In a recent decision, Judges for the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals have held that Naruto, the monkey “lacked statutory standing because the Copyright Act does not expressly authorize animals to file copyright infringement suits”.
Naruto had grabbed British nature photographer David Slater’s camera during a 2011 trip to Indonesia, posed and took a selfie, which became an instant hit.
In this case, PETA sued Slater and self-publishing company Blurb in 2015, arguing the monkey owned the copyright to the photos and proposing it administer all proceeds for the benefit of the monkey.