Authors Guild v. OpenAI Inc., 1:23-cv-08292 (S.D.N.Y.), centralized in In re OpenAI, Inc. Copyright Infringement Litigation, MDL No. 3143

Summary

The Authors Guild and named authors, including John Grisham, Jodi Picoult, David Baldacci and George R.R. Martin, filed this proposed class action on September 19, 2023, in the Southern District of New York. They allege that OpenAI and Microsoft infringed authors' copyrights by copying books to train the GPT large language models. On April 3, 2025, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation centralized it with the other author class actions and the news-publisher suits before Judge Sidney H. Stein (MDL No. 3143), where the author cases proceed as one consolidated class case. Fact and expert discovery closed in summer 2026. On September 4, 2026, the class plaintiffs moved for summary judgment that the defendants infringed and that fair use does not apply, and the defendants filed their own summary judgment motions. The claims remain allegations: no ruling on liability or fair use, and no class certification order, was found.

Key dates

1. September 19, 2023Filed
2. October 16, 2026Checked against sources
3. October 21, 2026Checked against sources

Developments are added when the record is reviewed. Next review: January 15, 2027.

Evidence

Each passage is quoted from its source. The quoted passages are re-checked against the live pages every month.

1. Authors Guild v. OpenAI Inc., 1:23-cv-08292, (S.D.N.Y.) Date Filed: Sept. 19, 2023

   Supports: parties, court, docket number, filing date

   Authors Guild v. OpenAI Inc., 1:23-cv-08292 (docket) CourtListener (S.D.N.Y. docket) Primary source

2. AUTHORS GUILD, ET AL. v. OPENAI, INC., ET AL., C.A. No. 1:23-08292

   Supports: case is one of the twelve actions centralized in MDL No. 3143

   Transfer Order, In re OpenAI, Inc., Copyright Infringement Litigation, MDL No. 3143 (Doc. 85, 3 Apr. 2025) U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation Primary source

3. On Friday, September 4, 2026, the Authors Guild and its co-plaintiffs (the class plaintiffs) filed a motion for summary judgment and supporting brief in their copyright litigation against OpenAI and Microsoft

   Supports: current status: summary judgment motions filed September 2026; defendants OpenAI and Microsoft

   the case was consolidated with other pending class actions then centralized in a multi-district litigation along with The New York Times' and other news companies' suits on April 3, 2025

   Supports: consolidation and MDL centralization date

   Authors Guild and Co-Plaintiffs File Motion for Summary Judgment v. OpenAI and Microsoft (5 Sept. 2026) The Authors Guild (plaintiff) Reporting or analysis