A federal judge has denied dismissal motions in a significant lawsuit involving Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT promotions by various celebrities, including Justin Bieber, Madonna, and others.

The class action lawsuit, filed in December 2022, alleges that celebrities and companies engaged in "manufactured celebrity endorsements and misleading promotions" that led investors to make "losing investments at drastically inflated prices."

Key defendants in the case include:

• Yuga Labs
• Guy Oseary
• Adidas
• Serena Williams
• DJ Khaled
• Snoop Dogg
• Post Malone
• Steph Curry
• Sotheby's

The lawsuit claims multiple violations of California business and consumer laws, along with violations of the Exchange Act and the Securities Act. The plaintiffs argue that celebrity promotions artificially inflated NFT prices before a significant market decline.

Yuga Labs attempted to dismiss the case in November, arguing that the NFTs don't qualify as securities and denying any "materially false or misleading statements." Justin Bieber's legal team claimed his social media posts about Bored Apes were "non-actionable generalized and/or humorous statements."

Judge Fernando M. Olguin rejected these dismissal motions without prejudice, setting a September 3rd deadline for parties to submit a proposed schedule focusing on determining whether the NFTs qualify as securities. If the NFTs are classified as securities, defendants may submit new dismissal motions or seek reinstatement of original motions.

Related Articles

Previous Articles