Rosen v. Cook

On 14 August 2026, Apple shareholders filed a derivative action in the US District Court for the Northern District of California against certain Apple officers and directors, including Tim Cook, with Apple named as a nominal defendant.

The Plaintiffs allege that the Defendants knowingly permitted Apple to use unlicensed books, videos and voice recordings to develop its AI products, resulting in alleged copyright infringement and violations of the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act.

They claim breaches of fiduciary duties, waste of corporate assets and violations of section 14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act and SEC Rule 14a-9 arising from allegedly misleading proxy statements. The alleged corporate waste includes excessive remuneration, the repurchase of approximately 201.8 million Apple shares at allegedly inflated prices, and substantial litigation liabilities and costs.

The Plaintiffs seek damages and interest on Apple's behalf, injunctive and equitable relief, corporate governance and internal-control reforms, restitution, disgorgement of benefits allegedly obtained by the Defendants, and recovery of legal costs and expenses.

This summary is provided for educational and research purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Allegations described are those made in the filings. Please consult the underlying source documents.