A federal copyright lawsuit accusing New York's AM:PM Gallery of infringing a photographer's image of rapper Jay-Z is headed for dismissal after the parties told a judge they reached a confidential settlement.

In an order filed May 28, U.S. Magistrate Judge Taryn A. Merkl granted the parties' joint request to extend the gallery's deadline to respond to the complaint after they said they had "reached a confidential settlement agreement, pending execution and the terms thereof."

The court directed the parties to file a stipulation of dismissal by August 7 and adjourned all other deadlines.

The lawsuit was filed in November by August Image, which alleged that Brooklyn-based AM:PM Gallery infringed the copyright of photographer Timothy White by using his photograph of Jay-Z in connection with "Jaybois" figurines allegedly marketed and sold by the gallery.

August sues AM:PM for alleged copyright infringement
August accused AM:PM of selling “Jaybois” figurines using Jay-Z’s likeness in a photoshoot with its photographer, Timothy White.
Urgent MatterAdam Schrader

August sought statutory damages and requested a jury trial.

Court records show the litigation was repeatedly paused while the gallery sought legal representation and the parties pursued settlement talks.

After initially receiving a 90-day extension to obtain counsel, the gallery retained attorneys from Cravath, Swaine & Moore. The parties then jointly sought two more extensions while negotiating a resolution.

The latest filing on the docket came June 15, when the judge granted a motion allowing attorney Nathan Noh to withdraw as counsel for AM:PM, noting that attorney Luis del Rosario would continue representing the gallery.

Follow along with other lawsuits at Urgent Matter's art lawsuit tracker.

Share this article
The link has been copied!