Lawsuit tracker
GEMA v. Suno
GEMA v. Suno, Inc., Munich Regional Court I (Landgericht München I)
| Plaintiffs | GEMA, the German collecting society for composers, lyricists and music publishers |
|---|---|
| Defendants | Suno, Inc. |
| Court | Munich Regional Court I (Landgericht München I), Germany; reporting identifies Judge Elke Schwager, who presided in GEMA v. OpenAI |
| Filed | 2025-01-21 |
| Status | Active |
| Content type | musical works |
| Last updated | 2026-07-21 |
The claims
Copyright infringement under German and EU law: training on protected musical works without a license and generating output substantially similar to them; GEMA seeks injunctive relief, information and damages.
What has happened
GEMA followed its OpenAI case with a January 2025 suit against Suno, alleging the music generator was trained on protected works and produces recognizably similar output. The disputed works include “Forever Young” and “Big in Japan” (Alphaville), “Atemlos” (Kristina Bach), “Mambo No. 5” (Lou Bega), and “Rasputin” and “Daddy Cool” (Boney M.). At the March 9, 2026 oral hearing in Munich, the court had original recordings and Suno-generated outputs played back-to-back in the courtroom — the same chamber that ruled against OpenAI in November 2025. On May 26, 2026 the court announced the verdict would move from June 12 to July 31, 2026.
Key developments
- 2025-01-21 — GEMA files suit against Suno at the Munich Regional Court I, its second AI case after OpenAI.
- 2026-03-09 — Oral hearing; original songs and Suno outputs are played in court for comparison.
- 2026-05-26 — Court moves the verdict date from June 12 to July 31, 2026, citing internal administrative reasons.
Why it matters for training data
This is the case most likely to produce the first European ruling on music-generation models specifically — audio output, not lyrics text. The chamber already held in GEMA v. OpenAI that memorization infringes; if it extends that logic from text to audio, music-model operators facing EU users would carry licensing obligations regardless of where training occurred. Collecting societies aggregate claims cheaply, so a GEMA win creates a ready enforcement channel across its represented repertoire. Anyone feeding open-web audio into models with EU reach should watch the July 31, 2026 decision.
Sources
- HÄRTING Rechtsanwälte on the first hearing day
- Digital Music News on the March 2026 proceedings
- AI Musicpreneur on the verdict postponement to July 31, 2026
- Tech Times, July 10, 2026 status report
Deeper analysis
Want data that clears this in diligence?
Whether you're building a model or sitting on an archive, the first conversation is short and specific.
Send a brief