Editing Bartz v Anthropic PBC (section)

== Settlement ==

In August 2025, Anthropic agreed to a '''$1.5 billion settlement''', preliminarily approved after initial rejection of a proposal offering $3,000 per author. The settlement averted a December 1, 2025 trial on piracy liability, where statutory damages could have reached up to $150,000 per work — potentially exceeding $70 billion in total.<ref name="wk-bartz" /><ref name="iplaw" />

Key settlement terms:
* '''Settlement Amount''': $1.5 billion total
* '''Scope''': Releases Anthropic only for past acquisition, retention, and use of identified pirated works before August 25, 2025; excludes future training, AI outputs, or lawfully acquired materials, with no ongoing licensing requirement<ref name="iplaw" />
* '''Claim Rate''': 440,490 out of 482,460 eligible works (91.3%) were claimed by the March 30, 2026 deadline — far exceeding the typical 10% class action rate<ref name="authorsguild">[https://authorsguild.org/advocacy/artificial-intelligence/what-authors-need-to-know-about-the-anthropic-settlement/ Authors Guild, "What Authors Need to Know About the Anthropic Settlement," 2026]</ref>
* '''Final Approval''': Judge Martínez-Olguín granted final approval on July 20, 2026, and the docket records the case as terminated that day.<ref name="reuters-final-2026" /><ref name="unite-final-2026" /><ref name="courtlistener-2026" />