancing trademark protection and freedom of artistic expression in the burgeoning digital markets, as technology continues to redefine the boundaries of legal interpretation.
