# Judge denies Google fee bid as publishers drop suit

Published: 2026-08-22T14:48:11.229Z · Source: Chat GPT Is Eating the World (https://chatgptiseatingtheworld.com/2026/08/22/judge-lee-denies-attorneys-fee-to-google-after-cengage-hachette-withdraw-motion-to-intervene-but-judge-expresses-concern-w-filing-new-suit-3000-miles-away-from-ongoing-suit-v-google/)
Source date: 2026-08-22
Entities: google, ai-litigation

A federal judge denied Google's request for attorneys' fees after publishers Cengage and Hachette withdrew their motion to intervene in the multidistrict Google Generative AI Copyright Litigation, per Chat GPT Is Eating the World, which obtained the ruling. Judge Eumi Lee also said she was concerned that the publishers had filed a new, separate copyright suit roughly 3,000 miles from the ongoing case.

Why it matters: The ruling leaves the multidistrict Google training-data suit intact while signaling judicial skepticism toward publishers pursuing a separate case far from the consolidated one, a dynamic that could shape where future AI-training suits get filed.

## What this answers

**Did Google win attorneys' fees against publishers Cengage and Hachette?**

No — Judge Eumi Lee denied Google's request for fees after the publishers withdrew their motion to intervene in the Google Generative AI Copyright Litigation, per Chat GPT Is Eating the World.


Canonical: https://anythingengineoptimization.com/item/2026-08-22-judge-denies-google-fee-bid-as-publishers-drop-suit/
From Anything Engine Optimization (AEO Wire) — https://anythingengineoptimization.com/ · Standards: https://anythingengineoptimization.com/standards/