Thomson Reuters v. ROSS Intelligence

AI and copyright dispute: Thomson Reuters claims ROSS illegally used Westlaw data to train its AI legal research tool.

Short Description

Thomson Reuters, the owner of Westlaw, a leading legal research platform, filed a lawsuit against ROSS Intelligence, an AI startup, alleging unauthorized use of copyrighted data.The case revolves around whether ROSS’s use of Westlaw materials to train its AI-powered legal research tool constitutes copyright infringement or fair use.The outcome could set a landmark precedent for AI training and data usage rights in the legal tech industry.

Facts

• Plaintiff: Thomson Reuters (Westlaw)

• Defendant: ROSS Intelligence Inc., a legal tech startup

• Court: U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware

• Filing Date: 2020

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Key Allegations by Thomson Reuters:

• ROSS allegedly scraped and copied content from Westlaw, including headnotes and case summaries, without permission.

• These copyrighted materials were allegedly used to train ROSS's AI system.

• Thomson Reuters claims this was done intentionally to compete unfairly with Westlaw.

Defense by ROSS:

• ROSS argued that its use of the data was transformative and protected under fair use doctrine.

• The company claimed that it did not copy Westlaw’s unique legal analysis or features but only used basic legal facts available in public domain cases.

Findings

• In 2022, the court denied ROSS’s motion for summary judgment, ruling that the case should proceed to trial.

• The judge found that there was sufficient evidence to evaluate whether ROSS's use of Westlaw content was fair use or infringement.

• This marked one of the first major rulings addressing AI training and copyrighted data.

Suggestions

• For AI companies:

  • Obtain proper licenses before using proprietary datasets.

  • Maintain audit trails to prove fair use compliance.

  • Develop AI training methods using open-source or public domain data to avoid legal conflicts.

• For legal publishers:

  • Strengthen data protection policies.

  • Consider licensing models for AI companies to avoid litigation.

Judgment / Case Status

Lawsuit Filed	2020
Motion for Summary     Judgment Denied	September 2022
Trial Scheduled	May 2023
Current Status	Ongoing case, awaiting trial verdict