US appeals court upholds Thomson Reuters' win in AI training lawsuit
TRI•A US appeals court upheld a ruling for Thomson Reuters in its copyright dispute with Ross Intelligence, rejecting Ross' fair-use defense over material allegedly used to train an AI-powered legal search engine.
1. Appeals court ruling
The 3rd US Circuit Court of Appeals rejected Ross' argument that its search engine made fair use of material from Thomson Reuters' Westlaw platform. The court's reasoning is sealed. Thomson Reuters said it was pleased with the ruling and said respecting copyright is essential for fostering innovation and protecting intellectual property.
2. Dispute over headnotes
Thomson Reuters sued Ross in 2020, accusing it of copying thousands of Westlaw headnotes, which summarize points of law in court opinions, to train a competing AI-based legal search engine. A federal judge rejected Ross' fair-use defense last year, saying Ross used the headnotes to make it easier to develop a competing legal research tool. Ross shut down its platform in 2021, citing the costs of the litigation.
