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April 3rd, 2022
Caked Ape Lawsuits Show Need for Clear Contracts in NFT Art
Blockchain Technology Co-Chair Jeremy S. Goldman was quoted in the article, “Caked Ape Lawsuits Show Need for Clear Contracts in NFT Art” published by Bloomberg Law. The article discusses two lawsuits over Caked Ape non-fungible tokens. Members of the Caked Ape NFT art project are suing each other based on financial agreements made over text messages. Artist Taylor Whitley claimed the project’s other founders infringed his copyrighted art by cutting him out of the project and his share of the NFT sales. Jeremy is quoted saying, “Part of the dispute will hinge on the type of copyright license Whitley claims to have” and adds, “The case is novel because the assets in question are based on an emerging technology, even though this type of contract and copyright dispute has been litigated thousands of times.”
Jeremy notes, “A written contract won’t completely eliminate the possibility of litigation.” He said that lawsuits are most likely when an expensive project fails and members start pointing fingers, or when a project is successful and members fight over how the money is divided. In conclusion Jeremy adds, “But I think you can avoid a tremendous amount of disputes and low-hanging fruit, not even necessarily by having lawyers at the beginning” and “You shouldn’t engage in a project that has upside potential without having those hard discussions with other members about what the deal is and putting it in writing.”
Read the full article here.
Other Quoted
Mubi’s $24M Bet Just Made Agents Bullish Again. Here’s Why
Hayden Goldblatt is quoted in The Ankler article on Mubi’s purchase of Lynne Ramsay's film, “Die, My Love,” and what it meant for the Cannes market. He’s interviewed on “the real lessons from Cannes.” View article. (Behind paywall)
May 27 2025
A Federal Judge Ordered OpenAI to Stop Deleting Data
Daniel M. Goldberg is quoted in an Adweek article, which reported that a federal judge has ordered OpenAI to stop deleting output data from ChatGPT. This was part of The New York Times lawsuit, alleging OpenAI engaged in copyright infringement “by using ‘millions’ of articles published by the newspaper to train its AI model, which now directly competes with the Times’ content as a result.” The judge’s order seeks to preserve evidence in the Times’ case. Mr. Goldberg addressed mulitple implications of the order, which requires OpenAI to hold more data than they normally would. "That could make OpenAI more susceptible to security breaches, or shake the trust of consumers who expected their chatbot records to be deleted. There are also potential implications regarding energy use, storage and environmental impact that the judge may not have considered when making the order, Goldberg said." He also noted the order would trigger people's concerns about what it means for working with large tecnology providers.
May 21 2025
Democrat LaMonica McIver Charged: What Punishment Could She Face?
Jeremy Bates is quoted in a Newsweek article on New Jersey U.S. representative LaMonica McIver’s arrest by the Trump administration. She’s accused of allegedly assaulting, resisting, and impeding law enforcement officers in a protest against the arrest of Newark Mayor Ras Baraka. Amidst the chaos, Ms. McIver appears to have elbowed an officer. Mr. Bates told Newsweek,“‘Ethical prosecutors refrain from bringing charges that are not supported by probable cause. Here, the Mayor of Newark was charged with trespassing. Days later, DOJ dropped that charge. These facts do not inspire confidence.’” Mr. Bates also stated, “‘Before charging anyone with a federal crime, a DOJ lawyer should ask, would this prosecution be in the interest of my true client, the American people? Or is it an act of presidential malice?’” View Article
May 20 2025
