Remedies for IP infringement by NFTs – the MetaBirkins case continues

07 July, 2023
The US District Judge has now handed down its opinion and order (23 June 2023) on a number of post-trial motions sought by the parties in the “MetaBirkin” case and these provide some interesting insights into how courts may approach the question of remedies in non-fungible tokens (NFT) related cases. Read more

Key takeaways as MiCA reaches the finishing line

18 May, 2023
Well over two years after the Markets in Cryptoassets Regulation (MiCA) was first proposed, the European Parliament gave it the green light on 20 April 2023 and MiCA was adopted by the Council on 16 May 2023. MiCA is likely to enter into force in July 2023 following publication in the Official Journal, with some provisions applying a year later and the rest from January 2025. Read more

Bored Ape Yacht Club unregistered trade marks effective against copycat NFTs in Californian summary judgment

16 May, 2023
In a significant decision for NFT content owners worldwide, the producers of the Bored Aped Yacht Club NFT collection, Yuga, have successfully used unregistered trade mark rights and claims of false designation of origin under the US Lanham Act  (as well as domain name squatting claims) to obtain a summary judgment against individual defendants who had created an NFT collection pointing to, that is, reusing, Yuga's Bored Ape Yacht Club images. Read more

Landmark trade mark/NFT decision in favour of IP owners – Hermès bags a win in the MetaBirkin case

15 February, 2023
Hermès has succeeded in its case of trade mark infringement against non-fungible token (NFT) artist Mason Rothschild. This was the first US trial considering the enforceability of intellectual property rights against the creator of NFTs. The outcome represents a win for IP owners in the fight for protection of their brand, and offers a cautionary tale for creators of NFTs. Read more