NFT giant Yuga Labs reaches a settlement with developer Thomas Lehman who assisted Ryder Ripps in creating the websites and smart contracts for the RR/BAYC NFT project.
Last June, Yuga Labs filed a lawsuit against artist Ryder Ripps and Jeremy Cahen for “seeking to devalue” authentic BAYC NFTs with counterfeit RR/BAYC NFTs. It is alleged that authentic BAYC photos were utilized, and Ripps is charged with marketing the NFTs as genuine BAYC goods.
But by filing separate lawsuits against Thomas Lehman in the Northern District of New York and developer Ryan Hickman in a federal court in Nevada, Yuga added two more lawsuits to its case against Ripps.
As per a Bloomberg report, Yuga claimed that the developers were vital members of the team assembled by Ripps to produce rip-off “RR/BAYC” NFTs that used the Bored Ape logo and imagery.
After the lawsuit got settled, Lehman stated “I am happy to have resolved the Yuga Labs, Inc. v. Lehman trademark lawsuit in the Northern District of New York. It was never my intention to harm Yuga Labs’s brand, and I reject all disparaging statements made about Yuga Labs and its founders and appreciate their many positive contributions to the NFT space.”
A Yuga Labs spokesperson added, “We are pleased that Mr. Lehman acknowledged his role in assisting former cohorts, Ryder Ripps and Jeremy Cahen, to infringe on Yuga Labs’ trademarks in developing, marketing, and selling counterfeit NFTs.”
Ripps and Cahen continue to be at odds with Yuga Labs as their case is ongoing. Recently, Yuga Labs cleared up confusion about its NFTs IP license and commercial rights for the 10,000 images in the BAYC collection.
