3rd Circuit Affirms Thomson Reuters Win Over ROSS on Headnotes and Fair Use

Overview

• A 3rd U.S. Circuit panel entered judgment affirming the lower court’s summary judgment for Thomson Reuters on the core issues in the dispute.
• The court upheld that Westlaw’s editorial headnotes are sufficiently original to receive copyright protection and that ROSS’s copying of those headnotes to train its system was not fair use.
• The written opinion has been issued to the parties but is under seal while the court considers redaction requests, so the panel’s detailed reasoning and precedential scope are not yet public.
• Key facts in the record include that the copying occurred before the rise of modern generative AI, was used to build a non‑generative legal search product, and was done to create a direct competitor; ROSS has since shut down.
• Legal observers say the ruling could be cited against other AI developers that used publisher material for training, but its practical effect will depend on whether the final public opinion ties its holding closely to these case‑specific facts.