The Tokyo District Court ruled on November 10 that fake investment ads using Yusaku Maezawa's face and name violated his publicity rights, but dismissed all of his claims against Meta, leaving victims of such scams without a platform to sue.
Maezawa, an entrepreneur, sued the US company and its Japanese arm in May 2024 over impersonation scam ads carried on Facebook and Instagram. He sought ¥1 in damages and an injunction against the ads, citing infringement of his portrait and publicity rights.
At the time, scam ads using the photos and names of celebrities without permission to draw people into fictitious investment schemes were spreading on social media and had become a social problem.
Court finds publicity rights infringed
Presiding Judge Naoyuki Iwai found that the ads impersonated Maezawa to solicit money for investment services that did not exist. They were posted without permission "solely for the purpose of exploiting the customer appeal of his likeness," the court found, recognizing an infringement of publicity rights.
Meta was not held liable. The court found the company merely provided the platform on which the ads appeared and was not directly involved in the postings.
No liability for leaving ads up
The court left room for platforms to be held responsible in some cases. If a platform leaves infringing posts in place, "the inaction itself may be evaluated as an infringing act in tort," depending on the nature of the infringement and how the rights holder raised the matter.
It did not apply that standard to Meta. The company's ad review does not comprehensively check for infringing information, the court found. A notice Maezawa sent before the ads ran did not specify the content or placement of the ads in detail. There was no evidence Meta could have recognized the postings immediately, the court ruled.
The Japanese subsidiary was also cleared, with the court finding its specific involvement in the ads unclear.
Injunction refused despite high need
On Maezawa's request for an injunction, the court said "the need to prevent the placement of scam ads is high." It still refused the order, citing Meta's practice at the time of taking down about 10% of ads within a day of posting and most within two days.
“If it is found illegal, it will make it easier for fraud victims to seek damages, and above all I think it will be a big step toward deterring fraud. I will do my best.”Yusaku Maezawa, entrepreneur, speaking on social media when he filed the suit in May 2024